“The Industrial Heritage of Rijeka” by Melita Jureša-McDonald
Slideshow
Situated in Kvarner Bay, a deep inlet of the Adriatic Sea, Rijeka has for centuries served as an important
link to the middle European hinterland. Its name, which was recorded for the first time in the thirteenth
century, hails from the river of Rječina (also known through history as Fiumara, or Fiume, in Italian) that
flows through the city. Rijeka’s first port was developed along the Rječina estuary. PHOTO: IVICA JUREŠA
Along with Italy’s Trieste, its big rival, Rijeka was granted the status of “free port” in 1719 from the Hapsburg emperor, Charles VI. This signaled the end of the Venetian domination of the Adriatic and the Mediterranean, and heralded rapid development of commerce and industry in both cities. The competitiveness of the cities grew stronger after 1867, when the dual monarchy of Austro-Hungary was established. Rijeka became the Hungary’s de facto seaport, while Trieste carried that role for Austria.
PHOTO: IVICA JUREŠA
Plans for the expansion of the port outside the Rječina riverbed and into the open sea were developed
and implemented from 1872 through 1914. Some of those expansion projects, pictured here in a 1910s
postcard, were presented as model ports at the world exhibitions in Vienna in 1873 and in Paris in 1878. PHOTO: LOKALPATRIOTI RIJEKA
Antal Hajnal, a Hungarian engineer, was put in charge of executing a plan proposed by Hilarion Pascal,
who was a well-known French engineer of the ports of Marseilles, La Specia, and – after Rijeka –
Istanbul. A major breakwater - Molo Longo – more than a mile long (1,780 meters) was built to protect
the newly-constructed port, followed by four major piers. The Molo Longo, shown here, opened to the
public in 2009. PHOTO: IVICA JUREŠA
Following a 1750 decree by Maria Theresa granting Dutch merchants the right to establish a sugar company in
Rijeka, the Trieste-Rijeka Privileged Company completed the Sugar Refinery Main Administrative Building in 1752,
beginning the industrialization of the city. The building was located on the then-existing waterfront just east of the
Holy Emperor Charles VI Quarantine, built in 1726 and is pictured here in an 1832 engraving by C. Von Mayr.
PHOTO: “LOKALPATRIOTI RIJEKA”
The Main Administrative Building, also known as the Palace of the Sugar Refinery, also served as the
residence of a succession of the company’s directors. The building's interior is lavishly decorated with
stuccos, frescos and ceramic stoves. PHOTO: IVICA JUREŠA
A detail of the 19th century sculptural decoration of the Palace of the
Sugar Refinery, keystone heads with “sugar cubes” in their hair. PHOTO: IVICA JUREŠA
In 1824 the production of sugar at the refinery ceased. From 1835-1851 the buildings were used as
military barracks. In 1851 the complex became the largest Austro-Hungarian tobacco factory (eventually
manufacturing Virginia cigarettes). The palace received minor additions to the back and a few additional
production buildings were added within the complex. PHOTO: IVICA JUREŠA
During World War II, the complex sustained some damage during Allied bombardments. In 1949, a boat engine manufacturer named after a Yugoslavian
World War II hero, Rikard Benčić, opened and operated on the premises until 1998, when the company declared bankruptcy. It has been abandoned
since that time. Currently, the Croatian Conservation Institute is conducting a multiyear comprehensive conservation and restoration of the Palace. Also,
plans to bring in the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art and the Rijeka Central Library in into the four buildings are currently underway. Pictured
here is an Allied airplane over the Rijeka port during one of the bombardments in 1944.
PHOTO: WIKIPEDIA,
Torpedo Launching Ramp (1933/35) was added to the Croatian
Register of Cultural Properties in 2002 PHOTO: ROBERT ZORIĆ PHOTOGRAPHY
Torpedo factory circa 1910. Though the production of torpedoes stopped in the 1960s, the factory
remained operational, making tractors until 1994, when the company declared bankruptcy.
PHOTO: WIKIPEDIA, CITY MUSEUM RIJEKA
The warehouse complex Metropolis (Numbers 18 through 22) was constructed between 1909 and 1914.The complex is
rich in details of Hungarian Art Nouveau and consists of five warehouses connected with seven reinforced concrete
bridges, added in 1914. The whole complex was added to the Croatian Register of Cultural Properties in 2005.
PHOTO: “LOKALPATRIOTI RIJEKA,” GORGOROTH
The ceilings in the Number 12 and 13 warehouses (1893) were built using the Joseph Monier system
of reinforced concrete construction and are among the last remaining examples of this construction in
the former Austro-Hungarian Empire. Behind them is the 1962-completed silo. PHOTO: IVICA JUREŠA
Historic warehouses dominate the Rijeka port.PHOTO: IVICA JUREŠA
Mlin Žakalj, built in 1840, was the largest flour mill on river Rječina. Heirs of the mill’s last owner, Robert Whitehead of the Rijeka Torpedo factory, were not interested in it, and since the early 20th century this property was left to deteriorate. In this postcard a bridge, destroyed in World War II, is visible spanning the river Rječina.
PHOTO: LOKALPATRIOTI RIJEKA
The remains of the flour mill Žakalj.
PHOTO: DIJANA JUREŠA
The Paper Mill complex circa 1910. Opened in 1821 along the river Rječina in a beautiful ravine north
of downtown Rijeka, the factory steadily grew and exported paper worldwide. As of the 1890s, it
specialized in the production of cigarette paper.
PHOTO: WIKIPEDIA, CITY MUSEUM RIJEKA
A hydroelectric power plant was put in use in 1930 to provide power to the paper mill and the city. In 1991, just before the start of the
war that led to the breakup of Yugoslavia, it was the second largest cigarette paper factory in Europe. In 1996, production began to
decline after the plant was privatized, and its owners declared bankruptcy in 2005. The City of Rijeka bought several buildings in
upper part of the complex, known as Marganovo, which is now leased to a network of cultural organizations.
PHOTO: IVICA JUREŠA
The post World War II warehouse zone located in the Delta and Port Baross area slated for revitalization
is currently the focus of an international architectural competition. Greening this part of the port is a key
component of the Rijeka’s Master Urban Development Plan. The purpose of this plan is to enhance and
expand public open space and is calling for a community’s planning vision for their waterfront. PHOTO: MELITA JUREŠA-MCDONALD
Built as a merchant vessel in 1938 to transport bananas from Somalia to Italy, then refitted as an Italian Royal Navy auxiliary cruiser and later as a minelayer for the Germans
during the World War II, sunk and salvaged twice, the “Galeb” became famous as the presidential yacht of Yugoslavian President Tito. Tito used it on his numerous foreign trips,
especially to countries of the Non-Aligned Movement. After the fall of Yugoslavia, it was sold to a company in Liberia, which left it for over a decade to deteriorate in a Rijeka
shipyard. The Galeb was added to the Croatian Register of Cultural Properties in 2006, and as of 2009 is owned by the City of Rijeka. The City is currently viewing several
different options for its proper restoration and reuse and, as funds permit, is contributing toward its maintenance in order to keep it afloat.
PHOTO: DEREK MCDONALD
A sign of many rulers throughout the port’s history, a late 1890s bollard, made by the Budapest iron foundry “Schlick-Vasontode-Gepgyar.”
PHOTO: MELITA JUREŠA-MCDONALD
The 1924 demarcation line visible on the wharf near Port Baross. After World War I, Rijeka was divided along this line between Italy and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes.
PHOTO: MELITA JUREŠA-MCDONALD
PHOTO: IVICA JUREŠA
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