Barend Emden was a son and youngest of Levy Emden (1868) and Elisabeth Plukker (1868). Barend was born on 4 May 1912 in Amsterdam and when he started working he became a shop assistant in a store selling crystal objects. He was later also a pastry chef and even in later years he became a sales representative from which he earned his living. His parents had a family of six children in total, namely: Bloeme, Meijer, Anna, Judith, Lea and Barend himself.
Of the parents of the Emden children, Elisabeth Plukker was the first to die on 23 October 1925 and was interred in the Jewish Cemetery in Diemen. Father Levie Emden died on 6 May 1928 and was also buried in Diemen. Barend, who was only 16 years old at the time and had now become an orphan, was taken in by his eldest brother Meijer and his wife Rachel Goedel. Barend stayed there until 11 December 1928, after which he found shelter at Plantage Doklaan 28 with Cohen. However, on 19 August 1929, Barend Emden was admitted to the Observation House for Boys at Vosmaerstraat 1 in Amsterdam.
The Observation House for Boys at Vosmaerstraat 1 was opened in 1914 by the Association for Help for the Unhoused. It had room for 80 boys with problems. 'We live in the century of the child,' says Van Ouwenaller, treasurer of the Association for Unhoused People, at the opening, 'and this foundation is new proof of the correctness of that statement. (…) Observation House is the name because the aim is to get to know that youthful vagabond, that rash boy, that rascal born from a depraved environment and, equipped with that knowledge, to guide him on paths that will lift him up.' was part of the Association for Help for the Unhoused until 1954. After 1954 it continued as an independent foundation. The foundation ceased to exist in 1970. (source: Amsterdam City Archives)
On 6 October 1930, Barend Emden was transferred from the Observation House for Boys to the State Educational Institution (R.O.G.) “De Kruisberg” in Doetinchem, where he stayed until 20 July 1931. In the meantime he had learned the trade of pastry chef and lived again in Amsterdam, Retiefstraat 55 II with De Rood. Seven years later, in January 1938, Barend moved to Hoefkade 422 in The Hague. After more than a year he left for Amsterdam again where he ended up at Boerhaaveplein 16, 2nd floor, a room with Soesan. After living with Van Emde at Rijnstraat 6, 2nd floor, Barend moved two months later on 19 June 1940 to Amstellaan 34, 2nd floor, where several Van Praag family members already lived together.
19 June 1940 was a memorable day for 28-year-old Barend Emden: that day he married the youngest daughter of Mozes van Praag and Grietje Fransman, 30-year-old Marianna van Praag. After the marriage, Barend moved in at Amstellaan 34 2nd floor too. Two years later, on 23 February 1942, Barend and Marianna decided to live a little more on their own and then moved to Sint Antoniesbreestraat 2, 1st floor.
On 7 December 1943, Barend's sisters-in-law Bertha Levy-van Praag, Debora van Praag, his own wife Marianna Emden-van Praag and he himself were arrested and taken by penal transport to Westerbork on 9 December where they were locked up in penal barrack 67. On 25 January 1944 they were deported to Auschwitz, where Bertha, Debora and Marianna were murdered immediately after arrival on 28 January 1944.
Barend Emden, however, was sent to the external command Günthergrube, an outer camp of one of the factories of IG Farben and belonging to the Auschwitz complex, located near the town of Ledziny near Kattowice, where Barend lost his life due to hardship, illness and/or abuse. His date of death was set after the war at 31 May 1944.
Read also “About the family members of Mozes van Praag and his wife Grietje Fransman”.
Sources include the Amsterdam City Archives, family registration cards of Levy Emden, Meijer Emden and Barend Emden; archive cards of Barend Emden, Marianne van Praag and Meijer van Praag; website stenarchief.nl/grave Levy Emden; special registers Amsterdam/ Barend Emden; Amsterdam City Archives/The Observation House for Boys at Vosmaerstraat; wikipedia website De Kruisberg (R.O.G) in Doetinchem (Dutch language only); Amsterdam residence card of Amstellaan 34 2nd floor; the Red Cross archive/penal transport list of 9 December 1943 Amsterdam -> Westerbork; death certificate 196 dated 15 Feb. 1952 made out in Amsterdam for Barend Emden from register A94-fol 26.