Télégraphe: origin of the name and station history
Served by: metro line 11.
Why this name?
The station takes its name from rue du Télégraphe, which recalls the invention of Claude Chappe, who set up his telegraph on the highest point of the Belleville hill. Despite its great depth, it is described as the highest point of the whole network: the tracks are at 96 m above sea level, while the local street level peaks at 120 m. It lies on the border of the 19th and 20th arrondissements, between Place des Fêtes and Porte des Lilas, near the Belleville cemetery and the square Belleville - Télégraphe. It opened with the first section of line 11.
Anecdote
A scene from Jean-Pierre Melville's film Le Samouraï (1967), with Alain Delon, was shot in the station. A central pier, pierced by arches, forms two half-stations. As an April Fools' joke the RATP humorously renamed it « #Tweet », and an entrance with a lift opened in early 2023.
Around Télégraphe
- Parc des Buttes-Chaumont, 1300 m away — A park opened on 1 April 1867, the day of the Universal Exposition, designed by Alphand. Davioud's Temple de la Sibylle stands about 50 m above the lake, which is crossed by a 63-metre suspension bridge designed by Eiffel.
- Cimetière de Belleville, 350 m away — A little-known small cemetery offering unobstructed views over Paris, away from tourist crowds.
- Église Notre-Dame-des-Otages, 550 m away — A church commemorating the hostages shot by the Communards on this site in 1871.