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Eiffel Tower: Topics in Chronicling America

The Eiffel Tower opened in the 1889 World's Fair, initially planned to be taken down after 20 years. This guide provides access to materials related to the “Eiffel Tower” in the Chronicling America digital collection of historic newspapers.

Introduction

"Pavilions at the feed of the Eiffel Tower." May 20, 1900. New-York Tribune (New York, NY), Image 43. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers.

“The sight of it vexes poetic souls,” quotes the Advocate in 1894. Now considered an iconic part of the Paris skyline, the Eiffel Tower began as a controversial and temporary monument for the 1889 World’s Fair. Read more about it!

The information in this guide focuses on primary source materials found in the digitized historic newspapers from the digital collection Chronicling America.

The timeline below highlights important dates related to this topic and a section of this guide provides some suggested search strategies for further research in the collection.

Timeline

1889 The Eiffel Tower opens as a part of the 1889 World’s Fair in Paris. The tallest structure in the world at the time, it is to be taken down after 20 years.
1903- 1913 Gustave Eiffel’s successful experiments with wireless broadcasting and communication convince the City of Paris to let the Eiffel Tower remain standing.