Category: Then & Now

A steel bridge carrying the U-Bahn-Linie U2 on its way between Bülowstraße and Nollendorfplatz in Schöneberg, Berlin.

Although the location appears to have changed drastically since the photo was first taken in 1902, the house situated directly behind the train in the more recent photo can be seen to be the original building, minus its gabled roof and ornate exterior.

Out of interest, many of these type of old postcards are actually photo/painting hybrids, a photo was taken of the scene and figures were later added for visual interest, as can be seen in this example, these idyllic scenes of aristocrats dressed in the latest high fashions of the day, wandering around crime ridden industrial working class districts are all a figment of the artists imagination – yes, the PhotoShop of its day.

• Frobenstraße Bridge
• Lietzensee Park
• Gendarmenmarkt 1951
• Goethe-Schule-Wilmersdorf
• Berlin Cathedral
• St. Hedwig’s Cathedral
• Friedrich Ludwig Jahn in the Hasenheide
• Brandenburg Gate, 1951
• Charlottenburg Palace
• Stadtpark Schöneberg
• Straße des 17 Juni
• The Brandenburg Gate
• Berlin Cathedral
• Bülowstraße
• The Altes Museum
• Palace Bridge
• Old Fritz
• The Gendarmenmarkt
• The Bode Museum
• The Anhalter Bridge

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

An old legend, apparently still recounted by the locals, tells of how the Lietzensee gets its name, for in times long past a village called Lietzow was situated near where the scythe shaped lake stands, and one day, for some unknown reason, it sank down to the depths of the lake, never to be seen again, and that fishermen thereafter always told of how their nets would catch on the old church spire.

And even today the area is reputedly haunted.

Is it true?

Who knows?

But one thing is certain, that it’s a very picturesque park designed by Erwin Barth in the early 20th century.

The park is divided into north and south halves by the Kaiserdamm, but joined together by a pedestrian tunnel underneath.

A walk around this park is very relaxing experience, due to the scenic lake, various sculptures and the listed gardens.

• Frobenstraße Bridge
• Lietzensee Park
• Gendarmenmarkt 1951
• Goethe-Schule-Wilmersdorf
• Berlin Cathedral
• St. Hedwig’s Cathedral
• Friedrich Ludwig Jahn in the Hasenheide
• Brandenburg Gate, 1951
• Charlottenburg Palace
• Stadtpark Schöneberg
• Straße des 17 Juni
• The Brandenburg Gate
• Berlin Cathedral
• Bülowstraße
• The Altes Museum
• Palace Bridge
• Old Fritz
• The Gendarmenmarkt
• The Bode Museum
• The Anhalter Bridge

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

This beautiful square, one of the finest in Northern Europe has a chequered past, not least the fact that it was almost totally destroyed during WWII.

The authorities in the DDR faithfully restored the buildings, and since reunification it has once again become one of the city’s best loved locations.

• Frobenstraße Bridge
• Lietzensee Park
• Gendarmenmarkt 1951
• Goethe-Schule-Wilmersdorf
• Berlin Cathedral
• St. Hedwig’s Cathedral
• Friedrich Ludwig Jahn in the Hasenheide
• Brandenburg Gate, 1951
• Charlottenburg Palace
• Stadtpark Schöneberg
• Straße des 17 Juni
• The Brandenburg Gate
• Berlin Cathedral
• Bülowstraße
• The Altes Museum
• Palace Bridge
• Old Fritz
• The Gendarmenmarkt
• The Bode Museum
• The Anhalter Bridge

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

A beautiful turn of the century building typical for the Wilmersdorf district of Berlin, the now Katharina-Heinroth-Grundschule (elementary school), was once home to the Goethe-Schule.

Designed by the architect Otto Herrnring in the early 20th century, the building is now under monumental protection.

The present School is named after the first female director of the Zoologischen Garten after WWII, Katharina Heinroth (1897-1989).

