Willem Anthonie Froger was born in Amsterdam in 1812. He was a son of the milliner Isaäc Johannes Froger and Anna Elisabeth Kruys. He married Catharina Stork (23-01-1814 - 01-09-1869) on December 9, 1836 and had six children (Isaac Johannes, born 17-09-1837, Maria Frederika, born 23-12-1839, Frederik Reijer, born 15-01-1843, Rudolphina Elisabeth Froger, born 23-01-1847, Rudolph, born 13-10-1852, Wilhelmina Catharina, born 19-09-1855). Froger was Dutch Reformed. As a 16-year-old, Froger enrolled in the Royal Military Academy in Breda, the first higher technical school in the Netherlands. His studies went so well that he was allowed to skip a few years. He was a teacher for several years in such subjects as structural engineering and mechanics. Starting in 1842, he was the senior engineer officer at the Ministry of War. In that capacity he designed many revetments, bridges, dikes, fortifications, ramparts and roads. Froger can be considered the founder of the Royal Institute of Engineers (KIVI) in 1847. In 1849, he was commissioned by the Commisie voor Geneeskundig Toevoorzicht to improve water refreshment within Amsterdam. Then, in 1852, Froger was appointed inspector at Public Works of Amsterdam. He observed so many abuses there that he came into conflict with his colleagues Van Maurik and Pierson. This led to his resignation in 1855, and shortly thereafter that of his opponents. In the period that followed, many of his recommendations were implemented, so that Public Works slowly began to regain its grip on the severely dilapidated and overcrowded city. Thus, more works were tendered and supplies were reduced. Before and after his time at Public Works Amsterdam, Froger spent much of his time advocating for the "Canal op z'n Smalst," a connection from the IJ to the sea westward, complementing the North Holland Canal. Without his studies, the North Sea Canal may never have come about. This canal was implemented starting in 1876. He also believed the proposed canal offered opportunities to improve the water management of Amsterdam. Because of his work on the North Sea Canal, he received a monument in 1953. It stands at the junction of Nieuwe Hemweg and Spaarndammerdijk. Froger designed several buildings in Amsterdam, including the office of De Nederlandsche Bank on the Oude Turfmarkt (1869), a concert hall and the building of the Bible Society. He also designed buildings in Germany. Froger entered the House of Representatives at the age of 66. In by-elections, he defeated jhr. A.F. de Savornin Lohman (a.r.) by a wide margin (85 to 14 percent). During the period 1878-1881 he was a Liberal member of parliament. On the few occasions when he spoke on water resources or the navy, he read his speech without really engaging in debate. He therefore played only a modest role as a member of parliament and left politics after three years. Functions Froger held many positions during his career: - officer Bataljon Mineurs at Nijmegen, from November 1832 to 1834 - adjutant of the Directorate of Fortification in Utrecht, from 1834 to October 1836 - lecturer KMA (Royal Military Academy) at Breda, from October 29, 1836 to June 1, 1844 - instructor at the Engineering Staff at Naarden, from June 1, 1844 until June 10, 1849 - architect at Amsterdam, from 1849 onwards - inspector of Public Works at Amsterdam, from December 1, 1852 to May 1, 1856 - member of the Lower House of the States General for the Amsterdam district, from September 19, 1878 to September 19, 1881 He held the following officer ranks: - second lieutenant, from November 9, 1832 to May 2, 1842 - first lieutenant, from May 2, 1842 to June 10, 1849 (honorable discharge upon request) Public Works Amsterdam The Public Works Department came into existence around 1850. There is no exact founding date, but there is talk of a transition from the factory office to Public Works. In the early years, the service was difficult to manage, partly because there was too little money available. A.C. Pierson and J. van Maurik served as director of Stadsfabryckambt and director of Stadswaterwerken during this period, respectively. W.A. Froger, the inspector of Public Works appointed in 1852, immediately made a report on the state of maintenance of the property, which was very poor. He indicated how this situation had arisen, and how the service could be reformed, but the city council was reluctant and preferred to leave things as they were. However, the abuses such as open sewers, mountains of dirt, broken sluice gates and flooded cellar houses, were getting worse. Only the fear of cholera epidemics prompted some action. As a result of the unworkable situation created by Froger's criticism, eventually Froger, Pierson and Van Maurik all had to leave. The new guard, consisting of Verhey, de Greef and van der Sterr, did not venture to