During the second half of the nineteenth century the
city of Mulhouse quickly expanded due to the rapid industrialization of the
Alsace region. Already an important manufacturing center in the previous
centuries, this industrialization mainly focused around Mulhouse. In response
to the growing demographic pressures and sanitary problems as a result of this
rapid urban expansion on June 10 1853 the Société Mulhousienne des Cités
Ouvrières (SOMCO - the Mulhouse Society for Workers Cities) was founded. This
initiative by the industrialist Jean Dollfus fits neatly with the philanthropic
and paternalistic logic at the time. The SOMCO was responsible for providing
housing for the workers of four factories, two of which were mills, the other
two engaged in fabric printing.
This resulted in the erection of the so-called Working
class city of Mulhouse (Cité Ouvrières) a new neigbourhood especially built for
factory workers on the northwestern outskirts of the city. The model of choice
for housing these workers became known as the Carré Mulhousien and consists of
four adjoined houses with a garden to the side and front, between narrow
streets. These back-to-back houses were arranged in long rows in a strict
repetitive pattern. That way construction was easy and the area could be
expanded according to demand. The blocks (also known in German as Kreuzhäuser)
were designed by the architect Emile Muller an quickly became popular in
Belgium (Wallonia), the Netherlands (Oostelijke Mijnstreek) and most
importantly Prussia (Ruhrgebiet) as an attractive way of housing miners and
millworkers.
The Cité Ouvrières is still a
very visible component of the urban fabric of Mulhouse. Sadly architects
building in this area have to stamp their own mark on it with new buildings
that are very far removed from the original pioneering type.
In the Mulhouse arrangement there was also a strong
social component to this model of workers housing (making it basically model
housing!). SOMCO introduced a system of delayed home ownership by leasing the
homes with the prospect of becoming the owner of the house after fifteen years
in exchange for a monthly payment (of 250 francs). The aim of the society was
to sell the homes at cost price rates after these fifteen years. Those workers
that didn't have the means to acquire home ownership remained tenants and were
not moved out of their accommodation.
The Mulhouse Model was proceeded by other schemes of
model housing with a social reform agenda in England, Belgium, France and
Germany (mainly in Prussia). From 1770 special laborers cottages were built in
England. In Germany they arise somewhat later (around 1800). These cottages
remained incidental additions of housing on the edge of existing settlements.
New Lanark was a pioneering British (Scottish) example of a custom-built
settlement for housing workers. It was built in 1786 for the workers of a
cotton mill and housed 2,500 people. The first purpose-built workers settlement
on the continent can - of coarse - be found in Belgium at Le Grand Hornu
(1825). In Paris after the 1948 revolution plans are made for new housing
estates, of which Cité Napoleon is the first. It was started in 1850 and
consisted of little more than barracks for housing the workmen.
No comments:
Post a Comment