Berlin Wall Escapes1961–1989

25 August 1961 · False papers and disguises · The Spree between Kreuzberg and Friedrichshain

A young man mingles with the builders at the Oberbaumbrücke

On 25 August 1961 a young man of 18 to 20 slipped in among the construction workers at the Oberbaumbrücke control point and got away to West Berlin while the guards were not paying attention.

Black-and-white photo under the brick arcade of a bridge: uniformed East German police and an armed man in combat dress check the papers of men and women carrying handbags and coats.
East German police checking people under the arcade of the Oberbaumbrücke on 13 August 1961, twelve days before the escape there (East German news agency photo) Photo: Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-85426-0002 / Rudolf Hesse. Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 de

According to the Stasi report of 25 August 1961, a man aged about 18 to 20 managed to get in among the construction workers at the Oberbaumbrücke during their work and took advantage of the guards' inattention. He escaped into the western sectors.

The report counted six breakthroughs in East Berlin that day and said that two of them repeated methods already known.

Colour photo over a concrete wall: an empty bridge roadway with lamp posts leads to a checkpoint hut and a watchtower, with the brick arcades of the bridge on the right and buildings beyond.
The Oberbaumbrücke crossing in October 1986, seen over the Wall from Kreuzberg Photo: Roehrensee Later version(s) were uploaded by Hic et nunc at German Wikipedia .. Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Sources

  1. Jahrgang 1961: Lage nach dem Bau der Berliner Mauer (9) – Bericht Nr. 486/61, 25. August 1961Stasi-Unterlagen-Archiv (DDR im Blick)

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