By Lani Johnson
About the Opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge
The 1932 opening ceremonies for the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the world's widest long-span bridge, make a good yarn. There were multiple ribbon cuttings, depending on how you interpret the tale.
Great Day for Australia
1932 photograph
There was unplanned excitement when the 19 March 1932 ribbon-cutting ceremonies on the southern end of the bridge were interrupted, and the ribbon cut, by a uniformed horseman.
As It Was Planned
Opening ceremonies
Jack Lang, premier of New South Wales and a member of the Labor party, stood ready to do the honors after various dignitaries had given speeches.
Plans Go Awry
Captain Francis De Groot
Instead, Captain Francis De Groot, who belonged to the New Guard political party, declared the bridge open in the name of "the decent citizens of New South Wales." De Groot believed the bridge to be so important that only a member of the royal family--or, as it happened, the people--was qualified to declare it open.
Decorum Restored
After the interloper was arrested, the ribbon was retied and Lang cut it, opening the south end of what was until 1967 the tallest structure in Sydney. On the northern end of the bridge, the ribbon-cutting ceremony went without a hitch.
Count for Yourself
Some years later
Thus either two or three ribbon cutting ceremonies took place, depending upon how you count them.
Resources
About the Author:
Lani Johnson is a hiking, writing musician. Recent published work includes journalism, poetry and research. See her online writing at Trails.com or at Azacda.presspublisher.us.
Photo Credits:
Photo courtesy of istockphoto.com, www.gids.nl/cgi-bin/
