Golden Gate Bridge: Depression, Construction, And The Rise of California (Part 1)

For the seventeeth installment of “50 Weeks That Shaped America” we travel to California in the 1930s, where San Francisco planners have a big idea — build a massive suspension bridge across the Golden Gate strait. We discuss how the project came together despite the Great Depression, the big egos involved, what the story says about how audacious projects can pull a country out of malaise… and why the bridge is the color it is. Join our America250 newsletter community !

You can listen to Golden Gate Bridge: Depression, Construction, And The Rise of California (Part 1) online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Golden Gate Bridge: Depression, Construction, And The Rise of California (Part 1) is an episode from This Day in Esoteric Political History by Jody Avirgan & Radiotopia.

This episode is 31:37 long.

This episode was published on Apr 28, 2026.

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