Even our streets had a face lift

The streets of our neighborhood are finally free from graffiti and tags accumulated during two or three decades by successive layers. This is the final touch of the development of the neighborhood. The atmosphere of gangs that never really roamed in our streets is gone. Pessimists are already betting on the first appearance of childish scribbles on the walls by those attempting to mark a territory that isn’t theirs. As for us, we enjoy the moment of silenced walls in our neighborhood, hoping it lasts at least for a while.

Two new street names for the Rôtillon

A small celebration will be held this Friday, June 20 to inaugurate the completion of Rôtillon project. The streets are all newly paved with cobble stones and look great now. The final touch is a spring-clean of the remaining old buildings. The gaudy facades covered with graffitis and tags receive a fresh coat of paint and we just completed the renovation project for the museum. We will open our doors to the public, but also set up a special booth about leather and tanning in the “Rue du Flon”. A currently nameless alley will receive the name of Tanners Alley (Ruelle des Tanneurs) to remember the past of this neighborhood. Also the long stairs next to the Café des Artisans will be called the Cobbler’s Stairs (Escaliers des savetiers) from now on. It fills our heart with joy to see that the city is finally giving credit to the industrious “leathery” past that flourished here a long time ago.

Our neighborhood, the Rôtillon

Our neigborhood, the Rôtillon was once the industrial centre of the medieval and post medieval town of Lausanne. Lots of changes happened over time, like in all neighborhoods.

Evolution of the Rôtillon over 300 years

Looking at its history we could n0t have chosen a better spot for our Shoe Museum. We are in the ancient neighborhood of tanners, shoemakers and other leather professionals. The tanneries dissapeared with the covering of the river Flon, about a century ago. Like many rivers crossing towns, its destiny is similar to another famous tanner’s river, the Bièvre in Paris. For a long time they supplied the tanneries with water. In the 19th century they where covered up and turned into streets. Later on their water was deviated and now they serve as sewers and for the evacuation of rain water.

The map below shows local leather professionals that used to work in our neighborhood. Nowadays they are all gone and our museum can count as a small monument to a local economic glory of the past.

How to make shoemaker’s waxed ends

We managed to produce our first movie to explain something impossible to do in words

Final setup

The floor is set, the walls and ceiling are clean and the lighting is perfect. All there is to do is to put our exhibition back. The temporary layout of the shelves pays off, we are gaining a lot of time. In one afternoon only all is back in place, as if nothing ever happened. We are ready for the usual opening hours this coming week-end.

A new oak plank floor

As the saying goes, think global but buy local. Our choice for floors was to address the best in town, the company Menetrey, specialist in the field for over a century.

Archive: 06/20/2014