Eb van Omme

Esveld, Barneveld 24 Mar 1920 – Ermelo 16 Jun 1945

About: A farm labourer of Kootwijkerbroek in the N.B.S. and Dick Kragt's "Frans Hals" organisation who moved evaders towards the Pegasus II crossing and, with Gerrit van Ee, fetched by horse and cart the men left in the wood after it on 20 November 1944. He died at Ermelo on 16 June 1945, aged 25, of an accident by his widow's account.

Unit or role: The N.B.S. at Kootwijkerbroek; the Frans Hals organisation; known to the Allied men as "Eb" (his questionnaire, p. 4; Kragt's summary, p. 6). Farm labourer (landarbeider) at his marriage, labourer (grondwerker) at his death (civil records).

Where: Donkervoorterweg 7, Kootwijkerbroek (his questionnaire, p. 4); his widow gave the address the Allied men knew as Donkervoorsterweg 15, Barneveld (her questionnaire, p. 4).

Evidence: ✓ his helper file with the Americans, US National Archives 286709462 (p. 4; p. 6); ✓ his widow's, 286709470 (p. 5); ✓ Noordman, p. 285; ✓ Boeree, Kroniek van Ede, p. 202; civil records; British helper index.

He was born at Esveld, Barneveld, on 24 March 1920, the son of Gerrit van Omme, a farmer, and Heintje van Looijengoed, and as a farm labourer married Jannetje van Veen at Barneveld on 31 October 1942 (civil records). In July 1945 his file gives one child of eighteen months (p. 4).

◐ A Gerrit van Omme of Donkervoorterweg 13, Barneveld, born at Barneveld on 26 August 1893, a farmer with nine children, whose next of kin is "Heintje van Looyengoed", is very probably his father, by the mother's name in the civil records. The British helper index lists both a "Gerrit" at Donkervoorterweg 13, Barneveld and a "Gerrit H." at Donkervoorterweg 13b, Kootwijkerbroek, grade 5 each (the index), so taking the first as the father is our choice. His own form of 17 July 1945 says he "Sheltered a total amount of 17 men. Three from 7 Nov.'44 till March'45", and does not name his son (his questionnaire, p. 4). The American pilot Lt John Low stayed "from 4 JAN - 10 FEB 45, with a farmer by the name of GERRIT VAN OMME living at 13, DONKERVOORTIGWEG, BARNEVELD", with four American airmen, and last saw Dick Kragt there (Low's report, p. 39).

Murphy's party missed the Pegasus II column on the night of 17 November 1944 and hid with about twenty other evaders in a wood near Otterlo, ◐ by the forester H. van de Brink's house (Pegasus II and Roekel). At about three in the morning of 20 November five of them left the wood, in Hardy's words "P/O. BRENTFORD, Pte. MURPHY, JOHN, the other Paratrooper, and myself"; Banwell "decided to remain with the larger party" (Hardy). ◐ Hardy's "JOHN" is Bernard Haller (Noordman has him as Haller, p. 283), the other paratrooper Sam Walsh and Brentford James Branford, by our identification on those pages. That larger party is the one Van Omme fetched:

• Noordman. "Deze groep is uiteindelijk op maandagavond 20 november door Eb van Omme en Gerrit van Ee met paard-en-wagen opgehaald" (this group was finally fetched with horse and wagon on the evening of Monday 20 November by Eb van Omme and Gerrit van Ee) (Noordman, pp. 284–285).
• Boeree. ✓ The Harskamp helpers Piet and Rinus (Willem van Dijk and Martinus van Beek) went to H. Esveld at Kootwijkerbroek, "waar zij Eb van Ommeren vonden, die bereid was, die avond de 24 man uit het bosch te halen" (where they found Eb van Ommeren, who was willing to fetch the 24 men out of the wood that evening) (Boeree, p. 202, checked on the page image).
  • At eight the wagon came to the men, "tegenover de boschwachterij van van den Brink" (opposite Van den Brink's forester's house). A few kilometres on they met Gerrit van Ee, who had brought a tarpaulin by bicycle; it went over the men just in time, "want tusschen Roekel en Otterlo passeerden zij twee wagens met moffen" (for between Roekel and Otterlo they passed two wagons of Germans). The men were taken to a cattle shed at Westeneng and shared out among the farmers (p. 202).
  • ◐ Boeree's "Eb van Ommeren" is very probably Van Omme: a man called Eb, of Kootwijkerbroek, fetching these men on this evening, as Noordman has it; Joop Piller too named "Eb van Ommeren" (overtyped) "(overleden)" (deceased) among the helpers who, in his words, "hebben zich in dezen tijd bijzonder onderscheiden" (especially distinguished themselves at this time), beside Willem van Dijk and Marinus van Beek (Piller's spelling of Martinus, ◐); his English version has "Ep van Ommen (dead)" (Piller's statement, p. 18; p. 21).
• ◐ Murphy was not on the wagon: by then he was in the dug-out near Roekel. Banwell, who stayed with the larger party, very probably was (Tex Banwell).

Dick Kragt, signing as "Frans Hals", summed up his work for the Americans:

This man did most useful work transporting evaders by car from KAMPEN to the area just north of EDE (Pegasus II crossing), and acting as guide to small transports of evaders when on bicycle or on foot. Has transported weapons and containers by horse and cart and on bicycle. Found accommodation for evaders, and personally played host to several (at least ten) evaders over a long period.

