The house was donated to the city of Nahariya by the heirs of Philip Lieberman who died in the Holocaust, in commemoration of the history of Nahariya and of Philip Lieberman.
The museum pays tribute to Nahariya’s founders and entrepreneurs: Land redeemer Engineer Yosef Levi whose personal periscope looks out to the north; Dr. Zelig Susskin, the man who outlined Nahariya’s agricultural settlement model and Mr. Shimon Reich the settlement planner; in combination with Nahariya’s fascinating history.
The museum also exhibits: the inner room of the first settlers’ home, which was no more than the actual lift in which they shipped their belongings when they immigrated from Germany to Israel, including its contents.
Items from Nahariya’s first laundry, the Bloch Laundry; the wringing machine, the ironing machine, the laundry board and the original sign of the laundry that was located, like all other businesses in Nahariya, on the banks of the Ga’aton River.
A display of homeware and tools from Nahariya’s first days, amongst them a 1929 Singer Manual sawing machine.
In the yard stands the wagon used to carry crops, designed and built by Andreas Mayer, one of the founders, alongside other interesting and fascinating items.
The second floor holds a permanent exhibition of photos from Nahariya’s first days, including photos of Hilda and Dr. Richard Strauss by the cowshed in their small farmyard, where they started what later became the Strauss Concern, alongside photos of young Steff Wertheimer.
A film screened in the cinema hall, which walls are adorned by gigantic photos of Nahariya’s first children, tells the story of the settlement’s history.
Aside from its function as a museum, the Lieberman House is also a historic building. The house, once surrounded by orchards, was designed in the year 1860 by an Italian architect. Its courtyard held a water reservoir that was used for bathing, and around the structure used as residence there were an experimental agricultural farm, a cowshed and a milking facility.
During the events of 1936-1939, a Jewish guard police unit was established with the accompaniment of local resident volunteers. The first group of immigrants to Kibbutz Evron resided in an area on the premises of the Lieberman House; during that time an observation tower, which can be seen to this day, was built in the Lieberman House.
In the year 1942 the house was used as a base for operations and reconnaissance of the Palmah patrolmen division under the commandment of Yitzhak Rabin.
During the illegal immigration period, the Lieberman House absorbed some illegal immigrants who arrived to the coast of Nahariya, until they were transferred to a safe place.
After World War II the house was used as a convalescent home for children of Holocaust survivors who were in need of healing and mental support.
The Lieberman House was also used as Nahariya’s first high school.
