He shines all through the night. When day comes, his little flame continues to burn, flickering away as his electric counterparts are extinguished. Who is it? Why it’s Léon of course, the last gaslight in greater Paris. Installed in the 1920s, the era that brought paved roads and municipal sewers to the area, the lamp post continues to keep watch over the very picturesque Sentier du Tir. He’s easy to find – just walk along this pedestrian path and look up. The name Léon is emblazoned in white letters on the glass. If you cross paths with any elderly locals, be sure ask them about the lamp. They would tell you that it lives on only due to the efforts of a neighbourhood association, The Friends of Léon, who fought against town hall in the 1970s. Keen to modernise the city, elected officials had the audacity to propose connecting the light to electricity supply – the horror!
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