The Iron Pioneer

After graduation in 1855, Eiffel's career began modestly at a railway equipment company. His breakthrough came with the Bordeaux Bridge project in 1858, where he pioneered the use of compressed air caissons for laying foundations underwater—a technique he would later adapt for the tower's foundations near the Seine.

Through the 1860s and 1870s, Eiffel built his reputation with increasingly ambitious projects: the iron church of San Marcos in Arica, Chile (designed to withstand earthquakes), the Budapest Western Railway Station, and the stunning Maria Pia Bridge in Porto, Portugal. Each project refined his understanding of how iron behaved under stress, wind, and time.

The Garabit Viaduct, completed in 1884, represented the pinnacle of Eiffel's pre-tower career. Spanning the Truyère River with a 165-meter arch, it was then the highest bridge in the world. The mathematical precision required for its construction would directly inform the tower's design.