Unecso World Heritage Site

The historic heart of Paramaribo, the capital of the former Dutch colony, has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2002. The beautiful wooden city is full of monumental buildings, many of them rotten.

The birth of Paramaribo

Countries from Western Europe discovered that Suriname was an interesting country because the soil was very fertile. Along the Surinamese rivers, plantations were established where enslaved people had to do the heavy work. Paramaribo became the capital. The city was places behind Fort Zeelandia for protection. This fort was built to protect the plantations against enemies who entered the country via the Suriname River. There was no threat from the interior, so a city wall was not necessary.

Paramaribo was a modest post at the time of French rule. When it was conquered by the English in 1650, Paramaribo was probably given some streets and dozens of houses.

After the conquest by the Zeelanders, under the leadership of the Zeeland Crijnssen, the town grew further: around 1680 there were 50 to 60 houses. Around 1700 there were around 500 houses and the city expanded, so that around 1800 Paramaribo had around 1100 houses. The mostly wooden buildings were built on the street at a considerable distance from each other and are surrounded by gardens and trees. The backyards are spacious and deep, where "slave houses" often stood. Most large buildings, however, date from the years 1820-1850 such as the Waag and the town hall. This is caused by the great fires of 1821 and 1832, which destroyed a significant part of the city.

The layout of the streets

The streets were laid out in a checkerboard pattern like other major cities in the New World. Due to the curvature of the Suriname River, the streets in that neighborhood deviated from it. Canals were constructed, which were mainly used for the discharge of water. Many canals also ran through the inner areas, so that they hardly play a role in the cityscape. Several canals have been filled in, which has a disastrous effect on water management in many places in Paramaribo. The city regularly overflows again after a tropical rain shower

The population around 1800

Around 1800 there were around 40,000 people living in the colony, of which around 30,000 were enslaved on the plantations. The white population consisted of 600 Portuguese and 400 German Jews, 1000 non-Jewish Europeans, Dutch settlers, French Huguenots and German Hernhutters. The Jewish and French refugees mainly arrived in a family context, the Dutch and Germans as young adventurers, officials, soldiers and evangelists. The city of Paramaribo, which originated from the Fort, had around 1100 houses with 12,000 inhabitants, of which more than half were colored. Because of a shortage of white women, men could not find white women to marry, so there were many more or less permanent relationships with blacks and colored people and with their own slaves, who as mothers of their children were often redeemed together with children. Governor van Sommelsdijck had forbidden the marriage between white and black in 1683, but black was 100% African in Suriname at that time and a marriage with mulattoes and others colored was possible from the beginning of the colony. Mixed relationships (whether or not due to marriage) occurred in the highest circles and were not secret.

There was originally an empty space between the fort and the city center. In the 18th and 19th centuries, this space / square, mainly due to the construction of the town hall in 1841, acquired its own identity and more urban allure. Most of the plantation owners lived on their plantations before 1750, after which they went to live more in the city where they showed how rich they were. They did this, among other things, by arranging their house in a luxury maner, organizing expensive parties and keeping many slaves.

Decay of the city center and monumental buildings

The many wooden monuments largely determine the unique character of Paramaribo and are therefore a tourist attraction. But Paramaribo is no longer what it used to be. Suriname faces a few challenges. Many monumental buildings are the victims of this. They are not maintained, which means that they are decaying or being demolished. In Suriname, the government lacks a structural approach to the preservation of the built historical heritage. There are also no financial means to renovate the, especially smaller, monumental buildings.

The historic city is emptying

The inner city is losing popularity as a living and working area for many years, causing many monumental buildings to fall into disrepair. The residents move to the outskirts of the city. These factors threaten to make the city center a ghost town in the evenings. This naturally does not benefit the living and working functions of the historic city center. There must be a balance in the functions of Paramaribo and the city must become attractive for both living and working.

Traffic and parking

The increasing traffic in Paramaribo also causes many problems. For example, the many cars cause congestion and all parking cars affect the cityscape. The cityscape is also changing due to the many trees on the sidewalks that are being cut down for the purpose of creating parking spaces.

Legacy issues

This is a little different than in the Netherlands. In Suriname, land and buildings remain generation after generation in the hands of the family, often without separation and division. As a result, the number of heirs per generation increases enormously. Due to this legacy issues, the property is no longer easy to sell. Because there are often many owners who cannot be traced (easily) or can be moved to a joint decision. As a result, the houses are not sold. Therefore, it is often no longer invested in. As a result, the remaining buildings are now expired, empty or destroyed by fire.

The wooden city has been petrified since 1950

The wooden houses also slowly disappear from the cityscape, because they are often associated with poverty and lack. Stone houses give more prestige.

Monumental buildings were / are not protected

Monument care in Suriname has been developing for more than 60 years. From 1961, the impetus was given for the designation and legal registration of Surinamese monuments. Finally, in 1999 the formal designation of the first official monuments of Paramaribo was reached. In the meantime, many monuments have been lost.

Foundation City Recovery Suriname (Stichting Stadsherstel Suriname)

It all started with the founding of Paramaribo City Repair Foundation on October 25, 2011 as a result of the "Twinning Project Monument Care" between the Foundation for Built Heritage Suriname (SGES) and Stadsherstel Amsterdam N.V ..Paramaribo urban recovery is a restoring company that buys, restores and exploits historical buildings in a sustainable manner. The goal is to preserve the unique buildings of Suriname. City recovery Paramaribo focuses not only on monuments but also on characteristic historic buildings with no monument status, but which do support images in the old city center. The company is not focused on maximizing financial profit, but will pay a socially responsible return to the capital providers. The profits are primarily intended for the further expansion of a healthy real estate portfolio.If you want to support this goal, make contact via the website with Stichting Stadsherstel Suriname.

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