1 September 1961 · Over the wall · Groß Glienicke, Kladow and the Sacrower See
A farmer's family leaves horse, cart and bicycles at the cut wire
On the evening of 1 September 1961 a farmer, his wife and their two children cut through the wire in the Groß Glienicke border sector and reached West Berlin, leaving a horse and cart and three bicycles behind.
The Stasi situation report of 1 September 1961 records a 'serious border breakthrough' in the area of the Groß Glienicke border unit at about 7 p.m. that day.
A farmer fled to West Berlin with his wife and their two children. At the crossing point the guards found the wire obstacle cut through, and a horse with its cart and three bicycles left behind.
The same report lists two more escapes in the Groß Glienicke sector that day: a youth from Legebruch shortly after midnight and another person at 10.30 a.m.
Sources
Whose account is this? Told from a GDR record only: documents of the GDR’s police, Stasi or border troops. No other account of the event is cited.
GDR records
- Jahrgang 1961: Lage nach dem Bau der Berliner Mauer (16) – Bericht Nr. 514/61, 1 September 1961Stasi-Unterlagen-Archiv (DDR im Blick)
Facts checked against the sources: September 2026
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Cite this page
Berlin Experiences, “A farmer's family leaves horse, cart and bicycles at the cut wire”, Berlin Wall Escapes, 2026, https://berlinwallescapes.com/escapes/farmer-family-horse-cart-gross-glienicke-1961/ (accessed [date]).
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