Guided tour through the estate with focus on architecture, town planning, preservation and the cities history
A leafy housing estate in south-west Berlin known as Onkel-Toms-Hütte (Uncle Tom’s Cabin) is one of Germany’s most famous residential developments.
Image gallery
Because of its vibrant colours, Onkel-Toms-Hütte was dubbed “Parrot Estate” by some Berliners. It is also among the biggest of Berlin’s 1920s residential estates, with around 1,900 units built in seven construction phases in 1926-31.
Besides Bruno Taut, the chief architect of the GEHAG housing association, architects Hugo Häring and Otto Rudolf Salvisberg, as well as landscape architect Leberecht Migge, were involved in the project.
Contrary to the expectations of many experts, the property – often called a “forest estate” because it blends into the natural wooded environment – was not included in the city’s initial application for World Heritage listings of its housing estates from the 1920s.
2021 the city suggested to add the estate to Berlin’s existing listings. In terms of the overall design, colours, layout and style of individual components, Onkel-Toms-Hütte has numerous parallels to the slightly older Horseshoe Estate in Berlin-Britz.
Additional information
Guided tours in German:
- Friday, 31.3.2023, 15:30 - 17:00 p.m.
Guided tours in English:
- On request only (min. 10 people) - Friday, 31.3.2023, 17:30 - 19:00 p.m.
- Price: 15 € / per person, registration requested
- Registration required at: tours@buschfeld.com or www.facebook.com/welterbe-siedlungen
- Minimum number of participants: 10 persons, subject to cancellation due to failure to reach the minimum number of participants or bad weather.
