Trading Nations: Architecture, Informal Empire, and the Scottish Cast Iron Industry in Argentina
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Edinburgh
Department Name: Architecture
Abstract
The proposal is a study of the Scottish pre-fabricated architectural ironwork industry in Argentina during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It is known that a considerable amount of the architectural infrastructure built between 1880 and 1930 in cities such as Buenos Aires comprised decorative and other ironwork components from Scottish foundries. Despite the fact that many of these buildings have yet to be fully documented, the Scottish components in them are now considered part of the cultural heritage of Argentina. This project aims to provide for the first time an in-depth analysis of the significant contribution these elements (and the Scottish foundries that produced them) made to the built environment of Argentina.
From the end of the nineteenth century through to the beginning of the twentieth, Argentina experienced its largest period of population growth owing mainly to European immigration. This demographic change was dramatic and was accompanied by the largest urbanisation process in the country's history. Many of the buildings erected at this time assumed modern typologies and therefore relied on new forms of construction technology. The use of prefabricated ironwork, widely successful in Europe but virtually unknown in Argentina, was crucial to this modernisation process.
At the time Scotland enjoyed a commanding position in the pre-fabricated ironwork industry, facilitated by its creative response to market demand as well as its extraordinary production and export capacity. Latin America constituted one of the industry's principal markets, with Argentina leading the way through rapid industrialisation, increased wealth, and its strategic importance to British national interests. Indeed, Argentinean urbanisation was only made possible thanks to a complex system of economic investment, professional expertise, and construction techniques brought from foreign countries, in particular Britain and France. Scottish industry stands out as a leading contributor to this process.
One example of the impact this transfer of knowledge and expertise had on the built environment in Argentina is the case of John Frederick Bateman. Bateman was responsible for pioneering the water supply industry in the United Kingdom, designing and constructing drainage and water supply systems for several major cities, including Glasgow. The basis of his design was adopted in many of the world's largest and most important cities, including Buenos Aires. Furthermore, Bateman's company designed and built one of the most important civic monuments in Buenos Aires, the Palacio de las Aguas ('Palace of the Waters' [1894]), incorporating pre-fabricated iron elements from the Saracen Foundry in Scotland owned by Walter McFarlane. Other examples include the sugar factories in the north of Argentina. Approximately one third of these factories still in operation were designed and erected during this period of mass industrialisation and agricultural modernisation. They stand as testimony to the industrial might of the Scottish iron industry where the majority of these buildings and their machinery were pre-fabricated and manufactured.
In exploring these particular aspects of nineteenth-century building practice in Argentina, this study will open a window not only onto the built heritage of cities such as Buenos Aires but also expose an important dimension of the trade network between Britain and Argentina. This will posit architecture and the wider built environment in Argentina as a phenomenon at the intersection between the greater forces of economic development, modernisation, and geo-politics. This is important in the context of recent academic approaches to the study of Britain's imperial and extra-imperial (informal) influence in the wider Atlantic World during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
From the end of the nineteenth century through to the beginning of the twentieth, Argentina experienced its largest period of population growth owing mainly to European immigration. This demographic change was dramatic and was accompanied by the largest urbanisation process in the country's history. Many of the buildings erected at this time assumed modern typologies and therefore relied on new forms of construction technology. The use of prefabricated ironwork, widely successful in Europe but virtually unknown in Argentina, was crucial to this modernisation process.
At the time Scotland enjoyed a commanding position in the pre-fabricated ironwork industry, facilitated by its creative response to market demand as well as its extraordinary production and export capacity. Latin America constituted one of the industry's principal markets, with Argentina leading the way through rapid industrialisation, increased wealth, and its strategic importance to British national interests. Indeed, Argentinean urbanisation was only made possible thanks to a complex system of economic investment, professional expertise, and construction techniques brought from foreign countries, in particular Britain and France. Scottish industry stands out as a leading contributor to this process.
One example of the impact this transfer of knowledge and expertise had on the built environment in Argentina is the case of John Frederick Bateman. Bateman was responsible for pioneering the water supply industry in the United Kingdom, designing and constructing drainage and water supply systems for several major cities, including Glasgow. The basis of his design was adopted in many of the world's largest and most important cities, including Buenos Aires. Furthermore, Bateman's company designed and built one of the most important civic monuments in Buenos Aires, the Palacio de las Aguas ('Palace of the Waters' [1894]), incorporating pre-fabricated iron elements from the Saracen Foundry in Scotland owned by Walter McFarlane. Other examples include the sugar factories in the north of Argentina. Approximately one third of these factories still in operation were designed and erected during this period of mass industrialisation and agricultural modernisation. They stand as testimony to the industrial might of the Scottish iron industry where the majority of these buildings and their machinery were pre-fabricated and manufactured.
