Abstract:

After the victory of the Independence war Turkish Republic was founded, a great number of reforms were made in political, social, cultural and economic fields under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in order to both the Turkish nation’s taking their place among the modern societies and also creating a national consciousness of the people. İmportant function was given to educatipn so as to have people adopt the reforms. In this regard, the schools having been inherited form the Ottoman were modernized and educational programs were renewed. In addition, in 1932 the Poeple’s Houses, which could be described aswidespread institutions, were consrtucted in 14 provinces among which there is Samsun. Naturally, in the construction of the People’s Houses, the role of some political, economic, social and cultural developments of the period can not be ignored. It is possible to see it in the cultural, artistic, economic and educational functions that Poeple’s Houses have. However, it should be noted that People’s Houses actually is the product of the politics of creating a modern and secular society. From the establisment date of 1932 to the closing of 1951, in addition to many needs of the Turkish society it is obvious it was very effective to transfer the reforms to poeple. Through the People’s Houses it was intended to base Atatürk’s principles and reforms on a strong ground, to establish national culture, to establish a bridge between Turkish intellectuals and people and to create a productive society having common concerns and ideals. With the establishment of the People’s Houses some important developments in the field of culture and education were made and several journals and books were published in order to inform and educate people on every subject. People’s Houses having an important place in our recent history have attracted the attention of many local and foreign researchers. During her visit in Samsun, Lilo Linke was also interested in People’s Houses and narrated significant information related to it. This study is based on Lilo Linke’s observations and researches during her visit in Samsun in 1935. Using her travelogues the purpose of the study is to handle and evaluate Samsun Poeple’s House and its activities and thus shed light on the history of Samsun in the context of People’s Houses.