With the ceremonious cutting of a white silk ribbon, the governors of New York and New Jersey opened the George Washington Bridge to the public in 1931. Airplanes roared overhead, boat whistles sounded, and a band played "The Star-Spangled Banner." Hundreds of people participated in the ceremony, while thousands more gathered to be among the first on the bridge. Though it was referred to as the Hudson River Bridge during construction, its official name honored Revolutionary War history by following the path taken by General George Washington from Fort Washington in Manhattan to Fort Lee in the Palisades, a route associated with eventual victory across the river. Opening day established the bridge as a destination for sightseeing and community events, including parades for its namesake. The formal ceremony lasted five hours and featured government officials and service members, with events in different locations on the bridge and community celebrations in both states. Time magazine recorded that Governor Roosevelt and Governor Larson pulled apart ribbons tied by a bow at the center of the span and the boundary of two states, after which a police lieutenant collapsed from a heart attack, a patrolman fainted, two schoolboys roller-skated across from the Manhattan side as the first passengers from New York, and a New Jersey woman pushed her baby carriage to Manhattan as the first passenger from her state. The first paying motorist to cross the George Washington Bridge was Michael Katen, and Port Authority officers collected tolls. New York Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt paid tribute to the "great ideals" of President Washington in his dedication of the bridge on October 24, 1931.
