Building Contractors in late Nineteenth-Century Belgium From Craftsmen to Contractors

The search for the best contractor, from a qualitative and economical perspective, became a quest for several clients and designers in the course of the 19th century. This article examines how part of this specific group of builders, active in public works, evolved in quantitative and qualitative terms. Starting with the case of realized Antwerp public works, the article positions the evolution of 19th-century Antwerp building contractors in its Belgian and European context.