Jozeph Cohen was born on 14 October 1900 in Amsteram as a son of Philip Cohen from Dordrecht and Mina Eismann from Venlo. He lived with his parents and brothers Meijer, Jacob and Mozes in Antwerp and in Den Haag, where Jozeph between 1915 and 1919 was employed as an errandboy but later he became a commercial traveller by profession. In Juli 1919 Jozeph and his family moved to the Carnotstraat 168 in Borgerhout (Antwerp).
On 6 March 1923, the 22-year old Jozeph Cohen got married in Antwerp to the 17-year old Leonora Vos. She was a daughter of Hijman Vos and Lea van West and lived since 1919 in Antwerp. Then on 30 November 1923 their first child was born there, a daughter named Mina. In 1932 Jozeph and Leonora lived in Deurne (Antwerp) where on 6 January 1933 their second child, named Philip was born and thereafter the family moved in June 1934 to the Junonstraat 9 in the municipality of Berchem.
The marriage of Jozeph and Leonora however did not last and presumably in the autumn of 1935 or in 1936, the marriage was ended by a divorce; on 10 October 1935 Jozeph Cohen left from Berchem for the Van Hovestraat 38 in Deurne (Antwerp) and Leonora Vos to the Van Haverlei 60, and lived then apart from each other on different addresses.
Jozeph Cohen then remarried in Antwerp on 29 October 1938 Bertha de Haan, who was born on 5 November 1900 in Amsterdam as a daughter of Barend de Haan and Helena Muijs. Bertha dealt in gold and old precious metals by profession.
In September 1939 Jozeph and Bertha arrived in Amsterdam and moved into a house in the Sint Antoniebreestraat 74 2nd floor, but one month later they moved to Nieuwe Hoogstraat 30 2nd floor and on 10 April 1941 to Holendrechtstraat 41 ground floor. Per 6 November 1942 Jozeph Cohen was appointed as cleaner with the Jewish Society for Care and Nursing (JVvVV), with a Jewish Council I.D. nr. A-1657. He was deployed in the Joodsche Invalide at Weesperplein in Amsterdam. But “officially” Jozeph and his wife Bertha were not exempted from deportation.
On 24 Februaary 1943 Jozeph and Bertha were arrested and sent to concentration camp Vught. There Jozeph was put to work as a kitchen aid and Bertha as a seamstress in the branch of the Amsterdam furrier workshop Splitter, where caps, vests and linings for officers coats were made.
On 21 May 1943 however, Jozeph was deployed in the so-called “Aussenkommando” Moerdijk where he stayed in barrack 2b till early July 1943. Then he was returned to Vught and on 3 July he arrived again in Westerbork, waiting in barrack 63 for his deportation, which followed on 13 July to Sobibor. On arrival there on 16 July 1943, Jozeph Cohen was immediately gassed in the gas chambers.
At the other hand, his wife Bertha de Haan, who was deployed with Splitter in Camp Vught, was only returned to Westerbork on 12 September 1943 where she had to wait for her deportation in barrack 60. On 14 September Bertha Cohen-de Haan was put on transport to Auschwitz and on arrival there on 17 September 1943 immediately gassed in the gas chambers of Auschwitz-Birkenau.
Sources include the Felix Archive of Antwerp, dossier of foreigners of Jozeph Cohen, Berchem no.20620; the City Archive of Amsterdam, archive cards of Jozeph Cohen and Berthe de Haan; the file cabinet of the Jewish Council, registration cards of Jozeph Cohen and Bertha Cohen-de Haan; website ITS Arolson, campcards Vught of Jozeph Cohen and Bertha Cohen-de Haan; website Traces of War/Aussencommand Moerdijk and the website google books/Het hele leven is hier een wereld op zichzelf: the history of Camp Vught/ workshop Splitter by Marieke Meeuwenoord and an addition of a visitor of the website.