The Amerika-Gedenkbibliothek (AGB; en, America Memorial Library) is one of the largest public
libraries
A library is a collection of Document, materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or electronic media, digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a ...
in
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. It was co-financed by a donation from the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. The building was designed by American and German architects, including
Fritz Bornemann and
Willy Kreuer. It was opened on September 17, 1954, and was originally planned to become the Central Library of Berlin.
History
In 1950 the American people had donated $5 million (=
DM 21 million; so-called
McCloy Grant) for cultural purposes in recognition of the West Berliners' keeping up during the
Berlin Blockade
The Berlin Blockade (24 June 1948 – 12 May 1949) was one of the first major international crises of the Cold War. During the multinational occupation of post–World War II Germany, the Soviet Union blocked the Western Allies' railway, ro ...
, which took place in 1948/1949. With DM 5.4 million (=$1.285 million) from the grant, and additionally the same sum from its own funds, the
Senate of Berlin
The Senate of Berlin (german: Berliner Senat) is the executive body governing the city of Berlin, which at the same time is a state of Germany. According to the the Senate consists of the Governing Mayor of Berlin and up to ten senators appoint ...
built the new library on Blücherplatz in
Kreuzberg
Kreuzberg () is a district of Berlin, Germany. It is part of the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg borough located south of Mitte. During the Cold War era, it was one of the poorest areas of West Berlin, but since German reunification in 1990 it ha ...
. On 10 September 1954 it opened to become Berlin's central public library.
[Frauke Mahrt-Thomsen, ''150 Jahre: Von den Berliner Volksbibliotheken zur Stadtbibliothek Kreuzberg; eine Chronik'', Bezirksamt Kreuzberg von Berlin / Bibliotheksamt, Bezirksamt Kreuzberg von Berlin / Kunstamt Kreuzberg, Bezirksamt Kreuzberg von Berlin / Kreuzberg Museum and Verein zur Erforschung und Darstellung der Geschichte Kreuzbergs (eds.), Berlin: Bezirksamt Kreuzberg von Berlin / Bibliotheksamt, 2000, p. 29. No ISBN.] With the construction of the
Berlin Wall and the separation of the city in 1961, this concept lapsed. The library was then the major public library in West Berlin. A third of the users were local Kreuzbergers who prior used to frequent one of the four smaller public libraries in their borough.
Part of the attractiveness of the AGB derived from it being an American-type open access library,
whereas most of Berlin's other libraries held by then only small shares of their bookstock in open access,
[Frauke Mahrt-Thomsen, ''150 Jahre: Von den Berliner Volksbibliotheken zur Stadtbibliothek Kreuzberg; eine Chronik'', Bezirksamt Kreuzberg von Berlin / Bibliotheksamt, Bezirksamt Kreuzberg von Berlin / Kunstamt Kreuzberg, Bezirksamt Kreuzberg von Berlin / Kreuzberg Museum and Verein zur Erforschung und Darstellung der Geschichte Kreuzbergs (eds.), Berlin: Bezirksamt Kreuzberg von Berlin / Bibliotheksamt, 2000, p. 30. No ISBN.] usually only the non-lending collection.
[An exception was the new Hugo-Heimann-Bücherei in ]Wedding
A wedding is a ceremony where two people are united in marriage. Wedding traditions and customs vary greatly between cultures, ethnic groups, religions, countries, and social classes. Most wedding ceremonies involve an exchange of marriage vo ...
, opened as an open access library in 1950. Cf. Petra Hätscher, "Das Öffentliche Bibliothekswesen Berlins von 1961 bis 1989", in: ''Bibliothek: Forschung und Praxis'', vol. 19 (1995), No. 2, pp. 155–188, here p. 158. So opening the AGB again gave the Berlin libraries another push forwards in their development.
[Petra Hätscher, "Das Öffentliche Bibliothekswesen Berlins von 1961 bis 1989", in: ''Bibliothek: Forschung und Praxis'', vol. 19 (1995), No. 2, pp. 155–188, here p. 158] On 31 March 1955, after years of campaigning,
Alexander Dehms (1904–1979; head of Kreuzberg's public libraries from 1949 to 1969 and member of the
House of Representatives of Berlin), succeeded in putting the ''Berliner Büchereigesetz'' (Berlin Library Act) through which provided for an expansion, better funding and improved equipment of West Berlin's public libraries through budgetary items earmarked for libraries.
