Isaäc Beesemer, usually named Jacques or Sjaki, was the first born child of Levie Beesmer and Elisabeth Barend. He was born on 26 August 1925 in Amsterdam and lived with his parents in the President Brandstraat 56 2nd floor in the Transvaal district of the Eastern part of the city. His father however was already hospitalized one year later in the Central Israëlity Psychiatric Hospital “Het Apeldoornsche Bosch”, while his mother a few months later gave birth to her second child and a sister for Isaäc: Henny, who was born on 2 April 1927.
His mother, he and his sister remained living at President Brandstraat and as soon it was possible, Isaac looked for – and found a job as domestic servant. Also his younger sister has tried to contribute in the household as a seamstress.
In July 1942, Isaäc was nearly 17 years old and old enough for the Germans to call him on 12 July 1942 as a 16-year old boy for the so-called “Arbeitseinsatz”, the so-called provision of additional work in Germany. Isaäc arrived in Westerbork on 13 July and already on 15 July he was put on transport to Auschwitz. It was the first transport from Westerbork to Auschwitz and contained 1135 deportees. On arrival at the “Rampe”(platform) of Auschwitz-Birkenau, Isaac was selected to perform forced labour but the circumstances appeared to be inhumane and heavy. People soon died there due to hardships and/or diseases.
After the war, all this was still unknown to the Dutch authorities. The Dutch Ministry of Justice then ordered the Municipality of Amsterdam to draw up a certificate of death for Isaäc Beesemer, in which has been established that he has died on 30 September 1942 in Auschwitz. However, death records from Auschwitz (Sterbebücher) have shown that Isaäc Beesemer was murdered already on 31 August 1942. The Dutch date of 30 September 1942 is a legal date of death, which will be maintained as official date of death on the website Joods Monument.
Sources include the City Archive of Amsterdam, archive cards of Levie Beesemer, Lena Barend and Isaäc Beesemer; the file cabinet of the Jewish Council, registration card of Isaäc Beesemer; the Amsterdam certificate of death nr.300 from the A-register 46 –folio 52 dated 18 August 1950; the Wikipedia listing of jodentransporten vanuit Nederland.nl and the website Memorial and Museum Auschwitz-Birkenau/Auschwitz Prisoners/Isaac Beesemer.