Joseph Hornman was the eldest of the two sons of Simon Hornman and Sara Davidson. His parents married in Rotterdam on 8 June 1892 and two years later, on 24 Februray 1894 Joseph was born there as the first child, named after his grandfather. A few years later, Simon had a brother, Jacob, who was born 2 April 1902 in Rotterdam.
Joseph married the 27-year old Margaretha Marx in Rotterdam on 16 February 1922, a daughter of Maurits Bernard Marx and Clara Hartogs. On 4 December they had a son named Simon Maurits, also named after his grandfather. However only two years later, on 24 April 1928 Simon Hornman passed away and was interred in the Jewish Cemetery Toepad in Rotterdam. His wife Margaretha, yet widowed, remained behind with her 2-year old son Simon. But Margaretha was also faced with the fate of an early death: she died of cancer on 6 June 1940 and was also interred in the Jewish Cemetery Toepad.
Simon was now about 14 years old and was adopted in the family of his uncle and aunt, Jacob Hornman and Kaatje Frank. They lived at the Noorderhavenkade 106c in Rotterdam-North. Simon managed to complete his fourth year of the gymnasium department of the Rotterdam Lyceum, just before it was made impossible to him to continue study.
Up from 26 July 1942, Simon was a messenger boy for the department of Social Affairs of the Jewish Council in Rotterdam but he had no “Sperre”, meaning he was not exempted from deportation. On 10 April 1943, together with his uncle and aunt, he was arrested and carried off to Westerbork, where they had to stay in barrack 57. Uncle Jacob and Aunt Kaatje were deported to Sobibor on 20 April and on arrival there on 23 April 1943 immediately killed. Simon however, was put on transport to Auschwitz “only” on 7 September 1943 but he managed to survive the horrors of the concentration camps and was later able to return to Holland.
Sources include the City Archive of Rotterdam, family registration card of Joseph Hornman, wedding certificate 1922a-folio 141v from Rotterdam for Joseph Hornman/Margaretha Marx, certificates of death from Rotterdam for Joseph Hornman, nr. 1928C-folio 004v and nr. 1940/3082 for Margaretha Marx; the file cabinet of the Jewish Council, registration cards of Simon Hornman (1926) and additions of visitors of the website.