In 1988 the City of Berlin sponsored an invited competition for a 150,000-square-foot addition to the library. The original library had been built as a result of a German competition with American funds. This competition was funded by the German Government with the ambition to select an American-based architect. Fifteen American firms were invited to participate. The jury selected three first prizes:
Steven Holl,
Lars Lerup
Lars is a common male name in Scandinavian countries.
Origin
''Lars'' means "from the city of Laurentum". Lars is derived from the Latin name Laurentius, which means "from Laurentum" or "crowned with laurel".
A homonymous Etruscan name was born ...
and Karen Van Lengen. One year later after two additional rounds of refinements and presentations an international jury selected Karen Van Lengen as the final winner. By 1992, Van Lengen's firm completed almost 75% of the design work before the City of Berlin cancelled the project due to lack of funding. With the collapse of the Berlin Wall and its accompanying unexpected financial challenges, the city abandoned plans for the library expansion. On its 50th birthday, the library was honored for having been a symbol of freedom in times of political instability and the divided country. Today, the Amerika-Gedenkbibliothek, the
Berlin City Library and the Berlin Senate Library form the
Berlin Central and Regional Library
The Berlin Central and Regional Library (german: Zentral- und Landesbibliothek Berlin) or ZLB is the official library of the City and State of Berlin, Germany. It was established as a Foundation by two State laws, initially in 1995 and amended in ...
(german: Zentral- und Landesbibliothek Berlin).
Collections
The Amerika-Gedenkbibliothek hosts collections of the humanities and social sciences. Special collections that enrich the basic portfolio include “Berolinensien”, old children's books, the Kleist Archive, the Arno Holz Archive, the Willibald Alexis Archive, music of the U.S. and “Kunst der jungen Generation” (“Young Generation’s Art”).
Children's library
The children's library and its youth department, “Hallescher Komet”, is named after the library's location at the metro station
Hallesches Tor
The Hallesches Tor was located in today's Berlin district Kreuzberg south of Mehringplatz. Today, as a historic monument listed underground station on the site of the former gate bears the name ''Hallesches Tor''. It is a major transfer point f ...
, while also being a
pun
A pun, also known as paronomasia, is a form of word play that exploits multiple meanings of a term, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from the intentional use of homophoni ...
on the German name of
Halley's Comet
Halley's Comet or Comet Halley, officially designated 1P/Halley, is a short-period comet visible from Earth every 75–79 years. Halley is the only known short-period comet that is regularly visible to the naked eye from Earth, and thus the on ...
, . The Youth Information Center offers advice, entertainment, and information regarding routine problems. Additionally, extracurricular leisure time facilities and a variety of courses, including homework support, are provided, in addition to the
pro bono legal service and the “How to write application” course.
Bibliography
* Christine-Dorothea Sauer, Paul S. Ulrich: ''Zuverlässige Brücke zu den Informationen im Netz. Von der Allgemeinen Auskunft der Amerika-Gedenkbibliothek zum Referat Informationsdienste der Zentral- und Landesbibliothek Berlin''. In: ''BuB – Forum für Bibliothek und Information''. 10/11 56 2004, S. 673–677.
* Daniela Schoßau: ''Die Amerika-Gedenkbibliothek – Die Verwirklichung einer mächtigen Idee''. In: ''BuB – Forum für Bibliothek und Information''. 56(2004)5, S. 322–325.
* Susanne Hein: ''Vom Mittelalter zur Moderne. Fünfzig Jahre Musik in der AGB Berlin''. In: ''BuB – Forum für Bibliothek und Information''. 56(2004)6, S. 388–390.
* Peter Delin, Ursula Müller-Schüßler, Christian Wollert: ''Kunstabteilung und Videosammlung''. In: ''BuB – Forum für Bibliothek und Information''. 56(2004)7/8, S. 452–455.
External links
* www.zlb.d
* www.voebb.d
* www.voebb24.d
Notes
{{Authority control
Libraries in Berlin
Buildings and structures in Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg
Libraries established in 1954
1954 establishments in Germany