Family Samuel and Jenni Frank/ Salomon de Vries

The house Prollstra;e 5 (formerly Groüe Gartenstra;e 15) was declared a „Judenhaus“, i.e. all Jewish families still remaining in Nordhorn had to take up residence here from 1938. After the Süskind family had moved to Neuenhaus, these were only the old Oster couple and the Frank-de Vries family living in this house with their father-in-law Salomon de Vries. His age, combined with physical weakness, was the reason why the family had not fled, but initially remained in Nordhorn.

Salomon de Vries had long lived near the synagogue, especially since he had been a long-time chairman of the Jewish community. After the death of his wife Engeline in 1936, he had moved to Prollstra&szlig to live with his daughter Jenni, who was married to the cattle dealer Samuel Frank from Werlte and had two children with him: Julius (born 1922) and Else (born 1925). Still today the front of the house shows the former owner: Üabove the windows letters of a lettering are recognizable: „S. Frank, Viehhandlung“.

In mid-November, the residents of the house received a notice to be ready for transport to the East. The Franks did not tell their grandfather about this because of his failing health. And so Salomon de Vries died while still with his family and was buried in the Nordhorn Jewish cemetery next to his wife Engeline. However, for the „Jahrzeit“ für him no more gravestone could be set. The erected on the initiative of the forum Jews/Christians the city of Nordhorn only in June 1998.

The family Frank with the couple Oster was deported with the „Bielefelder transport“ December 1941 to Riga, where the trace of the Osters and of Samuel and Julius in the camp Salaspils lost. Jenni and daughter Ilse were still moved west toward the end of the war and died July/August 1944 in the Stutthof concentration camp, near Marienburg/Malbork.