References:
[1], [3], [6] Kate Baillie, Tim Salmon, Margo Daly, Rachel Kaberry, "PARIS". London: Rough Guides Ltd, 1999.
[2], [4], [5] Steve Fallon, Daniel Robinson, Tony Wheeler, "PARIS". Footscray, Victoria, Australia: Lonely Planet Publication, 2001.

Amazon eBay: Gustave Eiffel (1832 - 1923) Born on December 15, 1832 in Dijon, Gustave Eiffel was an exceptionally gifted engineer and builder. He graduated from the prestigious Ecole Centrale de Paris. His extraordinary career was marked in 1876 by the construction of the Maria Pia bridge over the River Douro in Portugal, then by that of the Garabit Viaduct in central France in 1884 and Budapest station in Hungary. He was responsible for the metal structures of the Bon Marché department store and the Crédit Lyonnais bank in Paris, the cupola of the Nice observatory, and, above all, the very impressive internal structure of the Statue of Liberty. The construction of the Eiffel Tower in 1889 was his crowning achievement. His career as an entrepreneur would come to an end with the failure of the Panama Canal project. From then on, he devoted his time to operating the Tower and to various experiments in air resistance, the observation of meteorology and especially the installation of a giant antenna for the earliest radio broadcasts. Indeed, it is because of these experiments that the Eiffel Tower is still standing, since it was initially built to last 20 years! Biography – A few key dates • 1832 - Born in Dijon on December 15 to François-Alexandre Eiffel and Catherine Mélanie Moneuse. • 1843 - His early childhood is spent with his maternal grandmother and at school at the Lycée in Dijon where he passed his baccalaureate. • 1850 - He enrols at the Paris college of Sainte-Barbe to prepare his entrance exam to Polytechnique. Having failed the exam, he signs on at École Centrale where he chooses to study chemistry. • 1855 - He successfully obtains his diploma from École Centrale and embarks on a career in metallurgy, where his mother has some contacts. • 1856 - He is recruited by Charles Nepveu, a builder of steam machines and equipment for the railways. • 1857 - He is appointed head of the design department at Pauwels & Cie. • 1858-1860 - Construction of the Bordeaux bridge. • 1860 - Marries Marie Gaudelet on July 8. • 1863 - Birth of his daughter Claire. The couple will have two more daughters and two sons. • 1867 - Having been a self-employed consultant engineer for a year, he starts his own company. • 1868-1871 - Construction of a viaduct on the Commentry- Gannat line. • 1871-1873 - Various projects in Spain, Portugal, Romania, Egypt and Latin America, the viaducts of the Brive-Tulle line, and the Thouars Viaduct. • 1875 - The Western Station in Budapest. • 1876 - The Maria-Pia bridge in Portugal and numerous construction projects for the Universal Exhibition of 1878. • 1877 - Death of his wife, then of his mother. • 1879 - Viana and Beira-Alta bridges in Portugal. • 1880 - Szeged bridge in Hungary. • 1880-1884 - Construction of the Garabit Viaduct. • 1882 - The Cubzac bridge and the exporting of bridges that can be dismantled in Indochina. • 1883 - Viaduct over the Tardes. • 1884 - Observatory of Nice, grand equatorial cupola. • 1885 - Internal structure of the Statue of Liberty. • 1887 - Work starts on “the 300-metre high tower”. Contract for the Panama Canal. • 1889 - The Tower is completed. Opening of the Universal Exhibition. • 1890-1895 - Involved in the Panama Canal corruption scandal, he is at first condemned by the Paris Appeals Court but the verdict is overruled and the builder is cleared of all wrongdoing. Gustave Eiffel withdraws from the company to devote his time to his scientific work. • 1909 - Designed an aeronautics laboratory near the Champde- Mars, in Paris and experiments with detent apparatus. • 1912 - Construction on Rue Boileau in Paris of the first wind tunnel.