Luisenschule Essen

Luisenschule is a school building in Essen containing 23 classrooms organized around a central auditorium with an organ gallery. The structure displays early 1900s design for educational use and has since been adapted to house archives on two of its four floors.

Founded in 1866 as Essen's first girls' higher school, the institution served as an educational facility for more than a century. The building transitioned to housing the city archives when its school operations closed in 2004.

The building's name honors Queen Louise of Prussia, chosen in 1912 to express the connection between education and royal heritage. This naming reflects what education meant to the city at that time.

The building is located at Bismarckplatz 10 and has housed the city archives since a 2007 renovation. The interior has been modernized, with archives occupying only two of the four floors available in the structure.

During World War II the building housed Eastern European forced laborers, with classrooms converted to sleeping quarters for about 750 workers. This difficult chapter marks an important and often overlooked aspect of the site's past.

Location: Essen

Inception: 1866

Address: Bismarckplatz 10

GPS coordinates: 51.45000,7.00667

Latest update: December 13, 2025 17:06