Louis van Dam was married. He and his wife had a son, Gustaaf.
A certificate remains signed by J. Goedhart, a mohel for the Dutch-Jewish Congregation, stating that he circumcised Gustaaf van Dam, son of Louis van Dam and his wife, according to the congregation's rituals and requirements, on 1 September 1921.
The couple also had a daughter, who worked as a nurse at De Joodse Invalide. The family lived at 91 Waverstraat, ground floor, on the eve of the deportations.
On 10 November 1939, Louis van Dam, who still lived in Doenrade at the time, exposed two brothers in Kerkrade who tried to purchase Dutch military uniforms from him. A copy remains of the official report of the charges that Louis van Dam filed and a newspaper article report that the spies were arrested.
In Amsterdam Louis opened the business Louis van Dam & Zoon as a vulcanising and cover facility, with offices at 15 Swammerdamstraat and a factory at 257 Van Ostadestraat. A statement remains from De Joodse Invalide dated 24 July 1942, indicating that the Van Dam firm was indispensable for De Joodse Invalide.
In August and September 1942, following his arrest, Gustaaf van Dam wrote his parents from the “Deutsche Untersuchungs- und Strafgefängnis” on the Wolvenplein in Utrecht. These letters remain, as well as a letter to his parents that Gustaaf van Dam threw from the train on Tuesday morning.
Louis van Dam had gone into hiding using the alias Christiaan Willem Zijlstra. He died while in hiding and was buried under his alias at the Algemeene Begraafplaats Crooswijk in Rotterdam on 23 April 1945. A statement remains from the mayor of Rotterdam and dated 7 December 1945 authorizing Louis van Dam's widow to have her husband's remains dug up and reburied at the Jewish cemetery Toepad in Rotterdam. Louis van Dam's wife and daughter survived the war.
In addition, Jokos files (numbers 20911, 60130) on this family or other family members are at the Amsterdam Municipal Archive. Access is subject to authorization from the Stichting Joods Maatschappelijk Werk.