Built to swap gun turrets on battleships, the crane can lift over a million pounds. The naval yard was decommissioned in the early 1970's, and the crane has loomed over San Francisco's skyline since.

The Hunters Point Gantry crane is located in the Hunters Point Shipyard in San Francisco, CA. The commercial shipyard opened in 1867, housing the first permanent dry dock on the West Coast. Subsequent docks, built in 1916, were thought to be the largest in the world.

The Hunters Point Gantry crane is located in the Hunters Point Shipyard in San Francisco, CA. The commercial shipyard opened in 1867, housing the first permanent dry dock on the West Coast. Subsequent docks, built in 1916, were thought to be the largest in the world.

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This is the largest gantry crane in the world. It's 730 feet long--longer than AT&T baseball stadium, taller than the Statue of Liberty, and weighs as much as the Eiffel Tower. Built to swap gun turrets on battleships, the crane can lift over a million pounds.

Nearly as long as the Titanic, it was billed as "The mightiest crane in the world." Two massive liftsmoved along rails atop a 730 foot long runway. Over a 200 foot drop to the water, the crane's runway sat level with the roadway of the Golden Gate Bridge.

In 1959, the 230 foot tall trapezoidal tower was added to the top of the crane, bringing its total height to nearly 500 feet. The addition was created to facilitate Operation Skycatch, where Polaris Missiles were fired and caught via a string of arresting …

Today the crane sits derelict, the terminus of a lengthy dirt-covered pier, as Hunters Point is slowly churned up and developed around it. Decontamination has been a long, destructive process, wiping the landscape clean.

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