This sleepy village was once close to the border and in 1961 & 1963 a large number of villagers decided to escape while they could.

In two mass escapes in 1961 and 1963 a total of 65 inhabitants crossed the fledgling border defences– a quarter of the village's population.

The memorial is some way from the village and the location of the former border.

In March 1963 the West German authorities announced that they would build a new village for the escapees, to be named Neuböseckendorf (New Böseckendorf), located about 12 kilometres from the original village.

The new housing area in Neu-Böseckendorf on the outskirts of Angerstein was inaugurated on September 8, 1965.
Bishop Heinrich Maria Janssen blessed the residents.
The settlement consisted of 35 houses on over 57,000 square meters.