Originally built by General Electric Company for a fair in Russia, but the deal fell through. When Edward Gardner Lewis built the Woman's Magazine Building in University City Missouri in 1903, he aquired, and included this massive 80-inch searchlight on top of the building as a means of attracting people attending the St. Louis World's Fair just a short distance away.
The building has since become the University City, City Hall. This light is still a operating searchlight and is used for special events. The light sits on an elevator platform in the attic of the dome.