Hossegor: The Elegant Sports Resort 1920-1940

At the extreme south of the Landes coast, between the sea with its infinite beach and the lake, "under the quiet pines", Hossegor is revealed to the world by a group of writers, Rosny Jeune, who settled on the banks of his lake in 1900, followed by Maxime Leroy and Paul Margueritte. In 1909, a Society of Friends of Lake Hossegor was founded which would have a protective role in the development of the resort. Alfred Eluère, businessman and great sportsman, began urbanization in 1923, forging an image of “Cité-Parc” based on the benefits of sport. The alliance of ideals and commercial interests explains the immediate success of the company whose main project managers were Henri Godbarge, the Gomez brothers, Robert Maurice and Louis Lagrange. A new system was created for the occasion, the Basque-Landes style of which Godbarge was the theoretician. Its unity was obtained by a coating simulating half-timbered wood and traditional brick on an industrial construction: a deliberate use of forgery which would provoke strong criticism from supporters of regionalism in the interwar period.

1992 Heritage Prize for Old French Houses.