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Jacob Poons 1898 - 1941 Edit

Born 13.5.1898 in Den Haag
Died 12.8.1941 in Hartheim

Biography

In memory of my grandpa’s uncle, Jacob Poons

Jacob Poons was born on 13 May 1898. He married Rachel Sarluïs on 9 January 1918. They had two children, Hadasse (born on 25 July 1918) and Hiam Poons (born on 20 April 1920).

Jacob Poons was probably captured in one of the raids that took place on 22 and 23 February 1941 in Amsterdam, after a member of the Nationaal-Socialistische Beweging (National Socialist Movement, or NSB) was killed during riots. He is likely to have been taken to the Schoorl camp and from there to Buchenwald, along with 397 other Dutch Jews. The group arrived in Weimar on 28 February and had to walk eight kilometres to the Buchenwald concentration camp from there. Huts 16 and 17 of this camp were known as the ‘Jewish huts’. Jacob was sent to Hut 16. He was registered as Jewish political prisoner number 1344. From 7 March onwards he was assigned to a heavy clearing and construction detachment. He was forced to work from early in the morning until late at night while being driven on by the SS with dogs and whips and suffering abuse. Because they did not have any good shoes, wounds developed on their feet. The group’s condition deteriorated as a result of malnourishment and bad weather. It was forbidden for Jews to be treated in the infirmary. Although other prisoners put their lives at risk to help the Jewish group, many of them still died.

On 22 May 1941 Jacob and the 340 remaining Dutch Jews were deported to the Mauthausen concentration camp, where they arrived on 23 May 1941. At Mauthausen he had to work in the stone quarry under conditions that were, if anything, even worse. From Mauthausen he was transferred to the Gusen camp. On 12 August 1941, now back in the Mauthausen camp (presumably because he was no longer able to work), he was deported to what was known as the ‘Dachau camp sanatorium’, which was actually a codename for the Hartheim extermination site. The deportation to Hartheim Castle meant that he became a victim of ‘Aktion 14 f 13’. This codename referred to the selection and murder of victims who had either become incapable of work or who were considered undesirable for political or racist reasons. Jacob and the others were murdered in the gas chamber only a few hours after arriving at Hartheim Castle.

Jacob Poons was 43 years old when he died.

 

Iris Joris

Translation into English: Joanna White

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