7 minute read
Architecture
A great part of the existing buildings downtown Christiansted was constructed during the Danish colonial time, and has later undergone renovation and transformation to different extents. During this period, the founding of the Academy of Fine Arts in Denmark took place, and classicism was highly represented in Danish architecture. Classicism endeavors to express formality, symmetry and strict lines, and it is often seen in official buildings.
The ideals and thoughts of classicistic architecture was brought to St. Croix with the Danish architects, and used for building and planning the city of Christiansted. The buildings of lower King Street and Company Street are today good examples of the Danish classicistic influence. The Government H ouse in King Street shows an official architecture, detailed with cornices in three stories and presents a formal entrance stair. Some of the other buildings in this area have a subtler appearance with only one or two stories and less detailing, still with classicistic arches and arcades. The facades are strictly composed with symmetric openings. Where the colors used in Danish classicism would be white or light warm tones, the colors used in Christiansted today are more bold and adventurous in combination with the classicistic elements.
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King Street, Christiansted
Wood
The available local building material was Mahogany, as the colonists needed land to cultivation. The rainforest and bush had to be cleared and the ground had to be prepared for farming. Done with slave labor.
Mahogany is categorized as a “hardwood” which is a description given to hard, slow growing wood that are resistant to the tropical humid weather. Mahogany is both resistant to humid weather and termites, which is a challenge for wood structures on the islands. It will not twist and fling when it dries, as Mahogany is dimensionally stable. Due to the unique characteristics, it was used for structure of houses, lintels on doors and windows, roof construction and for wooden shutters.
As the popularity of mahogany increased in Europe and in the rest of the world, it became very expensive to use mahogany. Instead it was shipped to Europe and pitch pine from N orth America was imported. Pitch pine is a relatively hard type of wood, and like mahogany resistant to termites when dry. The wooden shutters that are a characteristic architectural element is often painted pitch pine.
Local stone
Another local building material was limestone formed by corals – so called coral stone. The coral stone was highly used as building material since it was easily accessible. The stone was soft and could be cut in big blocks. This material can resist the tropical climate better and longer than bricks, but was often either lime washed or plastered if it was used for facades.
Surface treatment
The coral stone was also used due to its ability to absorb humid within the porous and open structure. To make lime mortar used in construction corals, conch and shells were burnt and mixed with sand and water.] By thinning the mortar, it can be used as whitewash. By adding ironsulfate to the whitewash, it will change to the “government house yellow” as seen on the next page (p.25) and Fort Christiansvaern in Christiansted. By adding iron oxide, the mortar will become red as seen on Fort Frederik in Frederiksted.
The paint used on wood, as seen on shutters of windows and doors, is produced by linseed and is called linseed oil paint. By mixing linseed oil with colorant, it is possible to create different colors. The oil can protect the wood from decomposition by light. This painting hardens by the impact of sunlight.
King Street, Christiansted
The Government House, Christiansted
Paint peeling off, Estate Castle Coakley
Iron
Iron was used to mount and hinge shutters, doors and gates. It was wrought iron craftsmanship of a very high quality and can stand for centuries and be re-used from building to building. The wrought iron on Fort Christiansvaern is the original iron from 1749 (Vegas, 2016).
Bricks
Many of the existing buildings and ruins on St. Croix consist of bricks. Bricks were a highly-used building material, which the empty ships from Denmark brought as ballast. The ships had around 10.000 bricks as ballast pr. crossing.
“Flensborg” brick measuring 4 x 10,8 x 22,8cm were transported from Denmark. The small Flensborg brick was in particular used for corners and edges on windows and doors as it had the perfect size for decorative elements and it is easy to adjust. Later the Danish ships transported regular Danish brick measuring 5.5 x 10,8 x 22,8. In many buildings the masonry was a mix of both regular Danish brick and Flensborg brick. The buildings were often whitewashed, lime washed or plastered to protect the brickwork, as the tropical climate is very harsh on the stones. H owever, many buildings consist of a mix of many building materials such as brick, coral stone and wood ( Lunn, 2012).
Diverse walls, St. Croix
Climatic conditions
Traditional adaption
On St. Croix, there has been a long tradition to build weather and climate resilient buildings. The windy and warm weather require the buildings to facilitate cooling, airflow and stability.
Foundations
The foundation of the buildings was originally made of coral stones, due to the inherent properties of the coral stones. The stone has an ability to absorb humidity and to vaporize water. This method to cool the building was widely used.
The arcades
A characteristic architectural element in the cities of St. Croix is the arcades facing the orthogonal streets. The arcade besides being a landmark, are also climatically suitable for both good and bad weather. In the powerful sun, they provide shadow and assist in the cooling of the buildings, as the sun does not affect the inner walls directly. This makes the arcade an integrated solar screening. On rainy days the arcades provide shelter, as they also are used as a sidewalk.
H urricanes
As a result of the long hurricane seasons it is necessary for buildings to withstand wind and water. Originally houses were built with aerodynamic shaped roofs to transport the wind away namely the hip roof. The wooden structure of hip roofs is light and flexible and the slender rafter and battens of pitch pine with shingles became very common. This type of roof is more resistant to hurricanes compared with the tile-covered roofs. The rooms inside were cool, as the heat would rise under the ceiling.
Wind rips off the roofWind rips off the roof
Hip roof Hip roof Hip roof with overhangHip roof with overhang
Wind Wind Wind Wind
Aerodynamic built houses transport wind away Buildings with overhang can create a great opportunity for the wind to rip off the roof
Modern convenience
N umerous buildings existing today are built with coral stone, Danish bricks and wood with air-condition to cool the rooms inside. Several buildings have been modernized with cement and plastic painting. These modernizations traps and accumulates humidity inside the walls, which results in wall decomposition. The decomposition is furthermore increased by the use of air-condition, which makes condensation of humidity on the inside of the wall to create mold. The use of air-conditions and destructive building materials have led to devastation of many buildings. This is a consequence of the “modern convenience” that is demanded by many ( Lunn, 2012).
The hurricane H ugo in 1989 revealed how modern buildings were built without any consideration of the local climate. Many buildings were for instance built with overhangs, which in the hurricane seasons poses an imminent danger of detaching off the roof and causing great damage (Vegas, 2016).
Company Street 2016, Christiansted The arcaded sidewalk
Lutheran Church 1753, Christiansted Hip roof seen from inside
Hospital Street No. 21, Christiansted Air-condition installed on historic building
