Jacob Hornman was the youngest of the two sons of Simon Hornman and Sara Davidson. His parents were married on 8 June 1892 and two years later, on 24 February 1894 their first child was born, Joseph Hornman, named after his grandfather. Jacob followed only a number of years later: he was born on 2 April 1902 in Rotterdam.
Jacob Hornman, warehouse clerk and later sales representative, married on 16 February 1928 in Rotterdam Kaatje Frank, who was born there on 20 September 1903 as daughter of Levij Frank and Henderina Cohen. After their wedding they lived at the Willibrordusweg 38a but moved on 27 September 1933 to Schieweg 205b. Their last known address for Jacob and Kaatje was Noorderhavenkade 106c in Rotterdan-North.
Jacob’s brother Joseph passed away already two years after the birth of his son Simon, on 24 April 1928 and his wife Margaretha Marx, who remained behind with her 2-year old little son, passed in June 1940 due to cancer. She was interred in the Jewish Cemetery Toepad in Rotterdam, just as her husband Joseph. Her now 14-year old son Simon had been adopted then in the family of uncle Jacob and aunt Kaatje at the Noorderhavenkade 106C. As far as have been researched, Jacob and Kaatje had no children of their own.
On 10 April 1943, Jacob Hornman, his wife Kaatje Frank and their nephew Simon Hornman were taken from their home and via Loods 24 carried off to Westerbork, where they ended up in barrack 57. No one of them had a “Sperre” – an exemption from deportation for the time being. Simon Hornman however was put on transport to Auschwitz “only” on 7 September 1943 and managed to survive the horrors of the camps. Later he was able to return to the Netherlands. But already ten days after arrival in Westerbork Jacob and his wife Kaatje were deported to Sobibor and on arrival there on 23 April 1943, immediately killed in the gas chambers.
Sources include the City Archive of Rotterdam, family registration cards of Jacob Hornman and Joseph Hornman; the file cabinet of the Jewish Council, registration cards of Jacob Hornman, Kaatje Hornman-Frank, and Simon Hornman (1926) and additions of visitors of the website.