• Frobenstraße Bridge
• Lietzensee Park
• Gendarmenmarkt 1951
• Goethe-Schule-Wilmersdorf
• Berlin Cathedral
• St. Hedwig’s Cathedral
• Friedrich Ludwig Jahn in the Hasenheide
• Brandenburg Gate, 1951
• Charlottenburg Palace
• Stadtpark Schöneberg
• Straße des 17 Juni
• The Brandenburg Gate
• Berlin Cathedral
• Bülowstraße
• The Altes Museum
• Palace Bridge
• Old Fritz
• The Gendarmenmarkt
• The Bode Museum
• The Anhalter Bridge

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

The Postcard from c. 1910 shows what appears to be a colourised photograph of the areas as it was at the turn of the last century, before it was almost totally destroyed during the bombing raids of WWII.

This largely accounts for the slight change in the proportion of the buildings, as they were not always rebuilt as was.

The area has undergone major change recently, the old Berlin Palace has been largely rebuild, part of which, the Humboldt forum, a cultural centre, can be seen on the left.

This scene captures the fate that has befallen many modern cities and it seems to know no end, nests of scaffolding adorn every street corner and important building, and cranes, like giant one-legged metal birds feeding their offspring, promising little but an ever changing skyline.

• Frobenstraße Bridge
• Lietzensee Park
• Gendarmenmarkt 1951
• Goethe-Schule-Wilmersdorf
• Berlin Cathedral
• St. Hedwig’s Cathedral
• Friedrich Ludwig Jahn in the Hasenheide
• Brandenburg Gate, 1951
• Charlottenburg Palace
• Stadtpark Schöneberg
• Straße des 17 Juni
• The Brandenburg Gate
• Berlin Cathedral
• Bülowstraße
• The Altes Museum
• Palace Bridge
• Old Fritz
• The Gendarmenmarkt
• The Bode Museum
• The Anhalter Bridge

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

St. Hedwig’s Cathedral is a Catholic church situated at the historical Bebelplatz just off the Unter-den-Linden boulevard in central Berlin.

First erected between 1747 to 1887 by Frederick the Great, it sustained substantial bomb damage during WWII and was restored in a post-war modernist style.

As the later image shows, the cathedral is presently shut for renovations.

St. Hedwig’s Cathedral from 1920

St. Hedwig’s Cathedral from 2020

• Frobenstraße Bridge
• Lietzensee Park
• Gendarmenmarkt 1951
• Goethe-Schule-Wilmersdorf
• Berlin Cathedral
• St. Hedwig’s Cathedral
• Friedrich Ludwig Jahn in the Hasenheide
• Brandenburg Gate, 1951
• Charlottenburg Palace
• Stadtpark Schöneberg
• Straße des 17 Juni
• The Brandenburg Gate
• Berlin Cathedral
• Bülowstraße
• The Altes Museum
• Palace Bridge
• Old Fritz
• The Gendarmenmarkt
• The Bode Museum
• The Anhalter Bridge

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

This statue in the Hasenheide park commemorates the father of German gymnastics Friedrich Ludwig Jahn, who opened Germany’s first gymnasium here at the Hasenheide in 1811.

The statue originally stood c.100 meters north of its present location, but was relocated in 1936 when the plinth upon which it stands was also redesigned. 

Friedrich Ludwig Jahn in the Volkspark Hasenheide from 2020

Friedrich Ludwig Jahn in the Volkspark Hasenheide from c.1904

Photo 1904 from commons.wikimedia.org

• Frobenstraße Bridge
• Lietzensee Park
• Gendarmenmarkt 1951
• Goethe-Schule-Wilmersdorf
• Berlin Cathedral
• St. Hedwig’s Cathedral
• Friedrich Ludwig Jahn in the Hasenheide
• Brandenburg Gate, 1951
• Charlottenburg Palace
• Stadtpark Schöneberg
• Straße des 17 Juni
• The Brandenburg Gate
• Berlin Cathedral
• Bülowstraße
• The Altes Museum
• Palace Bridge
• Old Fritz
• The Gendarmenmarkt
• The Bode Museum
• The Anhalter Bridge

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

The black and white image shows the Brandenburg Gate as it appeared in 1951, still showing damage from WWII and instead of the usual Quadriga, a chariot drawn by four horses driven by Victoria, the Roman goddess of victory, which was almost totally destroyed, the Soviet flag was flown atop this iconic monument instead.

