The Faces of History in the Making Project

The photographic record of the construction of the original Bay Bridge holds thousands of images. Most show various stages of construction or, from a distance, workers engaged in the lofty and often dangerous work of erecting the span.

Yet something is missing. The body of photos does not convey the breadth of humanity such a vast project as building the Bay Bridge required. Too few are the opportunities for subsequent generations to look at the faces of the builders and see the grime and glory of days of labor gone by, or to glimpse at the people whose hard work away from the bridge made the endeavor possible.

The Faces of History in the Making Project, then, is an attempt to preserve for posterity the likenesses of the men and women involved in the construction of the new East Span. From engineers to security guards, the Faces galleries will include people from all lines of work related to the construction.

This ongoing archive will conclude after the demolition of the existing East Span, scheduled for 2012. Meanwhile, every effort is being made to photograph as many craftworkers, engineers, supervisors, managers and support people as possible.

We currently have three faces of History in the Making Galleries: Portraits from the Field, The People of KFM and The People of Caltrans. More galleries will be added as the East Span replacement progresses and additional companies and individuals become involved.

For more information or to schedule a photo shoot, please email the producers and owners of this site, the California Alliance for Jobs, at [email protected].