The Corner House

The Corner House in Riga, a six-story neoclassical Art Nouveau landmark at Brivibas Street 61, is now the site of a turbulent history. Designed by architect Aleksandrs Vanags and completed in 1912, the building originally housed shops and the Imperial Russian Music Society. During the Soviet occupation, it served as headquarters of the NKVD and later the KGB, where political prisoners were held and deportations were planned. After Latvia regained its independence, the police used the building until 2008. Today, the Latvian Occupation Museum presents an exhibition there on the KGB era. On guided tours through the historic cell block, you can experience the site's dark past up close and see the conditions in which prisoners were once held.