<P> Official invitation to the opening of the bridge . This copy was sent to the City of Seattle </P> <P> Until 1964, the Golden Gate Bridge had the longest suspension bridge main span in the world, at 4,200 feet (1,300 m). Since 1964 its main span length has been surpassed by ten bridges; it now has the second - longest main span in the United States, after the Verrazano - Narrows Bridge in New York City . The total length of the Golden Gate Bridge from abutment to abutment is 8,981 feet (2,737 m). </P> <P> The Golden Gate Bridge's clearance above high water averages 220 feet (67 m) while its towers, at 746 feet (227 m) above the water, were the world's tallest on a suspension bridge until 1993 when it was surpassed by the Mezcala Bridge, in Mexico . The Golden Gate Bridge remains the tallest bridge in the United States . </P> <P> The weight of the roadway is hung from 250 pairs of vertical suspender ropes, which are attached to two main cables . The main cables pass over the two main towers and are fixed in concrete at each end . Each cable is made of 27,572 strands of wire . The total length of galvanized steel wire used to fabricate both main cables is estimated to be 80,000 miles (130,000 km). </P>

Distance from golden gate bridge to the water