In November 1989, one of the iconic figures of the Cold War — the Berlin Wall — came tumbling down, courtesy of a dissipating Communist government and thousands of protesters demanding their freedom.
Watching history unfold from a uniquely close setting was Carl Slaugh, Iola’s new city administrator.
Slaugh, then stationed on an Air Force base in Frankfurt, West Germany, happened to be in Berlin for a sight-seeing trip the day the wall was opened.
“It is hard to describe the feeling of being among people who were being released after being confined behind a wall since 1961,” Slaugh told the Register.
Slaugh and wife Cheryl had planned a trip to West Berlin weeks in advance, an arduous ordeal because of the numerous stops at security checkpoints along the way. The Slaughs also were required to carry their passports and special flag orders, necessary to visit East Berlin.
“We were told in advance that there would likely be large demonstrations,” Slaugh said.
They arrived in East Berlin for the day, exiting to West Berlin to sleep that night, and awakened the next morning to news that the wall was being opened and travel restrictionsrescinded. The Slaughs decided to spend another day in East Berlin.
That afternoon, as they approached “Checkpoint Charlie,” the Slaughs noticed swarms of crowds beginning to swell and move toward the security station.
“Like a soccer game had just ended and everyone was moving toward the exit gate,” he recalled.
As the Slaughs slowly approached the checkpoint, large transport trucks loaded with armed soldiers passed.
“We wondered if the government had changed its mind and they were preparing to turn the crowds around,” he said.
Instead, the troops apparently were there just to ensure an orderly exit of thousands of East Berliners.
The atmosphere was euphoric, Slaugh said.
He estimates it took about eight hours to travel the next 100 miles along Germany’s Autobahn in stop-and-go graffic.
It was a common sight to see people stopping frequently along the roadside to drink a toast of champagne “Or just to hoot, holler and visit,” Slaugh said. “What a great experience.”
The Slaughs were accompanied with their children, the oldest of which was 16, the youngest of which was 9.
“I’m not sure they understood how significant that was,” he said. “It’s certainly something we talk about occasionally.”
Just as noteworthy was a similar trip to East Berlin a year later, for Unity Day, Slaugh recalled.
By then the Berlin Wall had long since been taken down, and East Berlin opened to free society.
“It was remarkable to see the difference between West and East Berlin,” he said. “In East Berlin, it was like time had stopped for 30 years. East Berlin had outdated phone systems and few improvements. It was remarkable to see how much different it was from a free society.”
Local remembers fall of Berlin Wall, firsthand
