- Joseph Strauss
:"See also:
Joseph Straus "Joseph Baermann Strauss (
January 9 ,1870 –May 16 ,1938 ) was anGerman-American structural engineer and designer.He was born in
Cincinnati, Ohio to an artistic family of German origin, having a mother who was a pianist and a father who was a writer and painter [ [http://www.usatoday.com/travel/destinations/10great/2006-10-05-german-places_x.htm] "Two of San Francisco's best-known landmarks were built by Germans: Joseph Strauss designed the 1937 Golden Gate Bridge, and Bernard Maybeck, son of a German immigrant, designed the Palace of Fine Arts."] . He graduated from theUniversity of Cincinnati in 1892, serving as both class poet and president. Upon graduating from the University of Cincinnati, Strauss worked at the Office ofRalph Modjeski , where he began to innovate the design ofbascule bridges . He was Chief Engineer of theGolden Gate Bridge inSan Francisco, California . He placed a brick from the demolished McMicken Hall at the University of Cincinnati in the south anchorage before the concrete was poured. Strauss was also designer of theBurnside Bridge (1926) and theLewis and Clark Bridge (1930). He also wrote a poem saluting theSequoia of Northern California and Southern Oregon. He died inLos Angeles, California , just one year after the Golden Gate's completion. His statue can be seen on the San Francisco side.He also worked with the
Dominion Bridge Company in building theCherry Street Strauss Trunnion Bascule Bridge inToronto .Strauss' father, Raphael Strauss (1830-1901), was a prominent painter, whose works included U.S. presidents. His pianist mother had an unfortunate accident which ultimately ended her concert career. Strauss' nephew, Ray Strauss (1907-1982), was a well-known, mid-century scarf designer in New York city.
In 1987, a major 50th anniversary celebration of the Golden Gate Bridge was held in San Francisco. Most recently, the Wall Street Journal published a March 17, 2007 article, "Spanning the Impossible," which commemorates Strauss' engineering marvel, in this its 70th year. His moving poem "Sequoia" can still be purchased by tourists visiting the California redwoods.
References
External links
*
* [http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/goldengate/peopleevents/p_strauss.html The American Experience] ,PBS
* [http://www.asce.org/history/bio_strauss.html Biography] by theASCE
* [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sequoia]
* [http://live.asce.org/hh/index.mxml?versionChecked=true History and Heritage of Civil Engineering] by theASCE
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