Moonlight Towers (Austin, Texas)

Moonlight Towers

A moonlight tower at night
Location Austin and vicinity
Nearest city Austin, Texas
Built 1894 (1894)
Architect Fort Wayne Electric Co.
Architectural style Lighting Towers
NRHP Reference # 76002071[1]
RTHL # 6424
TSAL # 627
Significant dates
Added to NRHP July 12, 1976
Designated RTHL 1970
Designated TSAL 5/28/1981

The Moonlight towers in Austin, Texas are the only known surviving light towers in the world. They are 165 feet (50 m) tall and have a 15-foot (4.6 m) foundation. A single tower cast light from six carbon arc lamps, illuminating a 1,500-foot-radius (460 m) circle brightly enough to read a watch.[2]

In 1970 the towers were recognized as Texas State Landmarks, followed by the 17 remaining towers being listed in the National Register of Historic Places on July 12, 1976. Only 6 are in their original locations as established by the Board of Public Works and City Council in 1895.

History

In 1894, the City of Austin purchased 31 used towers from Detroit. They were manufactured in Indiana by Fort Wayne Electric Company and assembled onsite.[3] Some have claimed that Austin put up moonlight towers partially in response to the actions of the Servant Girl Annihilator, but in fact the towers were not erected until 1894 and 1895, ten years after the murders took place.[4]

When first erected, the towers were connected to electric generators at the Austin Dam, completed in 1893 on the site of present-day Tom Miller Dam. In the 1920s their original carbon-arc lamps, which were exceedingly bright but time-consuming to maintain, were replaced by incandescent lamps, which gave way in turn to mercury vapor lamps in the 1930s. The mercury vapor lamps were controlled by a switch at each tower's base. During World War II, a central switch was installed, allowing citywide blackouts in case of air raids.

In 1993 the city of Austin dismantled the towers and restored every bolt, turnbuckle and guy-wire as part of a $1.3 million project, the completion of which was celebrated in 1995 with a city-wide festival. The City of Austin has ordinances in place to protect the towers from demolition. However, since 2004 the towers at 4th & Nueces and 1st & Trinity have been removed due to new construction. It is unclear whether they will be replaced, or erected elsewhere.

Tower locations

Surviving towers

The moonlight tower in Zilker Park

There are 17 surviving towers kept in original condition except for a historic plaque on each tower.[5]

Dismantled towers

The Zilker Park tower was prominently featured in the film Dazed and Confused (1993) as the site of a high-school keg party, in which the character David Wooderson played by Matthew McConaughey exclaims, "Party at the moon tower."[7]

This place used to be off limits, man, ‘cause some drunk freshman fell off. He went right down the middle, smacking his head on every beam, man. I hear it doesn’t hurt after the first couple though. Autopsy said he had one beer, how many did you have?[8]
— Ron Slater, Dazed and Confused

The scenes were actually filmed at mock-up of a tower, which was erected at Walter E. Long Park east of Austin. Both the base and top of the tower shown in the movie differed greatly from those of the real towers.

There is a band called Moonlight Towers from Austin.[9]

An episode of the podcast 99% Invisible titled "Under the Moonlight" explores the history of the moonlight towers.

References

  1. ↑ National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. ↑ "Progress Report Austin: Legends of Austin k2". Texas Archive of the Moving Image. 1962. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
  3. ↑ Texas Historical Commission Atlas
  4. ↑ Neinast, Roy. "Serial Killers and Stoners: 10 Facts about Austin's Moonlight Towers". Glasstire. Retrieved March 25, 2014.
  5. ↑ Powell, William Dylan (2006). Austin then & now. San Diego, Calif.: Thunder Bay Press. pp. 74, 75. ISBN 1-59223-658-8.
  6. 1 2 "Moonlight Towers". Austin Postcard. Retrieved March 20, 2014.
  7. ↑ New York Times: "Austin’s Moon Towers, Beyond ‘Dazed and Confused’" by MARK OPPENHEIMER February 13, 2014
  8. ↑ "Quotes for Mitch Kramer (Character)". IMDB. Retrieved March 25, 2014.
  9. ↑ "Moonlight Towers album review". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved March 25, 2014.
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