The first lighthouse was built in 1857. It was built during the construction of the two dykes which, together with the Mont Blanc bridge, would form the boundaries of a port which would be called the "Rade" (also called the Lake Geneva Basin).
At the start of the second National Exhibition (1896), Geneva decorated its quays with gas-powered street lamps, among other things, to welcome its guests with dignity. This improvement replaced the lighthouse's light source. This meant that sailors now had difficulty identifying the entrance in the 230-meter-long passage between the "Jet d'eau" pier and the Pâquis district.
To solve this problem, the city's engineer, Emile Charbonnier, and his architect, Paul Bouvier, built a new 18-meter-high lighthouse. This was equipped with a rotating light powered by Fresnel lenses. With this new technology, the lighthouse is now visible from 36 kilometers away.
Charles-Henri Schmiedt built the steel tower in his Geneva workshop. This steel tower was placed on the stone base of the first lighthouse.
Max Delrieu, the lighthouse keeper, was the only person who worked on both structures.
The lighthouse sent its first optical signal on April 21, 1894.