The Other Berlin Zoo: The Tierpark Friedrichsfelde

The impact of some forty years of division on the city of Berlin manifested itself in interesting ways in terms of cultural, recreational, and social activities. While most people think immediately of the physical barricade in the form of the Berlin Wall as it impacted traffic patterns and cut through streets and neighborhoods, the division also forced both sides of the city to create mirrored recreational and cultural opportunities. For many cultural institutions that existed in the East such as museums and opera houses, West Berlin needed a cultural equivalent. But what about recreational areas? The Berlin Zoological Garden is a well-known tourist destination and beloved by Berliners as well. But, Berlin actually has two zoos: The Tierpark Friedrichsfelde was founded in 1955 on the grounds of the Friedrichsfelde Palace as an attempt by the East Berlin city magistrate to provide recreation for East Berliners, and thus also encourage East Berliners to remain in their half of the city, for at the time, the borders between East and West were still fluid. Deutschland Archiv has published an interview with the journalist Jan Mohnhaupt about the competition between the two zoos. You can read the full interview here.