The outstanding architect János Prokopp was born in Apatin in 1825. He learned the basics of the architectural profession in the South, under the architect Carl Gfeller from Sombor. He spent his wandering years in German territory between 1843 and 1850, where he participated in numerous construction projects. Returning to Hungary, he worked with such renowned architects as Miklós Ybl and Frigyes Feszl. From 1853, he was employed by the DDSG as the construction supervisor of the Óbuda Shipyard, but he also supervised the construction of several ports along the Danube.
He designed several workshops and other buildings for the Óbuda Shipyard, among which the first permanent bridge between the island and the coast stands out. A bastioned triumphal arch and a canopy tent were also built based on his designs for the visit of the imperial couple.
He also designed the two-story quay at the Pest end of the Chain Bridge, where the DDSG warehouses and goods hall stood. He lived with his first wife in Óbuda, in a one-story house on the corner of Kórház and Harrer Pál streets. After several conflicts with the DDSG, he left the company in 1882 and moved to Esztergom, where he became the engineer of the archbishop’s estate and then a county engineer. János Prokopp died in Esztergom in 1894.
The designers
During its 190 years of existence, Óbuda Shipyard was characterized by constant technological development, the design and production of safe and marketable watercraft and other technical equipment. This was due to the excellent foreign and Hungarian designers and engineers of the factory, who provided the watercraft or other machines and special structures designed for the given purpose with high-level professional work. The chief engineers of the factory often played an even more important role than the directors, since production took place according to their ideas and guidelines. Therefore, the selection and employment of properly qualified design engineers, as well as their continuous practical and theoretical further training at home and abroad, was of paramount importance.
Keresés