In exploring these particular aspects of nineteenth-century building practice in Argentina, this study will open a window not only onto the built heritage of cities such as Buenos Aires but also expose an important dimension of the trade network between Britain and Argentina. This will posit architecture and the wider built environment in Argentina as a phenomenon at the intersection between the greater forces of economic development, modernisation, and geo-politics. This is important in the context of recent academic approaches to the study of Britain's imperial and extra-imperial (informal) influence in the wider Atlantic World during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Planned Impact
The 5th Latin American Colloquium of the International Committee for the Conservation of the Industrial Heritage (TICCIH) in Buenos Aires (2007) confirmed the necessity to conduct comprehensive studies on the influence of European industrialised nations in the construction of the built environment in Central and South America. As much of this built heritage is still used in Argentina - not only water and sewage systems but also landmark buildings such as markets, railway stations, factories, churches, and shops - there is a real need to gather data on the materials and techniques used to construct it. This study offers an opportunity to gather some of this information for the first time while providing a critical analysis of the production methods, trade networks, and construction techniques that shaped both design outcomes and social expectations concerning architecture.
Examining Scottish public and private archives, among other sources, is the first step towards gaining a better understanding of nineteenth-century building conservation in Argentina. Systematic knowledge of this building stock is extremely limited and in most cases incomplete. Such a study will have immediate and tangible benefits in terms of our understanding of these historic buildings, their protection, and subsequent maintenance. As the built environment is constantly changing in Argentina, buildings are being altered or demolished without adequate assessment. Few buildings have been refurbished or recycled. It is therefore imperative that the remaining buildings of known and outstanding quality are properly documented. Such documentation will lead to their listing, protection, and reuse.
The potential impact of such a study is of course two-way. In examining closely the fabric of these buildings, we will gain a better understanding of the type, quality, and quantity of Scottish pre-fabricated ironwork that made its way to South America. This will further help determine the historical significance of the Scottish architectural iron industry to the economy of Glasgow, Scotland, and the UK. The international nature of this study will also strengthen ties between heritage agencies in Scotland and Argentina as well as academic research initiatives and knowledge transfer with regards to conservation techniques. There are only a few studies in this field; however, none of these have made extensive use of primary research material (i.e. archival sources). It is envisaged that the adoption of this method and the findings that result will provide for a myriad of potential research initiatives and collaborations in the future.
As the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) has observed: the conservation of industrial sites requires a thorough knowledge of the purpose to which they were put, and of the various industrial processes which took place there. These may have changed over time, but all former uses should be examined and assessed. Programmes of historical research are needed to support policies for the protection of industrial heritage. This study intends to inform this process, both in Scotland and Argentina. Because of the interdependency of many industrial activities, international studies of this kind can help identify sites of world significance. Through this, agencies in both Scotland and Argentina will be able to enhance their working knowledge of existing building stock and develop programmes for the conservation of industrial heritage that could in turn be integrated into policies for economic development and regional and/or national planning.
Heritage conservation architects in both Scotland and Argentina stand to benefit directly from this research as it will not only identify sites for future activity but also suggest ways of dealing with those sites thoroughly yet sensitively. The general public, too, will benefit
Examining Scottish public and private archives, among other sources, is the first step towards gaining a better understanding of nineteenth-century building conservation in Argentina. Systematic knowledge of this building stock is extremely limited and in most cases incomplete. Such a study will have immediate and tangible benefits in terms of our understanding of these historic buildings, their protection, and subsequent maintenance. As the built environment is constantly changing in Argentina, buildings are being altered or demolished without adequate assessment. Few buildings have been refurbished or recycled. It is therefore imperative that the remaining buildings of known and outstanding quality are properly documented. Such documentation will lead to their listing, protection, and reuse.
The potential impact of such a study is of course two-way. In examining closely the fabric of these buildings, we will gain a better understanding of the type, quality, and quantity of Scottish pre-fabricated ironwork that made its way to South America. This will further help determine the historical significance of the Scottish architectural iron industry to the economy of Glasgow, Scotland, and the UK. The international nature of this study will also strengthen ties between heritage agencies in Scotland and Argentina as well as academic research initiatives and knowledge transfer with regards to conservation techniques. There are only a few studies in this field; however, none of these have made extensive use of primary research material (i.e. archival sources). It is envisaged that the adoption of this method and the findings that result will provide for a myriad of potential research initiatives and collaborations in the future.
As the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) has observed: the conservation of industrial sites requires a thorough knowledge of the purpose to which they were put, and of the various industrial processes which took place there. These may have changed over time, but all former uses should be examined and assessed. Programmes of historical research are needed to support policies for the protection of industrial heritage. This study intends to inform this process, both in Scotland and Argentina. Because of the interdependency of many industrial activities, international studies of this kind can help identify sites of world significance. Through this, agencies in both Scotland and Argentina will be able to enhance their working knowledge of existing building stock and develop programmes for the conservation of industrial heritage that could in turn be integrated into policies for economic development and regional and/or national planning.
Heritage conservation architects in both Scotland and Argentina stand to benefit directly from this research as it will not only identify sites for future activity but also suggest ways of dealing with those sites thoroughly yet sensitively. The general public, too, will benefit
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
| George Alexander Bremner (Principal Investigator) |