New look: Cold War relics removed from Terre Haute tower
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (AP) - A long-time feature of the Terre Haute skyline has undergone a big change.
Workers removed a half-dozen large, cone-shaped antennas from the top of the AT&T-owned tower on the south side of the 600 block of Ohio Street Tuesday.
Each of the hulking devices, which date from the 1950s or '60s, weighs 2,500 pounds and each was removed by workers from S & S Communications Specialists Inc., an Oklahoma company, the Tribune-Star reported (http://bit.ly/1C6C6UH ).
Removing the devices, known as microwave horn antennas, leaves the top of the tower looking bare to anyone who has grown accustomed to the distinctive appearance of it looming nearly 200 feet above the downtown for the past several decades. They were removed to lighten the weight on the tower and to make room for cellphone transmission antennas, said Fonzie Shanks of S & S Communications Specialists.
The microwave horn antennas were lifted up and away from the 198-foot tower by a massive crane. Workers from S & S climbed the tower, including at least one man who went to the top. Asked how it was, he answered "cold." It was also snowing a little early Tuesday morning up there, he said.
The microwave horn antennas, which have been unused for years, are a relic of the Cold War. They were part of the Bell/AT&T communications network, which was broken up in the 1980s. The towers were designed to withstand all but relatively nearby nuclear explosions, and the horns were coated with "a protective shield to keep out not only the elements, but also radioactive fallout," according to www.drgibson.com, a website with historical and other information about the towers.
In many parts of the country, horn antenna towers such as the one over Terre Haute, have been purchased by private tower companies and used for cellphone antennas. Terre Haute's tower remains owned by American Telephone and Telegraph, according to county records.
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Information from: Tribune-Star, http://www.tribstar.com