Elevator Systems of the Eiffel Tower, 1889

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Robert M. Vogel
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Title: Elevator Systems of the Eiffel Tower, 1889
Author: Robert M. Vogel
Release Date: May 7, 2010 [EBook #32282]
Language: English
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Contributions from
The Museum of History and Technology:
Paper 19



Elevator Systems
of the Eiffel Tower, 1889
Robert M. Vogel


preparatory work for the tower 4
the tower’s structural rationale 5
elevator development before the tower 6
the tower’s elevators 20
epilogue 37

ELEVATOR SYSTEMS of the EIFFEL TOWER, 1889
By Robert M. Vogel
This article traces the evolution of the powered passenger elevator from its initial development in the
mid-19th century to the installation of the three separate elevator systems in the Eiffel Tower in
1889. The design of the Tower’s elevators involved problems of capacity, length of rise, and safety
far greater than any previously encountered in the field; and the equipment that resulted was the first
capable of meeting the conditions of vertical transportation found in the just emerging ...