<Tr> <Th> Parent (s) </Th> <Td> Alexandre and Catherine Eiffel </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th_colspan="2"> Signature </Th> </Tr> <P> Alexandre Gustave Eiffel (born Bönickhausen; / ˈaɪfəl /; French pronunciation: ​ (ɛfɛl); 15 December 1832--27 December 1923) was a French civil engineer . A graduate of École Centrale Paris, he made his name with various bridges for the French railway network, most famously the Garabit viaduct . He is best known for the world - famous Eiffel Tower, built for the 1889 Universal Exposition in Paris, and his contribution to building the Statue of Liberty in New York . After his retirement from engineering, Eiffel focused on research into meteorology and aerodynamics, making significant contributions in both fields . </P> <P> Gustave Eiffel was born in Burgundy, France, in the city of Dijon, Côte - d'Or, the first child of Catherine - Mélanie (née Moneuse) and Alexandre Bönickhausen (French pronunciation: ​ (bɔnikozɑ̃)). He was a descendant of Jean - René Bönickhausen, who had emigrated from the German town of Marmagen and settled in Paris at the beginning of the 18th century . The family adopted the name Eiffel as a reference to the Eifel mountains in the region from which they had come . Although the family always used the name Eiffel, Gustave's name was registered at birth as Bönickhausen, and was not officially changed to Eiffel until 1880 . </P>

Who built the eiffel tower and the statue of liberty