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An creek so narrow you scarcely got your ankles wet divided a community for over four decades worth of time. Because of a chance of topography, the 50 locals of Mödlareuth, a tiny settlement surrounded by pine forests, fields and stunning views, found themselves at the heart of the Cold War tensions. They had the unfortunate circumstance to straddle Bavaria, in Western Germany, and the Thuringian region in the East, a boundary that was marked first by a fence and then by a partition. American soldiers dubbed it Small Berlin.

Preserving the Past

Several months after their own division was opened, and even before their state had unified again in 1990, a group of local people set about commemorating their heritage. The project is soon to be completed: on 9 November, the 36th anniversary of the collapse of the German barrier, the German-German Museum Mödlareuth will begin operations. It was officially inaugurated by the head of state, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, in the beginning of October, but the display wasn’t quite ready. Telling the locals who experienced the old days, Steinmeier remarked: “You were bystanders of an inhuman split, which pulled relatives into pieces and turned neighbours into aliens.”

“You were observers of an brutal split, which tore families asunder and turned neighbours into aliens.”

Past Context

Right from its creation in 1810, the village cut across the Bavarian Kingdom and the Principality of Reuss, a noble lineage best known for giving all its male descendants the title Heinrich and labeling them sequentially by date of birth. As Steinmeier informed the audience, the quirk did not stand in the path of the inhabitants drinking in the very same tavern, attending the very same religious building and placing their kids to the identical educational institution.

After the War Separation

Subsequently occurred the global conflict. Immediately after they came, the Russian troops put up wood stakes by the creek. For a annual period they occupied the entire hamlet, setting up their command in a dwelling on the western side, adorning it with a image of Stalin and a Soviet emblem. The US forces persuaded them to pull back across the brook. For a time, villagers could still cross over, though as restrictions tightened they were obliged to show identity papers, although everyone understood who they were, and to come back at after dark.

Escalation of Boundary Measures

Subsequently, in 1952, came barbed wire and the formal closing of the border. In 1966, as in Berlin half a decade before, a barrier was constructed, with explosives, anti-tank obstacles and observation points. The villagers could still see each other by scaling elevations, but on the eastern side waving and shouting were forbidden. One woman was placed on a Stasi monitoring list for replying “back at you” to a Bavarian villager who greeted her “prosperous new year”.

Museum Establishment

I was told narratives including these incidents by Robert Lebegern, the museum’s director, who has spent a significant portion of his working life creating it. Locals were asked at an early stage about how how long a section structure they desired to preserve. They opted for a portion on the west perimeter, near where one of their own succeeded to get away in the middle of the night with a climbing device, subsequently the border was significantly strengthened.

Conserved Buildings

A pair of watchtowers are maintained together with a series of exhibits showing the most dramatic dates in the village’s history. As we walk, Lebergen lists the regulations: nobody could come within 5km of the border. Farmers had to obtain particular approval to look after their produce; the husband or wife could operate the agricultural equipment but under no circumstances the pair, in case they tried to make a run for it. Military personnel kept guard.

Broader Perspective

The frontier between West Germany and the GDR stretched nearly 900 miles, from the Baltic coast in the northern part to here in the south. Berlin is recalled and documented the most, but in excess of twice as many persons (exceeding 300) lost their lives seeking to cross it in countryside regions than in the big city. Lebegern tells me that 95% of escape attempts failed.

Community Daily Living

The greater part of Mödlareuth’s locals were farmers or artisans, who adapted to residing in the uncertain territory between 2 ideological spheres by keeping their heads down and looking after their farms. They nor did they supported the communist regime nor opposed it, Lebegern clarifies.

Visitors

For sightseers, however, the hamlet became a type of destination. About fifteen thousand visited annually, binoculars in hand, to stare – and then quickly leave. In 1983, the US president, George Bush, was given a tour by the German defence minister.

25 years after reunification, the TV show, a broadcast production about a made-up community similar to Mödlareuth, led to renewed interest.

Modern Changes

The inauguration of the recently established museum – with a cafe, shop, film screening area and big parking lot – is expected to