Journey with me down Rue de la Rize. This street whispers tales of a hidden river beneath our feet.
Rue de la Rize stretches from Place des Martyrs de la Résistance. It curves gently before meeting Place Renaudel. Here, Rue Danton and Rue Paul Bert converge.
Interestingly traffic flows in one direction. It heads towards Place des Martyrs.
Let’s observe the architecture. On the north side small old buildings stand two to four stories tall. They nestle against the Rize workshops. Look closely. You can see lateral concrete slabs supporting an iron and glass facade. A garage bears a sign in multiple languages. It states: No Parking.
Further along past Rue du Lac a long workshop appears. Then a garden provides a touch of green. Finally a smaller workshop reveals the backs of buildings on Rue Paul Bert. Car paintings decorate the workshop. These buildings date back to the 1970s. Notice the multiple volumes. They straddle Rue d’Essling via a porch. The structure ends with a glazed point.
Now turn your gaze to the south side. After a narrow corner building on Place des Martyrs two massive buildings appear. They were built around the year 2000. The second one gracefully curves onto Rue du Lac.
Beyond Rue de la Bannière three simple quadrupled buildings rise four stories. They dating back to around 1900 and curve around Rue d’Essling. The street ends with a new building facing Rue Danton. A beautiful green gate guards a garden.
Rue de la Rize earns its name from a small river. The Rize originates in Décines. It flows through Vaulx en Velin and Villeurbanne. Ultimately it formed a delta. The most significant branch now flows underground as a sewer beneath this very street.
You can still see the Rize in Vaulx en Velin today. This river once flowed under the Canal de Jonage. It used a unique siphon bridge. The Rize was a resurgence on an old Rhône riverbed. A northern branch the Tête d’Or stream flowed towards the park. This branch disappeared when the canal and Cusset factory opened in 1898. The southern branch was more substantial. A three-arched bridge spanned it near the Saint Louis church. It emptied into Bèchevelin near the Gallieni bridge.
Perhaps the Rize has not spoken its last word. The river inspired “La rivière imaginée” released around 2018. It was retraced by Open édition, Rize+ and Bèchevelin.
Rue de la Rize is an old street. It remembers the former path of Chemin du Sacré Coeur now Rue Paul Bert. This was before it straightened during the 19th century.
Until around 1800 this area was a pleasant countryside. A small river irrigated the land. People fished in it.
Nearby marshes allowed hemp cultivation. Hemp was grown for rope-making. Throughout the 19th century industries settled along the Rize’s banks. Tanneries and dyeworks polluted the river terribly.
There were attempts to clean and revitalize it. A syndicate formed in 1853 for this purpose. However constructing a channel failed.
The path transformed into a street before 1863. As the river’s flow decreased significantly it was decided to cover it. This project finished in Lyon during the 1960s.
The GRIM association has a social purpose. Amitiés Corses teaches their language. Como ti chjami?
Here you can find a garage a bar and a dry cleaner’s.
Rue de la Rize a testament to Lyon’s evolving landscape. A hidden river its industries and the lives it touched all shape this street’s story. It is a story etched in stone and flowing beneath our feet.