Simon den Hartog was the son of Abraham den Hartog and Leentje den Hartog. At age twenty he left home and lived in Dinxperlo and Coevorden. When his father's business encountered financial difficulties (debts, mortgage payments that could not be made, and imminent bankruptcy), Simon returned to Oostendam in 1930, where he took over his father's business.
When summons for the so-called work expan…