Eliazer Woudstra, born 8 June 1900 in Rotterdam, was a son of Abraham Woudstra and Hester Olman. He was unmarried and was registered 27 April 1912 in the Peoples Registry of Rotterdam, when he arrived there from Zuidland. He then lived at Crooswijksesingel 25a, per 31 March 1938 living in at Spoorsingel 57 and since 29 July 1939 at Schieweg 44b. Eliazer’s parents were already deceased before the war; his father, originating from Leeuwarden in 1935 and his mother, who was born in Zuidland, in 1931.
Eliazer Woudstra had two sisters: Sara born 1903 and Schoontje born in 1905. Both lived in Rotterdam, were married and had a family. Sara, her husband and two daughters were killed in Auschwitz in 1942 and Schoontje with her husband and two sons in 1943 in Sobibor.
Together with his brother Manus, who was born in 1907, Eliazer lived at Schieweg 44b in Rotterdam and both were working in the wholesale business. His brother Manus remained long single but on 24 May 1942, at the age of 35 years, he got engaged with Sophia Lagrand. His 19-year old fiancée presumably responded to the call for the “Arbeitseinsatz” (provision of additional work) in Germany and reported with her luggage in Rotterdam at Loods 24. From there, in the night of 30/31 July 1942 the first transport left from Rotterdam to Westerbork. Sophia Lagrand was registered there on 31 July 1942 but obtained deferral of deportation.
On 11 September 1942, her fiancée joined her in Westerbork “Ohne Aufruf” (without being called – voluntarily), and the next day they got married there, and Eliazer Woudstra was their best man. On 2 October Manus and his bride were put on transport to Auschwitz. Her sister and parents were deported to Auschwitz ten days later, on 12 October 1942 and on arrival there on 15 October 1942 immediately killed.
The transport of 2 October 1942 included in total 1014 deported persons and it was also the first transport via the railroad from Camp Westerbork to Auschwitz. The train stopped at Kozel, a place located ±80 km west from Auschwitz, where 160 boys and men between 15 and 50 year were forced to leave the train, among them also Manus Woudstra. They were deployed as forced labourers in the surrounding labour camps of Auschwitz.
However, they, who remained in the train, were transported onwards to Auschwitz to be killed there. Among them also Sophia Lagrand, the young bride of Manus Woudstra. On arrival on 5 October 1942 Sophia Woudstra-Lagrand has been killed immediately in the gas chamber of Auschwitz-Birkenau. On behalf of her husband, Manus Woudstra, the Ministry of Justice ordered the City of Rotterdam after the war to draw up a certificate of death for him in which was established that he has died in Schoppinitz on 31 October 1943.
Also Eliazer Woudstra arrived in Westerbork on 11 September 1942 “Ohne Aufruf” (voluntarily), where he was the best man at the wedding of his brother. Eliazer was deported on 2 October 1942 to Auschwitz too, together with his brother Manus and his young bride Sophia. When the train stopped at Kozel, he too had to leave the train and Eliazer Woudstra eventually ended up as forced labourer in the "Reichs Autobahnlager “Annaberg” in Upper Silesia in Poland.
After the war, it was known that Eliazer Woudstra had not survived the Shoah, but not where, when and under what circumstances he had lost his life. Therefore, on order of the Ministry of Justice, the City of Rotterdam had drawn up a certificate of death for Eliazer Woudstra, in which was established that he died in Schoppinitz on 31 October 1943.
However, in 2015, research was carried out in Poland to victims of among others the labor camp “Reichsautobahnlager Annaberg” in Upper Silesia (Poland) where several certificates of death were found, including those of Eliazer Woudstra. This document shows that Eliazer Woudstra died 13 December 1942 in camp Annaberg. On the death certificate is mentioned as cause of death “general body weakness” (allgemeine Körperschwäche).
By establishing the date of death of Eliazer Woudstra, the official Dutch date of death and place of 31 March 1943 in Schoppinitz is maintained, a juridical date and place established after the war by the Dutch Department of Justice.
Sources include the City Archive of Rotterdam, birth certificate of Eliazer Woudstra nr. 1900/5471-fol.g089; Certificates of death Rotterdam for Eliazer Woudstra 1952.155-fol. V1-027v and for Manus Woudstra nr.1952.156-fol.V1-027v, Peoples Registry/family registration card of Eliazer Woudstra; the file cabinet of the Jewish Council, registration cards of Eliazer Woudstra, Manus Woudstra, Sophia Woudstra-Lagrand; website Joods Erfgoed Rotterdam (Jewish Heritage Rotterdam)/deportations; wikipedia website jodentransporten vanuit Nederland and and Edward Haduch, Kedzierzyn-Kozle (Poland), the death certificate of Eliazer Woudstra from the Peoples Registry (Standesamt) Annaberg.