Erwin Strittmatter Memorial Site “Der Laden”

The plain little house in Bohsdorf is home to the famous shop that is an authentic site featured in Erwin Strittmatter’s book trilogy “Der Laden” (“the shop”). After the first part had been published in 1983, visitors started to come to the village. Strittmatter’s brother Heinrich, who was also known as “Heinjak”, arranged for tours of the shop that was still empty at the time.
The current memorial site was set up in January 1999, when the shop was equipped with original shelving, sales counters, scales, lucky wheels and typical products from the 1920s. The oven and the bakery have been open to visitors since 2005, and are located in the spot where the family’s bathroom used to be. The upstairs rooms have also been set up: In the boys’ former bedroom, visitors can see antiquarian Strittmatter books, leaf through documentations and see videos. The furniture in the Kulka grandparents’ room is typical of the first half of the 20th century.

The remise, barn and horse stable have been converted into an exhibition and event room. Exhibits shown here include, for example, the collection of a former ox cart driver. After returning from World War II, Erwin Strittmatter wrote his first novel “Ochsenkutscher” (“ox cart driver”) here. The novel was the starting point of his successful writing career.

In the courtyard there is once again a newly built dovecote. A photo series shown in the barn pays tribute to Strittmatter’s “first home” Schulzenhof/Dollgow. He lived here until he died, together with his third wife Eva Strittmatter, their children and his horses.