Figure 2 1 . — The first widespread use of electricity in the eleva- 

 tor field was to drive belt-type mechanical machines and the 

 pumps of hydraulic systems (see p. 14) as shown here. (From 

 Electrical World, Jan. 4, 1890, vol. 15, p. 4.) 



The Tower's Elevators 



A great part of the EifTel Tower's worth and its 

 raison d'etre lay in the overwhelming visual power by 

 which it was to symbolize to a world audience the 

 scientific, artistic, and, above all, the technical 

 achievements of the French Republic. Another con- 

 sideration, in Eiffel's opinion, was its great potential 

 value as a scientific observatory. At its summit grand 

 experiments and observations would be possible in 

 such fields as meteorology and astronomy. In this 

 respect it was welcomed as a tremendous improvement 

 over the balloon and steam winch that had been 

 featured in this service at the 1878 Paris exposition. 

 Experiments were also to be conducted on the elec- 

 trical illumination of cities from great heights. The 

 great strategic value of the Tower as an observation 

 post also was recognized. But from the beginning, 

 sight was never lost of the structure's great value as 

 an unprecedented public attraction, and its systematic 

 exploitation in this manner played a part in its 



planning, second perhaps only to the basic design. 



The conveyance of multitudes of visitors to the 

 Tower's first or main platform and a somewhat lesser 

 number to the summit was a technical problem whose 

 seriousness Eiffel must certainly have been aware of 

 at the project's onset. While a few visitors could be 

 expected to walk to the first or possibly second stage, 

 377 feet above the ground, the main means of trans- 

 port obviously had to be elevators. Indeed, the two 

 aspects of the Tower with which the Exposition com- 

 missioners were most deeply concerned were the 

 adequate grounding of lightning and the provision of a 

 reliable system of elevators, which they insisted be 

 unconditionally safe. 



To study the elevator problem, Eiffel retained a 

 man named Backmann who was considered an expert 

 on the subject. Apparently Backmann originally was 

 to design the complete system, but he was to prove 

 inadequate to the task. As his few schemes are 



20 



BULLETIN 228: CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE MUSEUM OF HISTORY AND TECHNOLOGY 