— US National Archives · RG 498, helper file of Elbert van Omme (deceased) · summary by "Frans Hals" · the archive's copy

• He was also on the air reception committee, "present at every (expected) dropping", and "Came in direct contact with at least 50 evaders" (p. 6).
• ◐ Kampen to just north of Ede is the road of the lorry that brought the men from Elburg late on the night of 17 November, too late for the column (Boeree, p. 201; Dick Kragt); Boeree has a Huisman of Kootwijkerbroek bring it (p. 200), and the summary does not say Van Omme drove on that night.
• His own questionnaire, of 17 July 1945, says he "took a part in nearly all the pilot-transports in his district" and "sheltered a total amount of 13 men at very different times"; four are named, all from "Joop and Dick": Derek H. Ridler, a dentist, of Cornwall, George Norman and James Denholm, from 21 October 1944 for 21 days, and Kenneth Buckley from the end of November for nine weeks (p. 4; p. 5). None of them is from Murphy's party.
• ◐ Johannes Roskam's file lists "van Omme, Kootwijkerbroek" among the helpers whose airmen "passed through Mr. J. Roskam's hands" (Roskam's file, p. 4); it gives no first name.

His widow's questionnaire, dated 20 June 1946, gives the couple as known to the Allied men as "Jans & Eb", of the B.S. (p. 4). It counts the men she sheltered as 8 British airmen, a Norwegian, an American and a Belgian paratrooper, and names two: Sgt Kenneth Buckley, R.A.F., of 23 Romney Street, Ashton-under Lyme, shot down "near German border", hidden from "Dec.'44" for nine weeks, "Taken in by her husband"; and Major Derek Hughes Ridler, Para., of Park Cottage, Launceston, from the end of October 1944 for three weeks (p. 5, checked on the image).

The names of most of these people are lost, but as Mrs v. Omme's husband died a few months ago, she is unable togive exact information. Neither Mrs,v.Omme nor her husband ever had any trouble with the Germans about their help to Pilots.

— US National Archives · RG 498, helper file of Jannetje van Omme-van Veen, widow · questionnaire of 20 June 1946, section 13 · the archive's copy

◐ Arrien Drok of Arnhem (evacuated, the form says, without naming where) passed four men, among them a "Sgt. Buckley British | RAF", to the Harskamp helper Willem van Dijk (Drok's form, p. 3). The table's date is "19.4.44" [as typed] and the American office read it as April 1944 (its letter); ◐ November 1944 is from the form's own report, in which the men told of the crossing of 18–19 November. He may be the Buckley who came to Van Omme from the end of November; nothing says so.

He died at Ermelo on 16 June 1945, aged 25 (civil record). His widow's questionnaire, a year later, says: "Her husband's death was due to an accident after the liberation" (p. 5, checked on the image). ⚠︎ What the accident was is not known: the civil register gives no cause.

The N.B.S. at Kootwijkerbroek announced it, over the name of its commander, A. J. v. d. Wiel:

Today the shocking news reached us that the friend of us all, Elbert van Omme, died at Ermelo on 16 June. May his courage, resolve and loyalty be an example to us all. "True to the fatherland, he remained so unto death."

Dutch originalHeden bereikte ons het ontstellende bericht, dat ons aller Vriend ELBERT VAN OMME 16 Juni j.l. te Ermelo is overleden. Zijn moed, vastberadenheid en trouw zij ons allen tot een voorbeeld. „Den Vaderland getrouwe, bleef hij tot in den dood."

— NBS Kootwijkerbroek · notice in Trouw, 20 June 1945 · Trouw, 20 June 1945

• The awards. The British helper index has him as "v.OMME, Elbert", grade "5. Post." (posthumous), with his widow on the same page (index); the American folder is marked "Post Grade 5" (p. 1).
• His widow. On 23 November 1945 the overcoat and suit material sent to his address was signed for "Wed. E v Omme" (p. 2); by her own file she received a bicycle from I.S.9 (p. 5).

• His birth. The American file twice gives "Barneveld 13-1-'22" and "BARNEVELD 13th of January 1922" (p. 4; p. 6); the civil birth record has 24 March 1920 at Esveld, Barneveld, and the death register his age as 25 (civil records). ✓ 1920, by the register.
• When he died. ⚠︎ His widow's questionnaire of 20 June 1946 says he "died a few months ago" (p. 5); the death register and the Trouw notice have 16 June 1945, a year and four days before the form (civil record; Trouw). ✓ 16 June 1945.
• The address. His own form has Donkervoorterweg 7, Kootwijkerbroek; his widow's gives Donkervoorsterweg 15, Barneveld, as the address the Allied men knew (his form; hers). The receipt of November 1945 has "Donkervoortscheweg 7 / Barneveld" (p. 2). Not settled.
• Buckley. His own table has Kenneth Buckley under "1st Airborne Div." by ditto mark, from the end of November; his widow's has him R.A.F., from December (p. 5; hers, p. 5).
• How many men. Thirteen in his own questionnaire, "at least ten" in Kragt's summary, eleven in his widow's count.

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