An international Cold War exhibit made its North American debut Friday at Kansas City’s Union Station.
The Berlin Wall. A World Divided. features over 200 artifacts from 45 years of global history, including the years the Berlin Wall separated East Germany from West Germany during the Cold War.
“In a world still shaped by division, this story feels more relevant than ever,” Union Station’s website reads.
In 1961– less than 20 years after World War II ended – Germany was divided and millions of people had left communist East Germany for capitalist West Germany. East Germany’s government built a cement and barbed wire wall at its border to keep West German “fascists” from entering. At first, people were allowed to travel between the two sides despite the wall, but it quickly became illegal.
“If your freedom, family, and future were suddenly divided by a wall… what would you have done?” the exhibit’s website reads.
The wall stood until 1989, and its roughly 30 years of existence marked a time of severe separation, nuclear war, political propaganda, ideological conflict and fear. Families and loved ones were forced to live separated, and over 5,000 East Germans were able to cross the walled border while at least 171 died trying, according to History.com.
The Berlin Wall. A World Divided. presents real-life accounts of those who lived through the time of the wall and experienced the heartache of being separated from those they loved. The display also features several sections of the wall, personal belongings to Hiroshima bombing victims and documents from the time period.
The exhibit, created by the producers of Auschwitz. Not long ago. Not far away., was launched in Madrid in 2023 and made stops in Paris and Barcelona. The display will be in Kansas City until Dec. 13.
Tickets cost $26 for adults and $15 for children with special prices available for military members and seniors. Tickets are sold until two hours before Union Station’s closing time.
Union Station will be open the following hours:
- Monday through Friday: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Saturday: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Sunday: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The Berlin Wall. A World Divided. tells the tale of a somber history but reminds its visitors of the importance of freedom and how fragile it can become.
“Today, as division continues to shape conversations around the world, the Berlin Wall stands as one of history’s most powerful reminders of what happens when fear overtakes freedom – and why humanity, connection, and democracy matter.”
