13 Facts About Erna Kelm

Erna Kelm was a German woman who became the twenty-third known person to die at the Berlin Wall.

Erna Kelm was one of only eight women victims, and at the age of 53, was one of the oldest victims of the Berlin Wall.

Erna Kelm was born on July 21,1908, in Frankfurt an der Oder, German Empire.

Erna Kelm had at least two children and lived in Potsdam, but in 1947, shortly after the end of World War II, she illegally moved to Lubeck to work as a nurse.

At the time Germany was occupied by the Allies, with Potsdam in the Soviet zone and Lubeck in the British Zone, Erna Kelm moved without obtaining the necessary permit issued by the occupying powers.

Erna Kelm frequently left West Berlin to visit her children in neighboring Potsdam, where she was "suspected of engaging in intelligence activities," according to Soviet police data, but this accusation remained unconfirmed.

Erna Kelm's East German identification card, hidden in her sock, identified her as Erna Kelm from Sacrow, 53 years old, born on July 21,1908, in Frankfurt an der Oder.

Berlin-Zehlendorf and Sacrow, an area of Potsdam just north of the main town where Erna Kelm had lived, were both sparsely populated with minimal presence of the Berlin Wall and the East German border guards.

Erna Kelm was carrying other personal documents in a waterproof plastic bag on her body, and was wearing a life jacket under her clothes.

The investigation by the West Berlin police ended with the result that Erna Kelm drowned while trying to escape, and no crime was committed against her.

Erna Kelm's body was handed over to her relatives in Potsdam at their request.

Erna Kelm was one of only eight women killed at the Berlin wall, among the total of at least 140 victims.

Erna Kelm was admitted to the official list of the victims of the Berlin Wall and in a brochure published by the Bundesministerium fur innerdeutsche Beziehungen on the first anniversary of the Berlin Wall.