For more than a century, Anhalten Bahnhof has been the most important train station in Berlin. Located in the heart of the German capital, this beautiful train station with a 100-meter facade was covered with exquisite zinc sculptures and had luxurious and spacious interiors with waiting rooms and other amenities for passengers who arrived from Leipzig, Frankfurt, Munich and other cities.
The roof was a huge iron and glass structure, which rose more than thirty meters and under which forty thousand people could stand at the same time. Anhalten Bahnhof was Berlin's largest and best train station.
Abandoned paths overgrown with trees in the Südgeland nature park, Berlin.
Anhalten Bahnhof station in 1910.
But Hitler had other plans for Berlin. He wanted to turn the city into the Welthauptstadt, or "world capital", the construction of which would be realized by his favorite architect Albert Speer. However, Anhalten Bahnhof station stood aside from the implementation of these grandiose plans.
But before the destructive ball could collapse on the building in 1840, the Allied air bombs during the Second World War did their job. The railway station was badly damaged during the bombing, with large sections of its roof missing and the walls unsafe. The German railway infrastructure suffered from the bombing and artillery shelling so much that the country's entire railway communication was paralyzed.
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After the end of the war, Anhalten Bahnhof station was closed permanently, and all rail traffic between Berlin and cities in the GDR was redirected to avoid travel through the West Berlin zone where the station was located. The building was demolished in 1960, but part of the facade was left in place. This wall still stands in its original place, now surrounded by office buildings, hotels, supermarkets, a playground and a new concert venue.
Remains of Anhalten Bahnhof.
Further south is a more interesting place - Tempelhof marshalling yard located in Berlin's Schöneberg district. After the closure of Anhalter Bahnhof station in 1952, the western part of the marshalling yard was closed, but the eastern half remained in operation for nearly four decades for limited shunting work. The rarely disturbed, abandoned area was overgrown with trees and for sixty years turned into a natural oasis in the center of the city metropolis.
There are rich dry pastures, wooded jungles and meadows. Thanks to the efforts of many caring citizens and the support of the city authorities, this magical place has been turned into a public park, now known as Südgelande Park. The park has 366 fern species, 49 mushroom species, 49 bird species, 14 grasshopper species, 57 spider species and 95 bee species, of which more than 60 are endangered.
On the territory of the park, you can still see several buildings, a commutation yard, kilometers of railway tracks, a steam engine, several lamp posts, an administrative building and a 50-meter steel water tower.
Abandoned roads in the Südgeland park.
The old railway building in the Südgeland park.
An abandoned steam locomotive in the Südgeland Nature Park.
Inside a steam locomotive in the Südgeland Nature Park, Berlin.
An abandoned water tower in the Südgeland nature park, Berlin.