Oberbaum Bridge - Stock-Fotografie

The Oberbaum Bridge, a bridge for the U-Bahn train and vehicular traffic, bridging the River Spree to connect the Kreuzberg and Friedrichshain districts. In 1945 the Wehrmacht blew up the middle section to impede the Red Army's conquest of the city, and during the Cold War years the bridge connected the American and Soviet sections of the city. After the removal of the Berlin Wall the bridge was reconstructed to restore its former appearance, and was reopened to veaicles and pedestrians in 1994, and to trains in 1997. The name comes from the previous practice of blocking the River Spree with a tree trunk covered in spikes, to stop smugglers ("ober baum" meaning "over bough")