In Search of Clues

After August 13, 1961, people from East and West Berlin came to the Wall again and again. They wanted to see this...

Early in the morning on March 17, 1964, an unidentified person succeeded in fleeing to the West at Gartenstraße. Either...

Horst Walter K. approached the border strip early in the morning on September 13, 1966. After reaching the inner wall,...

On October 26, 1962, two young men in their early twenties managed to flee over the Wall at the Sophien parish...

The only building between Bergstraße and Gartenstraße to have survived the war was already evacuated of its residents...

East German border guards arrested Erich-Klaus D. on Gartenstraße on September 22, 1970 as he tried to escape.

Graves on the Sophien parish cemetery were continually moved to make room for the border fortifications. The first...

On October 29, 1966, Siegfried J., who had just moved from the West to East Berlin in 1965, tried to enter into West...

On April 2, 1977, an unknown person was arrested at Gartenstraße while trying to flee.

Bodo H. was arrested on April 15, 1966 for “violation of the border regulations” because he had entered the Sophien...

On February 16, 1962, border guard sergeant Egon Z. succeeded in fleeing to the West with his sister and her friend...

On January 18, 1974, Karl­-Heinz M. was arrested by border soldiers within the border strip while trying to escape. He...

On December 29, 1961, the border guard Alfred Sch. was assigned with two other guards to keep surveillance on the...

Not all fugitives who had to give up their escape attempt were arrested. A man on Gartenstraße was observed by border...

Uwe W. observed the border fortifications from the building at Gartenstraße 26 in preparation of his escape. He worked...

For different reasons, a number of people from West Berlin also tried to get over the Wall. On February 29, 1964, an...

On New Year’s Eve 1965, Hartmut B. and Günter M, two border sol­diers posted at Gartenstraße, decided to flee. They ran...

Helmut P. tried to reach the West through the Sophien parish cemetery because the cemetery offered him cover. Two...

Wolfgang A. was arrested while tending to a grave at the Sophien parish cemetery because he did not have a “grave...

An unknown person was arrested by border soldiers while trying to escape.

Winfried T. was arrested when he wanted to visit his girlfriend at Gartenstraße 85. The building was situated within...

On October 22, 1961, the private Werner K. was assigned as dog handler to the Sophien parish cemetery where he was...

Karl­-Heinz Br. and Gerd W. tried to flee across the Sophien parish cemetery in October 1969. They had already passed...

Jörg H. climbed over the cemetery wall onto the cemetery grounds at Ackerstraße and was approaching the inner wall in...

From December 1964 to November 1965, just in the area between Bergstraße and Gartenstraße, nine people were arrested...

On his birthday, May 19, 1966, Peter St. tried to reach the West from the Sophien parish cemetery. He lost his wallet,...

Private Manfred H. was arrested by his own comrades late in the evening of June 20, 1963 because he entered the grounds...

On June 18, 1985, three people were arrested by the East German police on Gartenstraße near the border strip because...

On November 21, 1966, Dieter D. was observed by border soldiers as he climbed over the first barrier fence. He was...

Jaschkowitz family gravesite.The family residing at Rosenthaler Straße 19 included two Jewish men, Max und David. Their...

The construction of the Berlin Wall evoked anger and outrage among residents on both sides of the city. In West Berlin...

At around 1:30 a.m. on August 30, 1961, Hannelore B., Margot St. and Ursula S. fled from an apartment at Bernauer...

At midday on August 19, 1961, two unknown persons slid down a rope from the first floor of the corner building at...

Bernd B. tried to climb over the Wall near the Reconciliation Church on the night of July 7, 1968.

He approached the...

A family fled from the first floor of the building at Bernauer Straße 10, probably on August 24, 1961. A couple and...

On January 29, 1962 a young man fled from the attic of the building at Bernauer Straße 13. Dressed as a chimney...

At midday on December 6, 1961, Private K. was on duty at Strelitzer Straße. He stood directly in front of the Wall. His...

