In 1908, another move was made to a house opposite the German Archaeological Institute. In 1909, Director Robert Harper purchased land for the building in Jerusalem. He purchased a vacant property between the Ecole Biblique and Saint George’s Cathedral to provide for a permanent residence for the institute. However, the outbreak of World War I in 1914 and the Ottoman Empire’s entry into the war led
the director, James Montgomery, to close the school. The school continued to rent space through 1924.