The six youngest children from the family of Bernard Speijer and Marianna à Catan, were accommodated in orphanages in the autumn of 1942. It then concerned the 10-year old Simon and the 11-year old Jozef and their four sisters, the 5-year old Rachel, the 7-year old Elisabeth, the 12-year old Dora and the 13-year old Greta.
The reason was that their mother, Marianna à Catan, had died shortly before, on 1 August 1942 at her home in the Ben Viljoenstraat. Of the eldest three children, Jacob had been convicted of illegal slaughter one year before, in June 1941 and the other two brothers, Emanuel and Maurice had already been called up for the so-called “Arbeitseinsatz”. The latter two had been in the army and an attempt was made through the Jewish Council to have them postponed from deportation as military. Postponement succeeded for Emanuel, who was in the end deported from Westerbork to Auschwitz on 23 October 1942. However, not for Maurice, who was already deported to Auschwitz on 24 August 1942.
It was not easy for Bernard Speijer to take good care of his family. Due to the loss of his wife and all the anti-Jewish measures the Germans ordered, daily life became very difficult. Not unlikely, but as far as possible, his eldest daughter Esther, who then was 14 years of age, took care of it, but also the decision was made to accommodate the six youngest children in orphanages. A few months later, when those children were already in the orphanages, Bernard and his daughter Esther were sent to concentration camp Vught and eventually murdered in Sobibor on 9 July 1943.
On 16 September 1942 Simon and Jozef Speijer were accommodated in the Jewish Boys Orphanage Joodse Jongensweeshuis Megadle Jethomim at Amstel 21 and the girls Dora, Greta, Elisabeth and Rachel went to the Jewish Girls Orphanage Meisjesweeshuis Ma’asiem Toviem Megadle Jethomoth at Rapenburgerstraat 171 on 19 October 1942. (websites only Dutch language)
On 10 February 1943, the Jewish Boys Orphanage was “emptied” by the Germans and Simon and Jozef ended up at the Panamakade in the eastern harbour area of Amsterdam to be transported from there to Westerbork, where they arrived on 11 February 1943.
The Jewish Girls Orphanage was also “emptied” by the Germans that same 10th of February, and also the four sisters Speijer fell victim to it. They were transferred to the railway complex at Oostburg near the Lloyd Hotel in Amsterdam and were transported from there by train to Westerbork, where they were registered on 11 February 1943.
With more than 2500 other victims, the six children Speijer were put on transport on 18 May 1943 to Sobibor and upon arrival there on 21 May 1943 all were murdered in the gas chambers. There were no survivors.
Sources include the City Archive of Amsterdam, family registration card of Bernard Speijer, archive cards of Simon, Jozef, Dora, Greta, Elisabeth and Rachel Speijer; the file cabinet of the Jewish Council, registration cards of Simon, Jozef, Dora, Greta, Elisabeth and Rachel Speijer; the website Joodsamsterdam.nl/Joods Jongensweeshuis and Joods Meisjesweeshuis (dutch language and the Wikipedia websiee jodentransporten vanuit Nederland.nl.