Hildegard K. worked as a singer for East German radio. The religious mother of four children risked losing her job...

Gerd Sch. almost succeeded in fleeing to the West on August 17, 1962, but was apprehended by border guards just before...

On August 13, 1961, the border fortifications on Ackerstraße consisted only of loosely laid­out rolls of barbed wire. A...

Heinz V. had just about completed his doctorate degree at the Humboldt University in Berlin by summer 1961. He had...

Border soldiers arrested Martin M. during an escape attempt on April 25, 1980. He had climbed over the inner wall on...

At around 4 a.m. on August 30, 1961, five people escaped through the window of the building at Bernauer Straße 2.

A few days after the border was closed, the first building entrances were blocked off on Bernauer Straße to prevent...

Following a fight with a party secretary on the evening of September 22, 1961, Horst K., who lived at Bernauer Straße...

Following a fight with a party secretary on the evening of September 22, 1961, Horst K., who lived at Bernauer Straße...

Wilfried K. was arrested by border guards right in front of the Wall at Ackerstraße at around 1:15 a.m. on September...

On August 26, 1961, a woman jumped to the West from the first floor of a building at Bernauer Straße 2. The West Berlin...

On October 17, 1961, Rudolf K., a transport worker, was assigned to assist in the apartment evictions on Bernauer...

Monika Schaar, who originally came from East Berlin, got married on September 8, 1961. Because of the border closure,...

Mrs. K., her daughter­-in­-law and her grandson fled to the West from Mrs. K.’s apartment on Sep­tember 19, 1961 at...

On September 22, 1961, the F. family fled from their third-­floor apartment at Bernauer Straße 7 into the rescue net of...

On December 5, 1961, a 27­-year­-old man was able to flee to the West from the first floor of the building at Bernauer...

On the night of October 26, 1961, two men crept onto the roof of the building at Ackerstraße 41. They climbed over to...

On the morning of October 25, 1961, residents of the building at Ackerstraße 42, which did not stand directly on the...

In May 1962, Dieter T., who was only 18 years old, and four friends tried to flee to the West from the apartment...

Karl­-Heinz S. fled through the window of his apartment at Ackerstraße 43 around 3 a.m. on September 5, 1961, along...

The border policeman Lutz M. fled to the West through a window at Bernauer Straße 1 on October 23, 1961. Serving duty...

A newspaper from the West reported that in 1984 two teenagers were able to escape to the West near the Reconciliation...

On the evening of September 25, 1961, Rudolf B. fled with his wife and son from their second­floor apartment at...

On the evening of August 22, 1961, a young woman, pretending to be paying a visit, was able to finagle past the...

Border guards apprehended the apprentice Michael B. from Freital on June 9, 1981 during an escape attempt on...

At midday on September 19, 1961, residents of the building at Ackerstraße 42 informed the border guards that they had...

On October 7, 1961, border guards apprehended Klaus Sch., a resident of Swinemuender Straße, in the building at...

On the morning of September 23, 1961, border guards on Ackerstraße observed a person jumping from a border house into...

On October 15, 1961, at around 9 p.m., the next­door neighbor Richard S., a voluntary assistant of the East German...

On September 19, 1961, a person fled across the rooftop of the building at Ackerstraße 42.

After the Knittel family decided to flee from Bernauer Straße 8 on September 19, 1961, they notified the West Berlin...

On August 11, 1971, the border troops arrested a person on Ackerstraße who was trying to escape.

The evacuation of the border houses on Bernauer Straße began on the morning of September 24, 1961. When the eviction...

Just after midnight on Septem­ber 20, 1961, border guards watched as five fire trucks drove up to Bernauer Strasse 10...

Heinz K. worked as a truck driver for the Murante company at Strelitzer Strasse 53. After the Wall was built, the...

In September 1962, a border troop patrol discovered a hole in the signal fence between Acker­strasse and the...

Werner U. was arrested in the border area at Ackerstrasse on November 30, 1974. He was suspected of wanting to pass...

