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An creek so low you barely got your ankles wet split a community for over four decades worth of time. By an accident of geography, the fifty locals of Mödlareuth, a tiny settlement encircled by evergreen groves, fields and spectacular vistas, found themselves at the core of the cold war. They had the unfortunate circumstance to straddle the Bavarian region, in West Germany, and the Thuringian region in the Eastern part, a boundary that was established first by a barrier and then by a wall. United States military personnel dubbed it Small Berlin.

Commemorating the Past

Several months after their own barrier was torn down, and prior to their nation had become one in 1990, a group of villagers started commemorating their history. The effort is soon to be completed: on 9 November, the thirty-sixth commemoration of the collapse of the Wall in Berlin, the Museum of German Division Mödlareuth will begin operations. It was officially opened by the national president, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, in the beginning of October, but the exhibition wasn’t quite ready. Telling the residents who experienced the former times, Steinmeier stated: “You were observers of an inhuman division, which ripped households into pieces and turned neighbors into aliens.”

“You were bystanders of an inhuman division, which pulled households apart and turned neighbours into aliens.”

Bygone Origins

Even at its founding in 1810, the community straddled the Royal Bavaria and the Princely State of Reuss, a princely house most famous for giving all its male members the title Heinrich and counting them in order by birth order. As Steinmeier related to the crowd, the quirk was never an obstacle in the way of the inhabitants gathering in the same inn, attending the identical church and sending their children to the very same school.

Post-War Division

Then came the World War II. Immediately after they appeared, the Soviet forces put up timber poles by the brook. For a twelve months they took over the whole hamlet, establishing their control center in a dwelling on the Bavarian territory side, decorating it with a image of Stalin and a red star. The Americans persuaded them to retreat across the brook. For a time, residents could still cross over, though as restrictions increased they were forced to show ID, despite the fact that everyone was aware who they were, and to go back at after dark.

Intensification of Border Controls

Then, in 1952, came metal barriers and the legal closing of the border. In 1966, as in Berlin previously in 1961, a wall was constructed, with mines, tank traps and watchtowers. The villagers could still observe each other by climbing slopes, but on the eastern side gesturing and shouting were prohibited. A female resident was added to a Stasi monitoring list for replying “likewise” to a western local who said her “happy new year”.

Heritage Site Creation

I was told accounts including these tales by Robert Lebegern, the director of the museum, who has devoted a large part of his working life developing it. Locals were consulted at an early stage about how how long a section barrier they wished to preserve. They opted for a portion on the western fringe, close to where a villager succeeded to escape in the dead of night with a climbing device, following which the border was significantly strengthened.

Conserved Structures

A pair of guard towers are preserved in addition to a series of displays showing the most impactful events in the hamlet’s history. As we move, Robert Lebegern details the rules: not a single person could approach 5km of the frontier. Farmers needed particular approval to look after their crops; the husband or wife could operate the combine harvester but never both, in case they sought to make a run for it. Soldiers stood watch.

Broader Background

The boundary between West Germany and the German Democratic Republic extended 1,400 kilometers, from the northern sea in the northern part to here in the southern region. Berlin is recalled and honored the most, but more than twice as many persons (more than 300) lost their lives trying to cross it in rural areas than in the metropolis. the director tells me that 95 percent of efforts to cross did not succeed.

Hamlet Daily Living

The majority of Mödlareuth’s residents were rural laborers or artisans, who adjusted to residing in the uncertain territory between 2 belief systems by staying low-profile and caring for their fields. They nor did they backed the communist regime nor opposed it, Robert Lebegern explains.

Visitors

For tourists, however, the hamlet became a kind of site of interest. Approximately 15k came to visit annually, viewing tools in possession, to stare – and then quickly leave. In 1983, the US president, George Bush, was shown around by the national security head.

25 years after reunification, the television series, a TV series about a fictional village resembling Mödlareuth, resulted in renewed attention.

Modern Evolutions

The launch of the recently established museum – with a coffee shop, store, movie theater and big vehicle area – is probable to