The Eiffel Tower

by Meg Greene

Book Overview

The world's most ambitious design and engineering projects of the past century gained almost instant international notoriety. Each required bold innovation, a unique vision, and many dedicated and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Library Binding
• Language: English
• ISBN: 156711315X
• ISBN13: 9781567113150
• Release Date: November 2003
• Publisher: Blackbirch Press
• Length: 48 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 7.6" x 9.2"
• Age Range: 9 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 4 to 7

Customer Reviews

You know the ending, but you're still hoping the team will finish the Eiffel Tower in time!

Here is a history question. Do you know Monsieur Eiffel's first name? His name was Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel, and he used Gustave for his first name. Chapter 1 begins with the end of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 to 1871 and a violent and bloody revolt against the French government by a group called the Communards. During the 1880s, France was becoming prosperous under the leadership of President Thiers. The 100th anniversary of the French Revolution was coming in 1889. What to do? Huge exhibitions were popular in the last half of the 1800's, following the fashion of the first industrial exhibition in London in 1851. That one was the idea of Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria. The French decided to focus more on industrial developments than on the anniversary, since people in other countries might not be so enthusiastic about that piece of history. The idea for a tower 300 meters high (a thousand feet) came from Edouard Lockroy; he was the chairman of the Exposition Committee. The book then follows some of the more outrageous entries. One proposal was for a tower in the shape of a giant water sprinkler. Then the reader follows Gustave's early life. Gustave was actually a poor student and found school boring. He studied chemistry and would have spent his life as a chemist producing vinegar, if it hadn't been for a strange twist. Read the book to find out what happened. Instead, Gustave designed bridges, viaducts and railway stations. He also designed the steel structure that holds up the Statue of Liberty! His specialty was studying how wind affects flat surfaces. He invented a webbed design for his bridges that let the wind blow through, very clever! And of course, there's the intriguing story of the rush to build the Eiffel Tower in time for the Paris Universal Exposition, which opened on May 6, 1889. The workers began on January 26, 1887. It would be the world's tallest structure with an unproven design. No pressure there, men. Gustave would face a host of technical difficulties and a group of French citizens who were against building the tower. Meg also described how the Eiffel Tower was used during World War I and II. There's a picture of Adolf Hitler and a group of his officers in front of the Eiffel Tower. A few French men had disabled the elevators just before the Germans arrived. Upon hearing that he would have to climb the stairs to reach the first platform, Adolf refused and settled for having his picture taken in front of the Eiffel Tower. What a woose. There are also several nifty sidebar stories related to bridges, Gustave and various stunts performed on the Eiffel Tower. There's one about the Garonne River Bridge. A worker fell from the scaffolding into the river. Gustave took off his shoes and vest, jumped into the river and saved the man! The guys loved him for that one. It would have been nice to see a few more pictures of the bridges and viaducts Gustave designed. And there's just a brief, though well written, de

The Tour Eiffel

Don't let this book's low cost decieve you, this was a great help to me when I had to do a research paper over the tour. VERY INFORMATIVE!!!