Radio Hill (Lahti)

Radio Hill (Finnish: Radiomäki) is a hill located in the city centre of Lahti, Finland. It is part of the Salpausselkä ridge system, with its peak at an elevation of c. 140 metres (460 ft).[1][2]

Radio Hill
Lahti radio masts on Radio Hill (seen in 2006)
Highest point
Elevation140[1] m (460 ft)
Coordinates60.9795°N 25.647°E / 60.9795; 25.647 
Naming
EtymologyNamed after Lahti radio station
Native nameRadiomäki  (Finnish)
Geography
CountryFinland
RegionPäijänne Tavastia
CityLahti
Parent rangeSalpausselkä
BiomeTaiga
Geology
Formed byTerminal moraine
OrogenyYounger Dryas

The hill's earlier name was Selänmäki ('Ridge Hill').[3][2] After a cemetery was established there in the 1890s,[4] the hill became known as Hautausmaanmäki ('Cemetery Hill').[2] The cemetery, known today as Vanha hautausmaa ('Old Cemetery'), is closed to new interments.[4]

The hill gets its present name from the Lahti longwave transmitter station established there in 1927–1928, and operated by the country's public broadcaster, Yle, until its decommissioning in 1993.[3][5] The Finnish Radio and TV Museum, known as Mastola, is now located on the site, operated as part of the City of Lahti municipal museums.[6]

As a highly visible reminder of the radio station, the twin radio masts remain, standing 150 metres (490 ft) high[3][7] and 316 metres (1,037 ft) apart,[8] forming a well-known landmark of Lahti.[5]

The hilltop milieu surrounding the earlier radio station has been designated by the Finnish Heritage Agency as a nationally important built cultural environment (Valtakunnallisesti merkittävä rakennettu kulttuuriympäristö).[9]

The city's oldest track and field venue (converted in winter to an open-air ice rink), opened in 1922, is also located on the hill by the foot of the radio masts.[10]

References
  1. "Salpausselkä ja jääkaudet" [Salpausselkä and the ice ages] (PDF). GTK.fi (in Finnish). Geological Survey of Finland. 1994. p. 32. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  2. "Radiomäen monet kasvot". LahdenMuseot.fi (in Finnish). City of Lahti Museums. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  3. "Kun Selänmäestä tuli Radiomäki - Lahden maamerkit 90 vuotta!" (in Finnish). Etelä-Suomen Sanomat. 20 November 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  4. "Vanha hautausmaa". LahdenSeurakunnat.fi (in Finnish). Lahti Parishes. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  5. "Lahti radio station history". LahdenMuseot.fi. City of Lahti Museums. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  6. "Radio and TV Museum". LahdenMuseot.fi. City of Lahti Museums. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  7. "Lahti Transmission Towers". Structurae.net. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  8. Parviainen, Helena (2007). "Radio- ja televisiohistorian alkuajan tapahtumia Suomessa" (PDF). LahdenMuseot.fi (in Finnish). City of Lahti Museums. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  9. "Lahden suurradioasema". RKY.fi (in Finnish). Finnish Heritage Agency. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
  10. "Radiomäki". Lahti.fi (in Finnish). City of Lahti. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
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