Samuel Salomons was a son of Meijer Salomons and Bloeme de Paauw. He was born on 6 July 1893 in Amsterdam, but from 1897 he moved with his parents, brothers and sisters to Langestraat 35 in Hilversum. In 1909 the Salomons family returned from Hilversum and moved into a house at Hogeweg 70 in Watergraafsmeer. Samuel worked as a diamond cutter and diamond sawyer, but later as an office clerk.
From his ANDB apprentice card it can be deduced that in addition to Samuel, his brothers Simon, Philip and Abraham were also trained in the diamond trade. Samuel was admitted to the Coster factory on 18 July 1910, where he was trained in rose cutting by teacher I. Winnik. On 23 December 1912, his apprenticeship ended and he became a member of ANDB.
On 9 June 1926, Samuel Salomons married in Amsterdam to Bertha van Polen, a daughter of Elkan Israel van Polen and Rebecca Wins. Bertha was born in Amsterdam on 30 December 1903. After their marriage, they moved into a house at Weesperzijde 86 on the 1st floor/corner of Gijsbrecht van Amstelstraat. Both of their children were born there: Elkan on 26 March 1927 and Rebecca on 23 November 1929. The family moved to Biesboschstraat 24 3rd level in Amsterdam-South on 30 September 1932 and to Niersstraat 56 on 23 May 1935.
However, on 4 August 1943, they were forced to move again to the Transvaal District in Amsterdam East, where they ended up at Vaalrivierstraat 4, 1st floor. Not only Jewish residents of other cities, but also Jews from Amsterdam were forced to move. The internal information of the Jewish Council as early as 13 November 1942 shows that “in future, the authorities announced approximately 10 families per day who had to move with their furniture to the Transvaal Distict. This mainly concerns families living in the River District of plan South.”
Samuel Salomons was “exempted from deportation because of diamond” when registering with the Jewish Council, which also temporarily exempted his family members from deportation or “Arbeitseinsatz”. Due to their exemption stamp, which was between the figures 80000 and 100000 (86115 et seq.), they were among the very last Jews who were arrested and deported to Westerbork at the same time as the dissolution of the Jewish Council at the end of September 1943. The Samuel Salomon family then ended up in penal barrack 66 in Westerbork on 29 September 1943.
On 15 February 1944, the diamond worker Samuel Salomons, his wife Bertha van Polen and his children Elkan and Rebecca were deported to Bergen Belsen. Diamond merchants amd workers there initially had a privileged status. They lived with family in their own barracks and in order not to damage their hands, they did not have to work while waiting for the diamonds to be processed.
Originally, the diamond processing was to take place in Camp Vught. When it was decided to carry out processing in Bergen-Belsen, the remaining diamond dealers and workers were sent there from March to September 1944. But at the beginning of December 1944 it was over there too; diamond processing had also failed in Bergen Belsen. (Source among others: The Diamond Children, a book and an exhibition by Jan van Ommen – Dutch language only).
On 4 December 1944, the men had to go to Sachsenhausen and the women and children to Beendorf. Samuel Salomons did not belong to the group of men mentioned but remained behind in Bergen Belsen, where he died due to hardship on 23 March 1945.
His wife Bertha van Polen, as well as his son Elkan and daughter Rebecca, survived the horrors of Bergen Belsen. According to post-war notes on their registration cards from the Jewish Council, they were liberated in Hillersleben (Germany) on 6 May 1945 and were then able to return to Amsterdam, where they arrived on 7 June 1945 and were housed there at Halmaheirastraat 57. Mid-August in 1945 they stayed in Niersstraat, now at house number 54, and in November 1945 in Stalinlaan 50, 1st floor.
Bertha van Polen, widow of Samuel Salomons, remarried in Amsterdam on 30 April 1947 to Salomon Moscow, a son of the London born Joseph Moscow and Rachel Porten. Salomon Moscow had divorced Alida Davidson on 29 March 1947. Two daughters were born from Salomon Moscow's first marriage: Renée Mary and Mary Renée, both of whom also survived the war.
Salomon Moscow emigrated to New York together with his 2nd wife Bertha van Polen on 30 December 1950. As far as is known, Bertha's children Elkan and Rebecca Salomons went along with their mother and stepfather to the U.S.A.
Sources include the City Archive of Amsterdam, family registration cards of Meijer Salomons (1863) en Samuel Salomons (1893); archive cards of Samuel Salomons and Bertha van Polen and Salomon Moscow; the apprentice card ANDB for Samuel Salomons; the file cabinet of the Jewish Council, registration cards of Samuel Salomons, Bertha Salomons-van Polen, Elkan Salomons and Rebecca Salomons; Population Registry Annexed Municipalities of Amsterdam/family of Meijer Salomons and the family of Elkan Israel van Polen; Amsterdam residence card/ Weesperzijde 86 with Samuel Salomons; website jodentransporten vanuit Nederland.nl/transport 15 Feb.1944; “Ondergang” volume 2 by Dr. J. Presser, published 1965, pages 223 till 227 “Diamant-Juden” and en website Diamantkinderen/diamant in Bergen Belsen. (Dutch language only).