make major changes for the first few years. The enormous maintenance backlog continued to grow and the development of Amsterdam was dangerously stagnant. Important decisions such as the possible construction of the North Sea Canal and a connecting railroad station (the later Central Station) were endlessly postponed. As a result, the Amsterdam port was losing more and more ground to other cities. Successor Van Niftrik had many plans (e.g., expansion plan 1867), but they did not come to fruition. At that time there were private initiatives for improvement, for example by Sarphati (garbage collection service). Only in 1876 came a first design of Public Works Amsterdam and this concerns only a billboard. Other street furniture of Public Works Amsterdam consisted of urinals, the rest was private initiative. The leadership of the department first consisted of a triumvirate (director, city architect and city engineer), but this did not work. In 1873 there was one director, the first being Kalff, who made a second plan for city expansion in 1875. Of this plan, only the station island and the area around Oosterpark were executed exactly as it was. Many other sections were adopted with some modifications. In 1876, a city cleaning system finally arrived and two years later a ban on open sewer ditches. There was hardly any sewage at that time, although some problematic canals were filled in. Kalff also reorganized Public Works. Successor van Hasselt reorganized again and was more successful in realizing projects. The department was split differently than before into a predominantly technical department and the buildings and urban development department. The technical department dealt with utilitarian buildings, paving and water works such as bridges and quays and was headed by the city engineer. The construction of sewers was finally tackled on a large scale. The mortality rate in the poor neighborhoods dropped dramatically. Meanwhile, a process was underway in which initially private initiatives in gas and transportation were continued by the municipality. This provided the Public Works Department of Amsterdam with a lot of work: laying gas pipes, electricity grid, telephone, a streetcar track and all related buildings. For a long time, however, it failed to get a grip on housing construction. The technical department also had trouble with the aesthetic side of bridges, for example. In 1900, for example, H.P. Berlage was approached to give advice on a new bridge to be made. Berlage was then also given a major role in the expansion plans (Plan Zuid), while he also began to act as a kind of aesthetic consultant in all sorts of areas. Under the leadership of W.A. Bos, the division into technical departments continued from 1907. This resulted in an organization with 14 departments, each with its own director. For example, Springer was the director of the Buildings Department, but he was also the only architect within the department. Bos hired a number of architects from about 1910, with J.M. Van der Mey taking on the role of aesthetic consultant from 1911. Bos did his best to properly delineate the consultant's position in relation to the director of the department. The consultant was initially a temporary position and he was not involved in the execution. Other newly hired architects were P.L. Marnette, P. Kramer (assistant to Van der Mey) and M. De Klerk. Also, in addition to practical engineers, scientifically trained engineers entered the service. Meanwhile, Berlage continued to work on urban extensions, resulting in the Plan Zuid. The new advisor soon came under fire when the first building designed entirely by Van der Mey and Kramer, the IJ Pavilion, went substantially over budget. A more austere bridge house set the tone for diverse street furniture. The replacement of street furniture became the consultant's core task; from 1911 onward, much furniture was replaced and improved. This explains why school construction between 1911 and 1914 was still rather traditional in character; austere neo-styles determined the appearance here. After 1914, the influence of Van der Mey also became visible in this area. Street furniture In the nineteenth century, street furniture was mainly a matter of private initiative, for example kiosks. It was not until 1918 that Public Works Amsterdam became concerned with complaints about the lack of facilities for kiosk personnel and sought a standard kiosk design. Two types were chosen, designed by J. de Meyer and N. Lansdorp, which replaced the old kiosks. There were also small buildings that housed a combination of functions, such as public telephone, waiting room for streetcar and the like. At the same time, combination buildings with transformer houses were also built, mostly to the design of A.A. Kok. From 1900 the streetcar became