Eiffel, Gustave

(1832-1923)

   engineer

   Most famous for his construction of the tower in Paris that bears his name, Gustave Eiffel was born in Dijon and was educated there at the Lycée royal and at the Collège sainte-Barbe in Paris. He graduated from the École Centrale des Arts et Manufactures (1855) and joined a company that produced steam engines. In 1858, the company was granted a contract to construct a railway bridge at bordeaux. Eiffel's achievement of that work allowed him (1866) to begin his own company, and he soon became known for the building of wrought iron structures. In 1877, Eiffel erected a steel arch bridge over the Douro River in oporto, Portugal (160 m in height) and, in 1884, he completed the Garabit Viaduct in France, which, for a time, was the highest bridge in the world. It demonstrates his expert craftsmanship and graceful sense of design. Eiffel cast frédéric-auguste bartholdi's colossal statue, Liberty Enlightening the World (Statue of Liberty), which was dedicated in New York Harbor in 1886. soon after, he began work on his greatest project, the building of the eiffel tower.It was completed in 1889 for the celebration of the centennial of the French Revolution. The imposing tower is constructed of 7,000 tons of iron in 18,000 parts, held together by 2,500,000 rivets. Reaching a height of 984 feet (300 m), it dominates the Paris skyline. Eiffel later became interested in the new science of aerodynamics and, in 1912 at Auteil, he opened the first aerodynamic laboratory, which soon contributed to the development of aviation.