After the Wall was built, a few people tried to escape to the West through the sewage system. On October 4, 1961,...

Irma B. fled to the West from her apartment at Ackerstrasse 43 at about 2 a.m. on September 23, 1961. Irma B. had...

On May 5, 1980, East German police arrested a person at Ackerstrasse who was suspected of trying to escape.

Günter Tr. worked for the Murante company in the border area. On the morning of September 6, 1961, he arrived at work...

Private Klaus Sch. was assigned duty at Ackerstraße on the morning of January 16, 1962. When his squad leader left to...

Between December 1964 to November 1965, 19 people at Ackerstraße alone were arrested in connection with the border...

When Anni M. returned from vacation on September 27, 1961, the evacuation of the border houses had already begun. She...

On October 19, 1979, border guards arrested a person in the border area at Ackerstraße.

To prevent further escape attempts from the border houses, the windows facing West Berlin were gradually bricked up. On...

Gerd L. attempted to flee to the West near Brunnenstraße on January 15, 1966. He lived near the Wall on Strelitzer...

While thousands of people in East Berlin were demonstrating for freedom and reforms in the center of East Berlin on the...

With the help of a West Berlin fire brigade, Ella K., 69 years old, fled from her first­floor apartment at Bernauer...

On the evening of September 17, 1961 three people fled to the West by sliding down ropes from the corner building at...

The East German policemen Rudolf K. and Reinhardt R. had just joined the Berlin riot police in the spring of 1961 and...

A second wall made of concrete plates was built on September 4, 1963 to reinforce the Berlin Wall between Bernauer...

An unknown person used a ladder to flee over the Wall at Strelitzer Straße on September 22, 1961.

The D. family fled to the West from their first­floor apartment at Bernauer Straße 23 on October 16, 1961. The decision...

In the area of Brunnenstraße alone, eight people were arrested between December 1964 and November 1965 in connection...

Just past midnight on September 23, 1961, an unknown man jumped to the West from the second­-story window of a building...

For ten days after the Wall was built, Brunnenstraße was still a border crossing. An ambulance traveling from east to...

Max W. slid down a rope from his first­-floor apartment at Bernauer Straße 24 on August 24, 1961. When the rope broke,...

In 1962 and 1963, side and back buildings adjoined to the border houses were torn down. Border soldiers kept...

On the evening of March 21, 1970, a 22­-year­-old man climbed over the inner wall on Strelitzer Straße to get to West...

After the Wall was built, renovation work begun in the border houses was continued. A painter working at Brunnenstraße...

On September 24, 1961 a man was able to escape from the second-story of the building at Bernauer Straße 16. The man...

After the Wall fell on November 9, 1989, the borders to West Berlin were open to all citizens. But for a time the...

Frank K. applied for an exit visa in March 1984. But he continued to look for ways to escape. He had been working in a...

Bernd Sp. fled in the evening or night of November 22, 1961, unnoticed by the border guards. He approached the border...

On the evening of November 19, 1986, Dieter H. was able to flee to the West from Brunnenstraße. The toolmaker had made...

An unknown man was able to escape to the West at Brunnenstraße on July 24, 1984. He used a ladder to climb over the...

A man was arrested while trying to flee at Brunnenstraße around 3:20 a.m. on July 23, 1971. The border guards were able...

On November 4, 1961, three bor­ der guards assigned to duty at Brunnenstraße stood together approximately forty meters...

After the Wall was built, a border crossing continued to exist on Brunnenstraße until August 23, 1961. Two men wearing...

At about five o’clock in the morning on January 4, 1965, a man, approximately 25 years old, succeeded in fleeing not...

On the evening of September 7, 1966, the border guard on Swinemünder Strasse noticed a man climbing over the inner...

Klaus-Peter K. was arrested by border troops on December 14, 1973. He had tried to flee to West Berlin from...

Frieda Schulze had lived at Bernauer Strasse 29 since the end of the war. In late August, just after the Wall was...

