More than just paper

One of the aims of the Ernst Reuter Archives Foundation is to continuously supplement Ernst Reuter’s legacy in the Berlin Landesarchiv through donations, acquisitions, and research in foreign archives. Here we present a few finds from the archive’s holdings.

Das Foto zeigt die Zigarrenkiste, die Ernst Reuter 1931 anlässlich seines Ausscheidens aus dem Aufsichtsrat der BVG überreicht bekam. Zentraler Blickfang ist die aus Porzellan gefertigte Tafel mit dem Berliner U-Bahn-Netz. In schwarzer Schrift sind wichtige Haltepunkte und die Endbahnhöfe der verschiedenen Linien zu lesen. Im Norden ersteckte sich das Netz im Jahr 1931 bis zu den Stationen Seestraße, Gesundbrunnen und Pankow, die östlichsten Endbahnhöfe hießen Friedrichsfelde und Warschauer Brücke. Im Süden konnte man bis zur Grenzallee, zur Leinestraße, nach Tempelhof, zur Hauptstraße und nach Krumme Lanke fahren. Im Westen endete das Netz an der Uhlandstraße und der Station Ruhleben. Die schematisch nachgemalten Streckenverläufe der U-Bahn-Linien sind in orange, hellrot, blau, grün und braun dargestellt. In der rechten oberen Ecke der Porzellantafel ist das Berliner Wappen mit dem Berliner Bären zu sehen. Die oberen Ränder der rechteckigen Zigarrenkiste aus Silber sind leicht abgerundet. Auf dem längeren Rand unterhalb des U-Bahn-Netzes aus Porzellan befindet sich die Inschrift „Ihrem scheidenden Aufsichtsrat-Vorsitzenden die Berliner Verkehrs-Aktien-Gesellschaft“. — The U-Bahn network in porcelain: the BVG’s retirement gift to Ernst Reuter, 1931.

Image credits »© Thomas Platow, Landesarchiv Berlin.

“To the outgoing chairman of the supervisory board”. A farewell gift to the founder of BVG

This silver cigar box from the workshop of the former imperial court jeweler Johann Heinrich Werner was presented to Ernst Reuter in 1931 to mark his retirement from the Board of Directors of the BVG (the Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe, Berlin’s main public transport company). For five years prior to this, Reuter had been a city councilor for transport in Berlin, and had been particularly committed to the municipalization of the numerous private transport companies in the metropolis and the creation of an extensive system of local public transport. His efforts culminated in the founding of the Berliner Verkehrs AG (BVG) in 1929, which was at the time the largest local public transport company in the world. Reuter also promoted the expansion of the U-Bahn network: before the First World War it comprised 37 kilometers of track, and by the end of his time in office it had grown to 76 kilometers. The porcelain panel of the cigar box, designed by Johannes Boehland, depicts the U-Bahn network in 1931.

Zu sehen ist eine Detailaufnahme eines klassischen Überseekoffers mit deutlichen Gebrauchsspuren. Die Kofferwand aus Holz ist grün gestrichen, die Farbe blättert an einigen Stellen ab. Die Kanten sind mit schwarzem Leder und zahlreichen, dicht gesetzten Nieten verstärkt. Auf beiden Seiten des abgenutzten Griffs aus hellem Leder befinden sich Kofferscharniere mit Schlüssellöchern. Über dem Griff prangen in gelber Schrift die Initialen „E.R.“. — Well traveled: the suitcase Ernst Reuter carried with him in America.

Image credits »© Thomas Platow, Landesarchiv Berlin.

