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burned down during World War II.
In 1990, the Turaida Museum Reserve bought the
relevant plot of land and the nearby estate tavern
and teahouse. Studies have been conducted of the
foundations of the Swiss House.
The Estate’s Tavern and Teahouse
The tavern and teahouse with a roof story was
attached to the southern wall of the Swiss House
during the latter half of the 19th century. It is a red
brick building with light plastering.
During the 1920s and 1930s, the building housed
a teahouse and shop. Local residents called it a
tavern. A compendium of the memories of local
residents shows that “ordinary” people visited
the teahouse, because a room in the Swiss House
itself was reserved for “fancier” gentlemen.
During the 19th century, the tavern was also the
place where farmers hired servants on the specific
day in the spring when that happened.
The Turaida Museum Reserve uses the building for
everyday needs today.
The New Granary
In 1914, the Turaida Estate began to construct a
new granary as its operations expanded. World
War I brought the building process to an end, and
the building was left with its external walls, but
without internal walls, a roof or a floor. The
two-story building was made of fieldstones with
yellow brick decorations at its corners and around
the window and door apertures. The monumental
appearance of the building creates true respect
and amazement at the work that was done in
splitting the necessary stones. Such stone buildings
are typical of the Latvian rural landscape from the
late 19th and early 20th century.
THE TURAIDA ESTATE
The estate’s tavern and teahouse from the South-east
The new granary from the North-east
A panorama of the centre of the Turaida Estate
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