Ongoing History Daily: The Eiffel Tower was saved by radio

The Eiffel Tower is one of the most famous landmarks on the planet. When it was completed on March 31, 1889, after almost two years of construction, it was the talk of the 1889 World’s Fair. But incredibly, the plan was to take the thing down twenty years after the conclusion of the fair.

That was fine for many Paris residents who consider the tower an eyesore. But then technology intervened, specifically radio.

In 1910, transmitters installed in the tower started broadcasting an astronomical time signal that could be received for a radius of 6,000 km. In 1914, another radio transmitter was used to jam German radio communications during the Great War. This showed the tower’s strategic importance. By 1921, Radio Eiffel began broadcasting. More transmitters (AM, shortwave, and television) were later installed.

Had it not been for radio, the Eiffel Tower would have been scrapped in 1910.