Joseph Strauss

Joseph Baermann Strauss (January 9, 1870 – May 16, 1938) was a German-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. He graduated from the University of Cincinnati in 1892, serving as both class poet and president. Strauss graduated with a degree in economics and business. Upon graduating from the Univer... more

Joseph Baermann Strauss (January 9, 1870 – May 16, 1938) was a German-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. He graduated from the University of Cincinnati in 1892, serving as both class poet and president. Strauss graduated with a degree in economics and business. Upon graduating from the University of Cincinnati, Strauss worked at the Office of Ralph Modjeski, where he began to innovate the design of bascule bridges. He was Chief Engineer of the Golden Gate Bridge in San 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 the Burnside Bridge (1926) and the Lewis and Clark Bridge (1930). He also wrote a poem saluting the Sequoia of Northern California and Southern Oregon. His love for bridges came... less