“Dad’s America suitcase”, and Ernst Reuter’s trip to the USA in 1929

In May 1929, in his function as city councilor for transport in Berlin, Ernst Reuter set off for a six-week trip through the USA together with head of municipal planning Martin Wagner and five delegates. One of the aims of the visit was to gain an understanding of American transport system and city planning, as Berlin was facing challenges in both of these areas at the time. During his trip, Reuter carried with him a large suitcase that is now held by the Foundation. It bears his initials and could also be used as a wardrobe thanks to a pull-out bar. Upon his return, Reuter’s suitcase contained not only numerous notes, detailing both his fascination with and criticism of America’s cities, but also a half-hour documentary film made by Reuter himself, entitled “American Traffic. Impressions of a Study Trip”. For more information on the Berlin magistrate’s visits to the USA in 1929, see also the Ernst Reuter booklet Reisen in die Zukunft (Journeys into the Future), written by Michael C. Bienert.

Ernst Reuter mit Baskenmütze und Stock auf einer Stadtrundfahrt durch West-Berlin am 9. August 1953. — Ernst Reuter with his beret and stick on a tour of West Berlin, 9 August 1953.

Image credits »© Landesarchiv Berlin, Rep. F, 290, Nr. 0026923 (Gert Schütz).

Eine Karikatur des Wochen-Kurier vom 18. Februar 1949. — A caricature from the *Wochen Kurier* magazine, 18 February 1949.

Image credits »© Stiftung Ernst-Reuter-Archiv.

Two of Reuter’s trademarks – and a birthday present

The stick and the beret: these were the unmistakable trademarks of Ernst Reuter in the post-war period. They accompanied him virtually everywhere, and they were not missing when Reuter embarked upon a city tour through West Berlin on 9 August 1953, which had been organized for East Berliners (see photo). Of course, the characteristic effect of these accessories did not escape caricaturists, as demonstrated by the albums that were presented to Reuter by the staff of the press office for his birthday each year from 1949; they contained collections of caricatures from the western press and that of the GDR, usually depicting Reuter with his beret and walking stick. In the first album, which was entitled “Dem Oberbürgermeister eine ‘süsse’ Pille zum 60-sten” (“A ‘sweet’ pill for the Mayor’s 60th”) and contained exclusively extracts from the GDR press, Reuter is frequently shown wearing a fez – a denigrating allusion to his time in Turkey. Alongside these volumes of caricatures, the collections of the Berlin Landesarchiv and the Ernst Reuter Archives Foundation include three walking sticks and seven berets that belonged to the former Governing Mayor.

Zu sehen sind drei aus Pappe gefertigte Coverentwürfe, die sich in der Farbgebung und der Platzierung des Schriftzugs „Reuter of Berlin“ – so der Titel der englischsprachigen Ausgabe – unterscheiden. Auf allen drei Entwürfen befinden sich leicht voneinander abweichende Ausschnitte eines Schwarzweißabdrucks von einer Briefmarke der Deutschen Post Berlin mit einem Portrait von Ernst Reuter und dem Wappen von Berlin, das den Berliner Bären zeigt. Die Briefmarke wurde 1954 zum ersten Todestag von Ernst Reuter herausgegeben. Unter den Entwürfen liegen aufgeschlagenen Akte des Landesarchivs Berlin, die aus dem Bestand stammen, der die Entstehung der Biografie dokumentiert. — Cover design for the English edition featuring the Deutsche Post (Berlin) stamp commemorating the first anniversary of Reuter’s death (1954) and files documenting the creation of the biography.

A book is born – The documentation of the “Ernst Reuter” biography by Richard Löwenthal und Willy Brandt

Shortly after Ernst Reuter’s death, his party friends Willy Brandt (1913–1992) and Richard Löwenthal (1908–1991) began to gather materials for a biography of the politician. Together with several colleagues and supported by Reuter’s widow, they compiled an extensive collection of sources, conducted interviews with contemporaries, and made countless transcripts of letters, newspaper articles, and speeches. These materials, as well as documentation of the work on “Ernst Reuter. Ein Leben für die Freiheit” (“Ernst Reuter. A Life for Freedom”) are now held in the Berlin Landesarchiv. Comprising correspondence between the authors, chapter corrections, and cover drafts, this documentation offers an exciting insight into the process of creating the biography, which was published in 1957.