Tuesday, May 12, 2015

Haunted Eiffel Tower

The Eiffel Tower located in Paris, France, is one of the world’s most famous landmarks.

It was built for the 1889 World's Fair as an entrance gate. Designed by Gustave Eiffel, he initially offered his design to Barcelona Spain. Officials in Barcelona rejected it stating the unique structure would not fit well in their city.


1889 Exposition
Universelle
The tower is 1063 feet tall, the equivalent of an 89-story building. It was initially built as a temporary structure with plans to tear it down. But in 1909, a group of French citizens realizing its importance as a radio/telegraph tower convinced the city not to take it down.

Known as the Iron Lady the tower played a crucial role in communications during the First World War.

A myth about the tower is that people can see it from the top floors of buildings around the city--this is not true. A city ordinance does not allow for buildings to have more than seven floors. This is the reason the tower is still the tallest structure in Paris today.

To date, over 700 million people have visited the tower. Unfortunately, over 400 of these visitors committed suicide by jumping off the tower. Since the 1960s added safety measures have drastically cut down on the number of deaths.

Eiffel Tower
A favorite romantic story is connected to one of these suicides. Two people that jumped actually survived the fall. One of these was a woman who smashed into a car and survived. She later married the man who owned this car.

A female ghost that haunts the Eiffel Tower is heard on one upper level. Her spirit is not a result of one of the suicides, instead she was a murder victim.

A pair of young lovers arranged to meet at their favorite spot--the Eiffel Tower. The man intended to propose, but his young girlfriend intended to break up with him.

His hopes dashed he became enraged at being dumped. He then either pushed or threw her over the side of the tower to her death.

Ever since in the spot where she fell from the tower, visitors report hearing a strange set of sounds.

First, female giggles heard then this sound turns into an argumentative plea. Then screams are heard. This same sequence is always reported. 

An odd side note to this haunting is a story about a replica of the Eiffel Tower located at an amusement park in Ohio that is haunted as well. But this story is for another post.

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