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The built environment
An extensive railway network was built in Finland at the end of the 1800th century. Riihimäki was one of the stations of the railway leading from Helsinki to Hämeenlinna that opened in 1862. Gradually, a settlement began to appear near the station. In the Rautatiepuisto area, which is located next to the railway and the station, a lot of building stock reflecting the history of the railways from the late 1800th and early 1900th centuries has been preserved.
Finland industrialized heavily in the late 1800th century. At the turn of the century, Riihimäki's glass and sawmill industries also started. The factory area of Riihimäki Las consists of production, administrative and residential buildings, which were built mainly in the 1910s and 1920s. It is one of the few newer representatives of the glass industry in Finland.
The railway settlement was also important from a military strategic point of view, and a garrison was established in Riihimäki. The construction stock of the Riihimäki garrison area has been completed mainly in two phases, first by the Russians in the 1910s and in the supplementary construction phase by the Finns in the 1950s.
The center of Riihimäki was built before the Second World War and forms a coherent whole that embodies well the principles of urban planning of the 1930s and 40s. The residential areas created in the 1940s and 50s are typical of Riihimäki's cityscape.
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The first site plan
In the spring of 1915, the future residents of Riihimäki begged that part of Hausjärvi be formed into the densely populated settlement of Riihimäki. The governor was sympathetic to the project and urged the municipality of Hausjärvi to take steps to transform the Riihimäki station area into a densely populated community with self-governance in financial matters and matters of order.
The appointed committee drew up a proposal for the necessary rules and ordered a site plan from architect Harald Andersin.
Andersin prepared the first site plan, which was completed in January 1916. The site plan was published in Riihimäki Sanomi so that everyone could get to know it.
Andersin worked as Oulu's county architect during the work. He had studied at the Technical College in Dresden and graduated as an architect from the Finnish Polytechnic College in 1907. The college changed to the Technical College the following year.
Architect Harald Anders and excerpt from Riihimäki's first site plan. Another site plan
The implementation of Andersin's site plan did not get much further than the beginning, when it was found that it was no longer suitable for the rapidly changing conditions. The order committee of the densely populated community made a contract with the architect, later professor, Otto-Iivari Meurman, who received his practical training in Eliel Saarinen's office. Professor Meurman published the first Finnish textbook in the field "Asemakaavaoppi" in 1947.
In November 1921, before the beginning of the township period, the draft site plan was for the people of Riihimäki to review. Due to various changes, the final completion of the site plan was delayed until the Ministry of the Interior confirmed it in April 1925.
In the photo collection, Professor Otto-Iivari Meurman (1890-1994) and an excerpt from the site plan of Riihimäki township drawn up by him, as well as a picture of a miniature model according to the site plan. Sources: Jouko Hoffrén, Kalevi Penttilä: Riihimäki Historia I, 1979, Wikipedia.