At about one o’clock in the morning on October 27, 1968, a man used a folding ladder to climb over the inner fence that...

Renate L., a secretary for the East-Berlin housing construction administration, was accompanied by an East Berlin...

Ulla D. and Hans K. fled to the West on the evening of September 3, 1961. Under false pretences, they managed to pass...

Selma P. and her son Peter W. had lived on the third floor of Bernauer Strasse 35 since the end of the war. They began...

After the border closed on August 13, 1961, the residents of the border houses were not permitted to maintain relations...

On the evening of September 29, 1961, a resident of Bernauer Strasse 30 reported that West Berlin police were loading...

On the evening of August 24, 1961, Detlef M. and Herbert Z. attempted to climb over the Wall to the West at the corner...

On June 19, 1962, West Berlin police heard three shots fired at Ruppiner Straße. Shortly thereafter cries of pain,...

Juergen B. had already climbed over the wire fence when border guards arrested him on Ruppiner Straße on the night...

On the morning of September 8, 1961 the photographer of an East Berlin magazine took pictures of the Wall on...

Three young men were able to escape to the West at Ruppiner Straße on the evening of August 17, 1961. Using a truck,...

Jan-­Michael G. wanted to flee at Ruppiner Straße where gates in the inner wall and signal fence allowed border troops...

On the afternoon of March 29, 1962, Johannes M. offered the border guard at Ruppiner Straße a thousand marks to let him...

On the evening of May 24, 1973, Juergen B. approached the gate of the inner wall at Ruppiner Straße. He shook the gate...

On the morning of October 3, 1962, 200 teenagers of a tour group were viewing the Berlin Wall. Six of them climbed onto...

To create a pathway behind the border houses, border troops tore down the side wing and rear buildings along Bernauer...

The border troops set up an observation post at Bernauer Straße 44 to enable the guards to observe activity on Bernauer...

On the morning of September 29, 1961, Ms. K., 89 years old, was waiting for two people whom she didn’t know, who were...

On the evening of October 6, 1961, border police arrested Anita L. and Erna M. in the attic of the building at...

On the evening of November 10, 1983, border soldiers arrested Ronni S. in the border strip as he was trying to escape...

On October 18, 1961, construction workers were monitored as they bricked up the windows of the building at Bernauer...

Jörg S. decided to flee with his friends Erich E., Gerd Sch. and W. in July 1962. At the time Jörg S. was serving as a...

On May 12, 1987, a person was arrested by border soldiers in the border strip at Swinemuender Straße after he had...

Erich B. lived with his wife, two children and his mother­-in­-law at Swinemuender Straße 23. After the Wall was built,...

In the early evening of September 2, 1961, about 200 people gathered at Swinemünder Straße and waved across the Wall to...

Just past five o’clock in the morning on September 19, 1961, four men and a woman slid down a rope that they had...

On August 9, 1986, to acknowledge the upcoming 25th anniversary of the Berlin Wall and to commemorate the division of...

Mario E. tried to escape at Wolliner Strasse at about two o’clock in the morning on November 30, 1979. He was able to...

Rainer P. and the former border officer Uwe W. planned their escape in May 1977. They had inspected the situation along...

On December 16, 1966, construction workers were being monitored as they tore down the building at Bernauer Strasse 48....

Following a fight with his wife on the evening of January 28, 1966, Manfred B. made the spontaneous decision to flee....

According to the border troops, 31,500 people visited the viewing platform at Schwedter Strasse in 1986, an average of...

On the afternoon of February 19, 1962, border troops discovered a hole in a bricked-up window on the first floor of the...

The military conscripts Udo S. and Burckhardt B. were on duty at Eberswalder Strasse on March 23, 1966. They were both...

On the afternoon of September 12, 1961, an unknown man managed to escape to the West. He had broken into the...

On the evening of August 28, 1961, Dieter R. managed to enter the apartment of Bruno P. at Bernauer Strasse 47b without...