It’s What Saved The Eiffel Tower
For more than 40 years it was the world’s tallest structure. The Eiffel Tower was built to honor the 100 year anniversary of the French Revolution and it served as the gateway to the International Exposition in Paris.
The French government was given more than 100 designs and they chose Gustav Eiffel’s nearly 1,000 foot wrought-iron tower. Eiffel was a famous bridge builder and also designed the framework for the Statue of Liberty.
Not very many people liked it. Some said it was unsafe and many thought it was an eyesore. Some people said it was downright ugly. But it took only two years to build and it was under budget.
Not everything went perfectly though. The elevators weren’t finished on the day it was dedicated, so Eiffel and a few others climbed the 1710 steps to the tower’s third level to raise a huge French flag.
The Eiffel Tower was almost torn down when the Expo’s 20-year lease on the land expired, but can you think of what it was that saved it? Think about the height of the Eiffel Tower. It was perfect as a radio tower.
The Eiffel Tower was dedicated on this date, March 31st in 1889.