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Golden Gate Bridge E-Book Highlights 75-Year History Of Landmark Span

SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) - The upcoming 75th anniversary of the Golden Gate Bridge has spawned an e-book that show's off a rich, and surprisingly unknown, history of a very familiar landmark.

Oral histories from bridge workers, historic photographs and maps, and even music, come together in A Wild Flight of the Imagination: The Story of the Golden Gate Bridge.

"We've got music, both original music that was composed for the bridge by a composer, Robert Kapilow, as well as historic songs. Who knew that bridge workers have their own songs?" said Anthea Hartig, executive director of the California Historical Society.

KCBS' Rebecca Corral Reports:

The organization assembled the 140 pages of text and multi-media, and released it to coincide with an exhibition of the same title showing at its gallery on Mission Street.

PHOTOS: Historical Golden Gate Bridge

Hartig said readers can learn, through interviews, about the fatal accident on Feb. 17, 1937 in which 10 construction workers lost their lives when timber went tumbling into a safety net.

The book also recounts the joyous march across the span the day before it officially opened to vehicle traffic on May 28, 1937.

The book is available for free in iTunes, or visit the California Historical Society website.

"It's really a delicious offering for your iPad," Hartig said.

(Copyright 2012 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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