Pavilion of the Ministry of Public Works - Expo Paris 1889

Located in the Trocadero garden, near the corner formed by the central avenue and the quay, the special exhibition pavilion of the Ministry of Public Works. It occupies a slightly larger area than that allocated to it in 1878.
The building is simple and elegant, of brick and iron, with a tiled roof and a small annexed shed.
On each side of the central room are two square turrets, each containing a staircase leading to an upper platform which serves as an access to a lighthouse, a fitting tribute to our remarkable Lighthouse Service which serves, in many cases, as a model for our neighbours. The lighthouse tower is 33 metres high, and would be surprising if it were not so close to the Eiffel Tower. The general decoration of the building is sober and elegant.
Inside, we find a remarkable collection of scale models and drawings relating to the main works carried out by the Ministry of Public Works; well-executed models make it easier to understand. The main part relates to the lighthouse apparatus, among which our Parisian builders shine, in the absolute sense of the word, and then to the beaconing of the coasts; We see a remarkable compressed air Siren, of great power, activated by a hot air motor which supplies, moreover, the electric energy necessary for the lighting of the lighthouse which dominates the building and whose luminous flashes light up a large part of the Trocadero garden; we have the right to hope that it will not light up any shipwreck in this beautiful site, an elegant souvenir of our 1878 Exhibition. The public can make sure of this and, according to the maritime expression, "keep watch" in the lighthouse tower, to which access is allowed in small groups.

© Guide Bleu du Figaro et du Petit Journal 1889