Mayor's House In 1856, Brake received the official designation as a city, along with Varel and Elsfleth, and this move forward was accompanied, at least for some years, by an economic upturn. The Mayor´s House (“Bürgermeisterhaus”) is a city mansion in the late classical style and serves as an architectural articulation of wealth. It was built in 1862 by Johann Friedrich Schumacher, a captain from Elsfleth.Between 1881 and 1909, it was the residence and office of his In 1856, Brake received the official designation as a city, along with Varel and Elsfleth, and this move forward was accompanied, at least for some years, by an economic upturn. The Mayor´s House (“Bürgermeisterhaus”) is a city mansion in the late classical style and serves as an architectural articulation of wealth. It was built in 1862 by Johann Friedrich Schumacher, a captain from Elsfleth. Between 1881 and 1909, it was the residence and office of his son, Friedrich August Schumacher, who served for some 28 years as the mayor of the city of Brake and died on 27 May 1909, shortly after retiring from that office. He took care of all official business from his private home, the name of which recalls these days. Today, several rental apartments are located within the house. [More]