Carl-Schurz-Haus Freiburg
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The Carl-Schurz-Haus is a German-American Institution which was founded in 1952 as Amerika-Haus (engl.: America-House) in Freiburg im Breisgau, West Germany. Since the 1960s, it is a binational cultural center which organizes around 250 events annually concerning current trends. There, people interested in America and culture can meet at lectures, workshops and literary readings with American and German experts. Moreover, there are movie series, an English library with more than 12,000 titles, advisory for students who want to study in an English-speaking country and English language courses taught exclusively by native speakers. There is also the Freiburg-Madison-Gesellschaft, an association to support Freiburg’s relationship with its partner city and the German-American-Business Community in Baden, for which the Carl-Schurz-Haus is a contact point.
History
Freiburg’s Amerika-Haus (engl.: America-House) was founded on October 17 in 1952 at the Goetheplatz 2 as an information center of the United States Information Agency, which initially also served as branch office of the US-consulate general in Stuttgart. Three years later, the House moved to the city center. Because of a change in the house’s ownership, a new building was needed for the Amerika-Haus until May 31, 1965. When plans to move to the restored Kornhaus failed in 1964, the institution found new accommodations in the new building of the Café Herzog in the Kaiser-Joseph-Straße 266. After the Program department and administration had moved to the new building in 1965, the library and lecture hall opened for the public in May 1966. Dr. Rudolf Gruber sponsored the inventory of the conference room to honor his father, court counselor Dr. August Gruber, Professor at the University of Freiburg and city council. In 2006, the Amerika-Haus moved again and re-opened on January 28 in 2006 at its current location in the Eisenbahnstraße 58-62. Financial cuts from the US government led to the reorganization into a binational institution in 1962 in order to secure the house economically and financially. The US Information Service (USIS), the federal government, the state Baden-Württemberg and the city of Freiburg supported this change financially. The club Freiburger Amerika-Haus e.V. was founded and the 10-year anniversary of the Freiburg Amerika-Haus was honored with a festive discussion about western culture politics. In 1969, the name of the association was changed to Carl-Schurz-Haus/Deutsch-Amerikanisches Institut e.V. after a proposal of the executive board. The occasion was the 140th birthday of Carl Schurz. The name change was celebrated in March 1969 with a festive lecture about Carl Schurz.