Vehicles and pedestrians were free to travel through the gate until construction of the Berlin Wall began in August 1961.

The image from 2020 shows the monument fully restored, now one of Berlin’s most recognisable symbols, and one of the city’s main tourist attractions.

Brandenburg Gate, 1951

Brandenburg Gate, 2020

Photo from 1951: Bundesarchiv from Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Germany

• Frobenstraße Bridge
• Lietzensee Park
• Gendarmenmarkt 1951
• Goethe-Schule-Wilmersdorf
• Berlin Cathedral
• St. Hedwig’s Cathedral
• Friedrich Ludwig Jahn in the Hasenheide
• Brandenburg Gate, 1951
• Charlottenburg Palace
• Stadtpark Schöneberg
• Straße des 17 Juni
• The Brandenburg Gate
• Berlin Cathedral
• Bülowstraße
• The Altes Museum
• Palace Bridge
• Old Fritz
• The Gendarmenmarkt
• The Bode Museum
• The Anhalter Bridge

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

Initially known as the Lietzenburg Palace, it was originally built as the summer residence of Sophie Charlotte, the younger sister of George Louis of Hanover, the future George I of Great Britain.

This stunning complex of buildings in the baroque style is Berlin’s largest and most magnificent palace.

Heavily damaged during WWII it was extensively rebuilt during the 1950s and remains one of Berlin’s cultural highlights.

Postcard view of the Charlottenburg Palace from c.1920

View of the Charlottenburg Palace from 2020

• Frobenstraße Bridge
• Lietzensee Park
• Gendarmenmarkt 1951
• Goethe-Schule-Wilmersdorf
• Berlin Cathedral
• St. Hedwig’s Cathedral
• Friedrich Ludwig Jahn in the Hasenheide
• Brandenburg Gate, 1951
• Charlottenburg Palace
• Stadtpark Schöneberg
• Straße des 17 Juni
• The Brandenburg Gate
• Berlin Cathedral
• Bülowstraße
• The Altes Museum
• Palace Bridge
• Old Fritz
• The Gendarmenmarkt
• The Bode Museum
• The Anhalter Bridge

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024

A view of the Carl-Zuckermayer-Brücke in the Rudolph-Wilde-Park in Schöneberg, Berlin.

The bridge is a protected building and houses the U-Bahnhof Rathaus Schöneberg, which itself can be seen in the background.

It was in front of this district town-hall that John F.Kennedy made his famous speech, “ich bin ein Berliner”, and although he was proclaiming himself to be a citizen of Berlin, united against a cold-war foe, it was maybe an unfortunate turn of phrase as a “Berliner” is also what the locals call a sticky jam doughnut.

Geographically, the park is situated within the remains of a tributary arm of an ice-age melt-water channel, the remaining features of which are a chain of lakes heading off to the Grunewald, of which this is just one.

Postcard view of the Stadtpark Schöneberg from c.1920

View of the Stadtpark Schöneberg from 2020

• Frobenstraße Bridge
• Lietzensee Park
• Gendarmenmarkt 1951
• Goethe-Schule-Wilmersdorf
• Berlin Cathedral
• St. Hedwig’s Cathedral
• Friedrich Ludwig Jahn in the Hasenheide
• Brandenburg Gate, 1951
• Charlottenburg Palace
• Stadtpark Schöneberg
• Straße des 17 Juni
• The Brandenburg Gate
• Berlin Cathedral
• Bülowstraße
• The Altes Museum
• Palace Bridge
• Old Fritz
• The Gendarmenmarkt
• The Bode Museum
• The Anhalter Bridge

© Andrew James Kirkwood – 2024