The Etty Hillesum Center in Deventer
Unfortunately I didn't know about this center when I was in Deventer. When I heard about them I wrote for information about the family. Lex Rutgers ([email protected]) wrote back with the following information:
- Mother of Johan, Emma Cohen-Nort from Arnhem (1873-1942) had a sister Betsy Bakker-Nort, she was a member of the parliament in Holland (Tweede Kamer).
- Look under for his brother in law De Kat (De Kadt), who was married with a sister of Cohens wife.
- Ella committed suiside because of the greef of her lost son.
- Edith is a dauther of director textilefabrik Sig Menco from Enschede
Further notices
- Dr. Johan Cohen had everytime housekeepers in his familyhouse.
- He was a member of the Deventer Vrijmetselaarsloge after 1934.
- In the jewish archive is a letter of the CJV (Comite Jewish refugees) dd. 30-6-1939 to Dr. J[ohan] Cohen [Keizerstraat] in Deventer who has to be thanked voor the free medicational looks to the jewish refugeechildren in the youth hostel in Gorrsel, de Kleine Haar. “The effort was never too big for you, even in the night you came”.
- De Cohen-children were pupils in 1941-42 at the Jewish School in Deventer (rule y the nazi’s: every jew could not be on a normal school, only jewish school).
- Dr. Johan Cohen was teaching at jewish school from aug. (1941?) in Deventer. At that moment he was allready moved to the Boedekerstraat. Hermine de Vries was also teaching there.
- Johan Cohen was boardmember and the doctor of the Deventer Jewish Council (Joodse Raad) during the war. He did not go on transport immediatly because he was nessecary as a (jewish) doctor.
- Cohen lived at 20-7-1942 together with family van der Zijl. Van der Zijl was a jewish teacher at the agriculture school in Deventer. Cohen gets a message that his brother in law, De Kat together with his wife and 4 children have been died in Leeuwarden. Only the baby, David Jan, was still alive. This cannot be an natural death. G. de Kat was married with R.A. Polak. In the house of Van der Zijl was also David Jan de Kadt (born 30-10-1941 Leeuwarden); probably the Cohens took care over the baby.
- Johan Cohen was hidden together with his wife in Wonseradeel from 17 sept. 1944 till mayi 1945. Hij lived with pastor H.J. Hoek from Gaast. He had to pay 90 guldens each month. From the organisation of doctors for the people he got every month 100 guldens.
- Lenie (Magdalena Emma) was hidden in The Bildt, with pastor Cannegieter in St. Jacobiparochie. (also from 17 sept. 1944 till mei 1945) She got 50 guldens from the organisation of doctors for the people every month. Now she lives in the USA.
- In the Jewish archive is correspondence between dr. J. Cohen and the board of the Jewish Community Deventer. It is about the question who is Jew or who is not. This because he did not want to be a member any more. (dd. 16/9 en 25/9/1945). Read the correspondence.
- Documentation: pictures of Ella Cohen ’51 en house; Lenie and Hans Cohen together on a picture of the Montessorischool en childrenparty. Picture of gravestone David Rudolf Cohen (no. 342) on jewish graveyard in Deventer.
- False refugee-paper of Johan Cohen on the name of Johan Brouwer, 1945, given in Groningen; letter to say goodbye from Emma Cohen-Nort from Arnhem to her son Johan and his family, 1942; paper of armed forces from Holland in Wonseradeel to give free entrance to Ella Pauline Polak to go to Deventer, 26-4-1945 (Jewish History Museum Amsterdam).
- Death announcement for Ella Polak Cohen: kranten.kb.nl
Documentation
Photographs and papers from the family, kept alongside the notes above.
