Acquired by the merchant and banker Georg Brentano in 1819 from the Rödelheimer baker Johannes Petri, the Petrihaus served as meeting place for the literary circle around Clemens Brentano – the Grimm brothers, Adele Schopenhauer and Marianne Willemer. It is the last remaining building in Frankfurt of the Swiss house style that enjoyed widespread popularity during the Romantic period.
In 1998, to make history come alive and perceptible again, upon an initiative by Dr. Wilhelm Bender, Chairman of the Board of Fraport AG, people of Frankfurt Rödelheim, professionals from culture and business and renowned personalities of the region joined together to form the “Promotion Association Petrihaus” in order to restore Petrihaus to its original historic state. Since 2002 Petrihaus now stands in old new splendour amid its surrounding garden and adjacent to the almost 200-year old gingko tree that is said to have inspired Goethe to his poem “Gingko biloba”. With the Brentano Museum, the house is an idyllic excursion location offering one the opportunity to travel backwards and experience the magic of the Romantic era.