Elon Musk has announced he will be donating one million dollars to the Tesla Museum at Wardenclyffe Tower, Tesla’s former laboratory.
Matt Inman, the creator of the webcomic The Oatmeal, created a tribute to Tesla in 2012 entitled: “Why Nikola Tesla was the greatest geek who ever lived.” Inman also started the eloquently titled “Let’s Build A Goddamn Tesla Museum” fundraising campaign to purchase Wardenclyffe Tower, Tesla’s former laboratory in New York, and convert it into a museum.
The campaign was a huge success and raised $1.37 million in 45 days, far surpassing the $850,000 goal. One of the supporters of the campaign was total badass Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX and Tesla Motors. The land to build the museum was successfully purchased in 2013, ensuring Tesla’s laboratory would be preserved. The purchase was made by Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe, a nonprofit that had been trying to acquire the property for 18 years.
Back in May, Inman made a cartoonified review of the Tesla Motors Model S. At the conclusion of the review, Inman referred to the company’s namesake and included a teensy request for Mr. Musk. While Musk had graciously contributed to first fundraiser, they had only raised enough to purchase the 16 acres of land and not perform the extensive renovation of the land or build the museum itself. Inman, along with the last living member of Tesla’s family in the United States, urged Musk to help provide the funds to “build a goddamn Tesla museum.” Musk’s response?
Today, in honor Nikola Tesla’s 158th birthday, it was announced that Elon Musk was pledging $1 million toward the building of a museum on Wardenclyffe’s grounds. Additionally, he also committed to building a Tesla Supercharger station on the museum’s grounds.
It will take an estimated $8 million to build the museum, so there is still much to do. Tesla Science Center is collecting donations on their website to contribute to building the museum’s construction. They are also accepting applications for volunteers to clean up the land and remove mold and other hazards from inside the buildings.
