Headquarters "Centralverein deutscher Staatsbürger jüdischen Glaubens" (C.V.) with "Philo-Verlag" (1905-30)

The Jewish Museum Berlin, opened in 2001, is located at Lindenstraße 9-14 in Kreuzberg. The baroque Kollegienhaus, once the seat of the Kgl. Kammergericht (Lindenstraße 14), housed the "Berlin Museum" (est. 1962) until 1995. On the fallow land south of Hollmannstrasse (Nos. 19-27), the spectacular extension by Daniel Libeskind was built from 1992/93. The course of Lindenstrasse to the south, towards Neuenburger Strasse, had already been significantly altered during new construction after 1961. Thereby the area of the Libeskind building corresponds today to the former properties Lindenstraße 9-13.

So it is hardly known that also the new building of the Jewish Museum Berlin - with one of the world-wide largest exhibitions to the history and culture of the German Jewry - is quasi on historical soil: In the house Lindenstraße 13 (today in the area of the trees in front of the street front of the Libeskind building) was housed from 1905 to 1930 - on two separate floors - the main office including library and archive of the "Centralverein deutscher Staatsbürger jüdischen Glaubens" (short: C.V.). Founded in 1893 in Berlin as a Jewish self-help organization against the growing anti-Semitism in the German Empire, the C.V. developed into the most important representation of German Jewry - until it was banned in 1938. The organ of the association, "Im deutschen Reich" (1895-1922), became the leading weekly magazine "C.V.-Zeitung" (1922-38) from 1922. The editorial office was also located in the building at Lindenstraße 13. In addition, some rooms were converted in 1920 for the association's own "Philo-Verlag" (founded in 1919), including a bookstore. The office of the German-national "Kartell-Convent der Verbindungen deutscher Studenten jüdischen Glaubens" (1896-1933, in short: K.C.) was located at the same address.

In mid-November 1930, the headquarters of the C.V. was moved to Emser Straße 42 in Berlin-Wilmersdorf, and the Philo-Verlag was located in the corner building at Pariser Straße 44 from June 1933.