David Meljado was a son of Daniël Haim Meljado and Sara Polak. He was born in Amsterdam on 7 October 1892 and he was a merchant by trade. In his younger years, David was employed as a diamond polisher. He resided those years – also after his marriage to his first wife – regulary in Antwerp, were he was employed in the diamon industry but also as a merchant. He turned out not to have been a member of the ANDB, the Algemene Nederlandse Diamanbebwerkers Bond (the General Dutch Diamondworkers Union).
His first spouse was Johanna Hendrina van Bentum, who was born in Amsterdam on 30 April 1896 as a daughter of Lijkle Jacobus van Bentum and Hendrina de Rooij, to whom David was married in Amsterdam on 31 May 1916, but from whom he has been divorced on 1 May 1919. The Meljado-van Bentum couple had no children.
Shortly after, already on 3 July 1919, David remarried Judic Haamerslag, a daughter of Juda Haamerslag and Leentje Nikkelsberg, who was born in Amsterdam on 16 October 1896 and soon afterwards David and his newly wed bride left for Antwerp again. Between 1919 and 1940 they have resided at a number of different addresses in Antwerp and Borgerhout. And in between, the couple even travelled to Bombay in India, to New Zealand and when they finally came back to Amsterdam on 17 April 1940, they arrived from Shanghai in China.
In Amsterdam they have lived in at several addresses too: on 17 April 1940 at Amstelveld 3 2nd floor with the widow Boas; on 21 May 1940 at Blasiusstraat 17 1st floor where also family lived; then they lived up from 10 July 1940 with the widow Bakker at Weesperstraat 35 1st floor but on 23 August, they moved to house no. 44 2nd floor – no longer living in – which, however, would be their last known address in the Weesperstraat .
Of David Meljado, no registration card was found in the filing cabinet of the Jewish Council. But it appeared from the registration card of his wife, that David Meljado possessed a “Sperre”- he was temporarily exempted from deportation until further notice, reason why also his wife Judic received such an exemption (“because of husband”). Her registration card shows also that she too was previously employed as a diamond cutter. It is not unlikely that that David’s activities in the diamond industry has led to his (temporary) exemption.
Judic Meljado-Haarmerslag was taken during the raids the Germans held in May 1943 and carried off to Westerbork on 26 May, where she ended up in barrack 61. Thereafter she was deported to Sobibor on 1 June 1943. From both their certificates of death it appeared that Judic as well her husband David were murdered in the gas chambers of Sobibor on 4 June 1943. It is therefore more than likely that David Meljado was taken that 26th of May 1943, carried off to Westerbork then and deported to Sobibor on 1 June 1943.
The deportation transport of 1 June 1943 was one of the largest transports to Sobibor. It contained 3006 victims, among them Jules Schelvis, the only survivor of this transport. All others were immediately murdered in the gas chambers of Sobibor upon arrival there that 4th of June 1943.
Sources include the City Archive of Amsterdam, family registration cards of David Meljado, archive cards of David Meljado, Johanna Hendrina van Bentum and Judic Haamerslag, various residence cards of Amsterdam; the Felix archive / dossiers of foreigners no’s 994#2844, 994#2902, 995#1371 and 158995 from the City of Antwerp and of Borgerhout for David Meljado and Judic Haamerslag; the file cabinet of the Jewish Countil, registration card of Judich Meljado-Haamerslag; Wikipedia website Jodentransporten vanuit Nederland.nl/1 June 1943; website ITS Arolson/ victims lists, died in Sobibor of Meljado and Haamerslag and the official certificates of death, made out in Amsterdam for David Meljado, nr. 22 dated 5 April 1950 from the A-register 25-folio 5verso and for Judic Meljado-Haamerslag, nr. 554 dated 29 Maart 1950 from the A-register 22-folio 94.