Eiffel Tower, The,
a notable structure in Paris, France. The plans for the Paris exposition of 1889 included a monstrous iron tower, to be raised on the Champs-de-Mars, 1,000 feet high. The designer, Gustave Eiffel, constructed it of iron lattice-work, with three sets of elevators giving access to the summit. The uses of this stupendous tower are many, and it became one of the chief permanent ornaments of the city. Its importance from a meteorological point of view cannot be overestimated, the tower enabling meterologists to study the decrease of temperature at different heights, to observe the variations of winds, and to find out the quantity of rain that falls at different heights, and the density of the clouds. The French Government contributed $292,000 to the cost of the tower which was over $1,000,000. M. Eiffel & Co. supplied the rest for a 20 years' lease of the tower. The fees for 1889 repaid the outlay.
Entry from Everybody's Cyclopedia, 1912.