Light from the Past

This is a moonlight tower. As you drive around Austin you will occasionally notice one of these gigantic (165 feet high) street lighting fixtures. Originally erected in 1895, some remain in use today. This one is at 9th and Guadalupe. They were refurbished for their hundredth anniversary and until the 20's they had carbon arc lamps light nightly by a workman using a built-in elevator. They use mercury vapor today. A replica of one is used to make a giant lighted 'Christmas tree' in Zilker park each year. Most sources I found say there are seventeen in use today, but I think this counts one that was at 4th and Nueces that was removed (temporarily? I had heard it would be re-erected somewhere at some point) to build the building in which I sit. You can see that tower in the distance on the far left here. It's hard to believe these structures are over a hundred years old. But it's hard to believe the Eiffel tower went up in 1889, too! You wonder if the Eiffel Tower and its Expo didn't influence cities around the U.S. to buy these. (Apparently, many cities had them in that era but only Austin has preserved them.)