a municipal affair, and so after that all facets (laying rails, guardhouses and depots) fell under Public Works. The other elements of public space (roads, cables and pipes located below them) generally provided little cooperation with the Buildings Department, but transformer houses, for example, were often designed by architects from the Buildings Department. Starting in 1906, large-scale sewer construction finally began. The construction of the North Sea Canal (1876-) and the Willem II locks had severely reduced the flow of the canals. Since all houses still discharged directly into the canal, this caused many odor problems. In conjunction with the construction of sewers, a number of water treatment plants were needed. No architect was usually named for these works, but the works are included here. This also applies to pumping stations, for example, Westerman designed one in collaboration with engineers from the Port and Water Works Department. The role of A.R. Hulshoff A.R. Hulshoff became the head of the Buildings Department in 1915. At this time - due to Bos' reorganization - there were a total of 14 departments: Buildings, Planting, Paving, Bridges, Site Preparation, Ground Company, Port and Water Works, Sewerage and Water Refreshment, Urban Development, Utility Building, Municipal Workshops, Tools, Administration and Secretariat. On various projects, other departments collaborated with the Buildings Department, such as pumping stations and swimming pools. Moreover, General Director Bos stated in 1916 that works by other departments, if they involved an issue of an aesthetic nature, should also be submitted to Hulshoff. Under Hulshoff's leadership, the Buildings Department was given more financial leeway. As a result of the poor economic conditions caused by World War I, many architects from the private sector were laid off, wanting to work temporarily - also for low pay - for the Public Works Department of Amsterdam. M. de Klerk, too, joined Public Works as a temporary architectural officer on September 1, 1915, but left the Service after only a few months. Architects were given on-call contracts of a sort, but in the uncertain time during the war many wanted this, for example N. Lansdorp and A.J. Westerman. Others found the civil service method oppressive and soon left, e.g. M. de Klerk (six months) and G.J. Rutgers (gone in 1919). Incidentally, architects were also allowed to maintain their own offices. As a result, both private and government works can be found in the works lists of these archtitects. Influenced in part by van der Mey, Kramer, and de Klerk, a distinctive design style emerged that is subsequently referred to as the Amsterdam School. The change in style began with street furniture and became evident in school designs beginning around 1914. Hulshoff emerged as an ardent advocate of sculpture in buildings, so Hildo Krop was brought in as city sculptor in 1916. Many building sculptures were used in schools as well as bridges. After about 1930, the style tightened and more and more flat roofs were used. The crisis also limited the building budget. Meanwhile, Hulshoff himself was active in the planning of the academic hospital, the Wilhelmina Hospital. With the completion of the Second Surgical Clinic, most of his 1926 plan had come to fruition. Urban Development The role of the city development department increased greatly during the 20th century. As early as the 19th century there were several plans, for example those of Van Niftrik from 1867 and Kalff from 1875. Subsequent expansion plans are only for part of the city, lacking coherence. Starting in 1896, land is issued on long leases, with the municipality preparing land for building and regulating water management. In 1901 followed the Housing Act, in 1905 the Building Ordinance and a major improvement in building and housing supervision. In 1921, the city expanded significantly with the annexation of several areas, including Amsterdam Noord. The combination of water management and site preparation, ensured that building sites were now constructed well above the water level (1 meter on average). By 1916, the Municipal Housing Service had already been established, headed by A. Keppler. However, the Public Works Department was also concerned with urban development. Housing construction in the districts of Public Works Amsterdam was always carried out by private architects, although this included many (former) employees of the service. A kind of competition developed between the two services, which was "won" by Public Works. This is partly because the Municipal Housing Service paid too little attention to water management and the connection between neighborhoods. A new attempt at overall planning for expansions was initiated by Bos in 1926 and became an official part of Public Works in 