The Cold War
Gallery 3
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Souvenir sticker from Check Point Charlie, most famous of the Allied checkpoints between East and West Berlin. Of the checkpoints in the divided city, Check Point Charlie the only one that could be used by non-Germans. After the Berlin Wall was dismantled, the world-famous "You are leaving the American Sector" sign and guardhouse were added to a nearby museum about the Wall.
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Soviet Army officers hat I traded from a Russian guard at a Soviet checkpoint on the Berlin-Helmstadt autobahn. He tapped his shoulders to indicate he had shoulder straps and then rubbed his wrist to indicate he wanted my wristwatch; I shook my head "no" and scratched my head to show I wanted a hat. After several minutes of signing and counter-signing, he finally went inside the guard shack and came back with this hat. Maybe he stole it from his C.O.?
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East German border guard visor hat. The East German border guards were ordered to shoot on sight anyone attempting to cross the border into West Germany, and were most notorous for killing would-be escaping East Berliners at the Berlin Wall. Estimates on the number of people shot will trying to escape to freedom range from the official West German number of 109, to 238 cited by a group representing the victims. Since the Wall came down in 1990, several former guards have been tried for manslaughter, although most were given suspended sentences. However, former DDR leader Egon Krenz was sentenced to 6 and one half years. (Donated by Dan Faulkner, LTC, USAF (Retired). |
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National flag of the German Democratic Republic (DDR). From 1949 to 1959, the East German and West German flags were identical, with equal stripes of black, red, and gold. For West Germany, the colors represented the liberal ideals of the nineteenth century, while for East Germans they stood for the German revolutionary tradition. On 1 October 1959, the DDR added a communist coat of arms to the flag's center which displayed a hammer and compass in a ring of rye, symbolising the working class, intelligentsia, and farmers. This flag continued in use as the national flag of East Germany until the reunification of the two Germanies on 3 October 1990, or one year after the fall of the Berlin Wall. |
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East German enlisted man's overseas hat. This was worn with the standard duty uniform and closely mimics the pattern of hat worn by Soviet soldiers.(Donated by the late Rolf Kormann) |
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These patches were given to Joy Eilers during one of her USO tours in Germany: (Top) US Army Europe (USAEUR), the Berlin Brigade. (Center) Southern European Task Force, 3rd Infantry Division. (Bottom) 8th Infantry Division, 24th Infantry Division. |
