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1889 Eiffel Tower opens
On March 31, 1889, the Eiffel Tower is dedicated in Paris in a ceremony presided over by Gustave Eiffel, the tower’s designer, and attended by French Prime Minister Pierre Tirard, a handful of other dignitaries, and 200 construction workers.
In 1889, to honor of the centenary of the French Revolution, the French government planned an international exposition and announced a design competition for a monument to be built on the Champ-de-Mars in central Paris. Out of more than 100 designs submitted, the Centennial Committee chose Eiffel’s plan of an open-lattice wrought-iron tower that would reach almost 1,000 feet above Paris and be the world’s tallest man-made structure. Eiffel, a noted bridge builder, was a master of metal construction and designed the framework of the Statue of Liberty that had recently been erected in New York Harbor.
Eiffel’s tower was greeted with skepticism from critics who argued that it would be structurally unsound, and indignation from others who thought it would be an eyesore in the heart of Paris. Unperturbed, Eiffel completed his great tower under budget in just two years. Only one worker lost his life during construction, which at the time was a remarkably low casualty number for a project of that magnitude. The light, airy structure was by all accounts a technological wonder and within a few decades came to be regarded as an architectural masterpiece.
The Eiffel Tower is 984 feet tall and consists of an iron framework supported on four masonry piers, from which rise four columns that unite to form a single vertical tower. Platforms, each with an observation deck, are at three levels. Elevators ascend the piers on a curve, and Eiffel contracted the Otis Elevator Company of the United States to design the tower’s famous glass-cage elevators.
The elevators were not completed by March 31, 1889, however, so Gustave Eiffel ascended the tower’s stairs with a few hardy companions and raised an enormous French tricolor on the structure’s flagpole. Fireworks were then set off from the second platform. Eiffel and his party descended, and the architect addressed the guests and about 200 workers. In early May, the Paris International Exposition opened, and the tower served as the entrance gateway to the giant fair.
The Eiffel Tower remained the world’s tallest man-made structure until the completion of the Chrysler Building in New York in 1930. Incredibly, the Eiffel Tower was almost demolished when the International Exposition’s 20-year lease on the land expired in 1909, but its value as an antenna for radio transmission saved it. It remains largely unchanged today and is one of the world’s premier tourist attractions.
Courtesy of History.com
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Oct. 7 final day to register to vote
Oct. 7 is the last day to register to vote in the Nov. 5 general election.
Voters also should double check their voter registration to make sure all the information is up-to-date. Go to votetexas.gov on the Texas Secretary of State’s website to make any address changes.
Registering to vote in Texas is easy, simply complete a voter registration application on the SOS website and return it to your county election office at least 30 days before the upcoming election date.
Fill in the required information, print and sign the complete application. At this late date it may be best to deliver the registration form in person to the election office in the courthouse annex at Montague.
Any additional information on voter registration can be seen on the county website at co.montague.tx.us, click on elections. Direct any questions to the office at 894-2540.
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Saint Jo crew works all night to repair 8-inch water main
Marty Hilton and his crew with City of Saint Jo Public Works pulled an all nighter repairing an eight-inch water main break along U.S. 82 and Boggess Street. The break was reported around noon on Wednesday. City officials said one of the hardest parts was digging on U.S. 82 and when large trucks would go by the vibrations kept making the walls fall down causing them to be dug out again. The repair was completed at 10:30 a.m. Thursday and the water turned back on. The city is under a boil order until the water tests are complete, which can’t happen until Monday when the lab reopens. (Courtesy photo)
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Local businesswoman arrested in Hood County on TABC warrant
Tawni Jones Ledbetter was arrested on July 10 by law officers in Hood County on a warrant for making a false statement to the Texas Alcohol Beverage Commission.
Ledbetter was released from jail on $10,000 bond. While the former owner of The Rack lists Bowie as where she lives, she also remarried earlier this year to a man who resides in Granbury.
The TABC complaint could be handled as a misdemeanor according to the public information office, but additional details were unavailable as of presstime. The PIO indicated it depends on the specific type of case and he did not have the warrant information at the time of the call.
Read the full story in the mid-week Bowie News.
CORRECTION – In the Wednesday Bowie News this article in the print edition stated Ledbetter was the owner of The Rack, this is incorrect. She is no longer owner of this business. We apologize for this error.
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