Checkpoint Charlie

The name Checkpoint Charlie was coined by the Western Allies during the Cold War for a crossing point that lied between East Berlin and West Berlin. The crossing point was located at the junction between Friedrichstraße, Zimmerstraße and Mauerstraße, which coincidentially translates to “Wall Street”. Friedrichstadt was the actual neighborhood that was then divided by the Berlin Wall. There were many other sector crossing points that once existed in Berlin, with some of them having specific designations. Some were there specifically for citizen residents of West Berlin and East Berlin.

Checkpoint Charlie was created for foreigners and Allied Forces as their single crossing point, crossing either by foot or by car. Units that were from the Allied Forces were actually not allowed or prohibited from using other sector crossing points that were intentionally designed for use by foreigners.

The etymology of Charlie was actually from the NATO phonetic alphabet's symbol for the letter C. This format for naming checkpoints was the same as other Allied Forces checkpoints found in the Autobahn like Checkpoint Alpha at Helmstedt and Checkpoint Bravo at Dreilinden. Checkpoint Charlie though, was simply called Friedrichstraße Crossing Point, while the East Germans simply referred to Checkpoint Charlie more officially as Grenzübergangsstelle,(which translates to Border Crossing Point) Friedrich-/Zimmerstraße.

Checkpoint Charlie became one of the most memorable places that symbolized the Cold War. It meant the separation of east and west, and was considered by some East Germans as freedom.

Checkpoint Charlie shape was asymmetrical. In its 27 years of existence, the entire infrastructure on the Eastern side had been expanded and adjusted. Multi-lane sheds were created for cars and occupants in the area. The Americans, on the other hand, were using a simple wooden shed. That shed was never replaced until the 1980s when they replaced it with a metal structure. That structure is now on exhibit at the Allied Museum in western Berlin. Years after the east and west sides of Berlin were reunited, a reproduction of the original woodshed that the Americans were using was erected on its original site as a memorial.