1928. In 1935 the AUP, the General Expansion Plan, was published by Cornelis van Eesteren. This would become the guideline for the expansions of the following decades. UvA The municipal university was the responsibility of Public Works from 1877 until its separation in about 1971. Consequently, the building locations and many designs came from this department. This led to a somewhat ambiguous policy in the case of the Binnengasthuis; here the interests of the university and of the municipal hospital often did not coincide. Eventually, the university hospital came to occupy the grounds of the Buitengasthuis. The development of the Binnengasthuis stagnated thereafter. In 1955, the three-core plan emerged, bringing together the alpha, beta and medical faculties each at its own location. The alphas thereby came to the Binnengasthuis grounds, where there was sufficient space after the departure of the Dutch Bank. The Municipality was able to direct these processes to a great extent, since it had promised the bank the area of the planned City Hall on Frederiksplein. The beta subjects were housed on the Roeterseiland where several laboratories were already located by then. The first new building differed greatly in scale from its surroundings, leading to many protests. The medical faculties were planned around the Wilhelmina Hospital. When the latter proved unfeasible, a site in the Bullewijk was chosen; this is where the current Academic Medical Center, the AMC, arose. At the same time, there were increasing proposals to move the university to the periphery of the city, just like the Free University on the Boelelaan. This was mainly because in the 1960s the number of students grew excessively and there was a constant housing problem. The position of Public Works Amsterdam is clear from a 1967 memo advocating the maintenance of the University in the center: "It would therefore be an impoverishment if the University were to retreat to a more isolated situation on the outskirts of society, for in spite of all good connection and other precautions the connection with urban life is lost to a considerable extent. An accompanying map from that year shows that the planned alpha cluster then extends all the way to Oude Hoogstraat, causing many protests. This area contained many residential monuments, which would surely have to give way to large lecture halls. In the meantime, the University moved into several office buildings that had come about outside the influence of Public Works. With the removal of municipal funding and the separation of university and municipal administration, the University of Amsterdam began an independent existence. Welfare The beauty commission had been active since about 1880 but was temporarily absent. There was a committee old and new town, but they did not review designs by the municipality. For new municipal plans for expansion districts, supervisors were appointed, for example Hulshoff or Gratama, who acted as coordinators and welstand committee for the entire district. Public Works Amsterdam also carried out a large number of restorations, especially in the inner city. This and other monument work was overseen by the Old Town Beauty Commission based on an initial monument ordinance from 1927. This required the municipality to give permission for conversion or demolition of listed properties. There was also the beginning of a zoning ordinance. When director Bos left in 1926, De Graaff of the Bridge Department succeeded him. There was increasing criticism from the city council about the high cost of the "decorated buildings. The design style sobered and tightened from about 1930 to an Amsterdam variant of the New Objectivity. However, a remnant of the Amsterdam School style can often still be recognized in the detailing. In 1946 both de Graaff and Hulshoff left the service and a new period began with Leupen as director of Buildings. The city development department became increasingly important, and sanitation and scaling up were spearheads of the policy. Amsterdam-Zuidoost was designed and the subway was constructed. With the establishment of the district councils in about 1985, Public Works Amsterdam was split up by district and this once mighty department lost its grip on the city. What remains is an incredible amount of buildings and street furniture. Education: Konklijke Militaire Academie Breda/1828 (from) Additional functions: Amsterdam Station Committee/member/1869 (until);Committee to assess applications for reclamation of parts of the IJ west of Amsterdam/chairman/1848;Local school committee in Amsterdam/member/1860-1865;Committee for supervision of secondary education in Amsterdam/member/1867-1871;Committee on purification of canals and water bottoms in Amsterdam/member/1870-1872;Lower House of the States General/member/1878-1881