Break from the Grind November 9, 2010
TRIVIAL PURSUITS: How Did "Checkpoint Charlie" Get its Name?
November 9, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Perhaps the most famous crossing point of East/West at the Berlin Wall during its existence was the Friedrichstrasse border crossing, better known in the West as “Checkpoint Charlie.”
Reported by Nevin E. Adams
Where did that name come from?
Answer: Checkpoint “Charlie” took its name from the NATO alphabet: the members of the Allied armed forces reached the Berlin city center via Checkpoint A (Alpha) near Helmstedt, the point at which they crossed into the GDR from the Federal Republic of Germany; Checkpoint B (Bravo) near Drewitz, where they left the GDR and crossed into West Berlin; and Checkpoint C (Charlie) at Friedrichstrasse, where they left West Berlin for East Berlin.