The Gettysburg National Tower was built in 1974 by real-estate developer Thomas R. Ottenstein on private land that was adjacent to the
Gettysburg National Military Park. It was opposed by many, during its planning phase, including the
National Park Service, historic preservationists, local residents, He also argued that "many local leaders have expressed themselves substantially in favor of it," adding: "Just after the Civil War ended, a memorial Association constructed a wooden observation tower strategically on East Cemetery Hill so that people...could have a realistic overview of the area.... So popular was this tower that in 1895, the Federal government authorized the erection of four additional steel observation towers on the Battlefield. The public's continued enthusiasm was so favorable that in 1896 an additional fifth tower was erected by the Federal Battlefield Commission. The 1896 Annual Report to the commission praised the towers.... We are happy to report that visitors in great numbers from all sections of our own country, as well as from abroad, are constantly thronging these historic grounds and tracing out the complicated phrases of the titanic struggle." By late 1970, Ottsenstein obtained a one-hundred-and-eighty-day option to purchase the construction site plus necessary state and local permits. Initially planning to build the tower at 777 Baltimore Street, he changed the site to Colt Park at Johns Avenue, despite the fact that his original permit was not automatically transferable. Later, with support from the National Park Service, he chose a wooded area east of the visitor center as his final site, and transferred the Colt Park site to the park service for $62,150, agreeing to "set up a non-profit corporation or foundation with five percent of the taxable income from the tower to support historic interests of the National Park Service." In July 1971, the State of Pennsylvania won a temporary injunction, halting construction. Despite further appeals, an Adams County judge dismissed all project objections via a final judicial ruling, and construction was allowed to proceed. and downtown Gettysburg viewed from the top of the tower, 1995 In 1990, a new law was passed, which made the land on which the tower stood part of the national park in Gettysburg. A decade later, in June 2000, a federal judge gave park officials permission to seize the tower itself, and three million dollars was subsequently awarded to the owners as compensation for the seizure. On July 3, 2000 at 5:03 p.m., the Gettysburg National Tower was
demolished with explosives by
Controlled Demolition, Inc. for the National Park Service. The demolition occurred on the 137th anniversary of the final day of the
Battle of Gettysburg. The public was invited to attend the event, which was staged to make it appear as though cannon fire had caused the tower to fall. ==Construction and design==