Jacob Salomon Vos was a son of Salomon Vos and Sientje Les. He was born on 12 April 1900 as youngest in a family with six children in total, of whom one girl, Clara, born on 23 July 1887, already died on 13 August 1888, just one year old. Then there were Sara, born 1885, who was murdered in 1942 in Auschwitz; another Clara, born 1891, who was murdered in Sobobor in 1943, Rosa, born 1893, who survived Theresienstadt and Rachel, born 1896 who was mixed married and survived the war.
Jacob Salomon Vos was unmarried and lived at home with his parents at Rapenburgerstraat 102 in Amsterdam. In June 1923 he left for Antwerp and lived there in the Korte Kivietstraat 26 with his sister Rosa, who was married to the diamond merchant Asser de Haan. Jacob started working as a commercial traveller with his father-in-law Samuel Les. Later Jacob was “working as a diamond cutter with Mr. Lenkowy at Korte Kivietstraat 7, where he earns 120 francs a week".
On 1 September 1925 Jacob moves from Antwerp to Berchem, where he lives in the Daenenstraat 48. On 27 October 1927 Jacob returns to Amsterdam, Plantage Muidergracht 35 1st floor., where also his sisters Clara, Sara and Rachel with her husband are residing. Also the parents, Salomon Vos and Sientje Les moved in there on 3 November 1926 from Rapenburgerstraat 102. Sientje Les passed away there on 3 June 1930 and her husband Salomon Vos died there on 1 November 1938. After the passing of his mother, Jacob Salomon left again for Daenenstraat 48 in Berchem as a diamond cutter, but has been officially unsubscribed there per 30 December 1930.
After his return, Jacob and his sisters Clara and Rachel still live there till 9 April 1940 at Plantage Muidergracht, but move to Plantage Kerklaan 14 2nd floor then, where in April 1941 also his brother-in-law Asser de Haan moves in. He was married to Jacob’s sister Rosa, but two weeks later already both left for Rijnstraat 154 2nd floor, where in 1942 also sister Clara Vos came living in. Sara Vos already left earlier from Plantage Muidergracht to Nieuwe Amstelstraat 28/30. Jacob Salomon Vos lived later also at Prinsengracht 755 in June 1941 and per September 1941 officially at Nieuwe Keizersgracht, but stayed also regularly at Rijnstraat 154 2nd floor.
The registration card from the Jewish Council file cabinet of Jacob Salomon Vos shows that he had no call-up number for the so-called “provision of additional work in Germany”, which means that he most likely has reported himself voluntarily for the “Arbeitseinsatz”. On 7 August 1942 he was deported from Westerbork to Auschwitz, where he was selected for forced labor upon arrival there ± 10 August.
The circumstances were one had to work there were inhumane and many died due to hardship, mistreatment or in the gas chambers. The exact date of death of Jacob Salomon Vos is unknown, nor the circumstances how he lost his life. Therefore, the Dutch Ministry of Justice after the war ordered the Municipality of Amsterdam to draw up a certificate of death for Jacob Salomon Vos in which was established that he has died in Auschwitz on 30 September 1942.
Sources incled the City Archive of Amsterdam, various archive cards “Vos”, residence card Plantage Muidergracht 35 1st floor and Rapenburgerstraat 102 1st floor; the Felix Archive of Antwerp, dossiers of foreigners for Jacob Salomon Vos 173350 from Antwerp and 17137 and 12721 from Berchem; the file cabinet of the Jewish Council, registration card of Salomon Jacob Vos; death certificate 110 from the A-register 45-folio 20, made out in Amsterdam on 4 August 1950 and the Wikipedia list of Jodentransportenvanuitnederland.nl