Huib de Jongh

Semarang 11 Aug 1913 – ?

H. de Iongh, "Lou", of Sparrendaal 47, Rotterdam; Noordman's Huib de Iongh, alias Lou van Welsum

About: Huib de Jongh (or de Iongh), "Lou", a Rotterdam managing director born at Semarang in 1913, who moved evaders for the Frans Hals organisation with Dirk van Eysinga and Dr Kruimel; ◐ by Noordman's identification of Hardy's "LOEW", backed by Dirk van Eysinga's own form ("Huib de Jongh. (Loe.)"), he was one of the guides who took Murphy's party from Kijkuit towards Kootwijkerbroek on the night of 6–7 November 1944.

Unit or role: Liaison officer of the Frans Hals organisation to underground groups; in civil life "Managing Director of a Copper Foundry" (his file, p. 3); ⚠︎ by Liesbeth Verweij's account, if her "Lou" is him, a member and co-founder of the K.P. in Rotterdam (Noordman, p. 293).

Where: Sparrendaal 47, Rotterdam (Z.) (his file, p. 3); the group's trusted man for Ermelo (Boeree, p. 199).

Evidence: ✓ the typed report on him, no. 16, for the Americans, author not named (US National Archives 286646754); ✓ Hardy's report for "LOEW", whom ◐ Noordman identifies as him; ◐ Liesbeth Verweij's account of the march, from what Dirk van Eysinga told her, in Noordman, pp. 293–294; ✓ the helpers' forms and claim forms naming him, US National Archives, RG 498 (below); Boeree, p. 199.

✓ The typed report on him, no. 16, has him "Born: SEMARANG (Dutch East Indies) 11th August 1913", of "Sparndaal 47 ROTTERDAM (Z)", a "Managing Director of a Copper Foundry", under the cover name "(Stengun) LOU" (his file, p. 3). "Sparndaal" is the report's spelling; most other forms have Sparrendaal 47, Platenkamp's summary has "Sparendaal 47", and Van den Beek's typed list gives the street with no house number (both below).

⚠︎ The K.P. in Rotterdam. Liesbeth Verweij's account of the march (below) has Lou a member and co-founder of the K.P. in Rotterdam, who broke into distribution offices and stole ration cards; no other source held says it. The Tresoar catalogue's key to her typescript has "Lou = van Vliet senior", so whether her Lou is Huib is open (see "Where the sources disagree").

On the Veluwe.

• ✓ Noordman gives his names: "Met Lou wordt Lou van Welsum bedoeld, zijn eigenlijke naam was Huib de Iongh" (Lou means Lou van Welsum; his real name was Huib de Iongh) (Noordman, p. 281).
• ✓ The Elspeet history's page on Jeanne Dijkstra's book has Dirk van Eysinga at his aunt's house, Sterrehoveke on the Krommesteeg, where "Samen met dokter Kruimel en Huib de Jongh verborg hij, met medeweten van zijn tante, niet alleen wapens op Sterrehoveke, maar ook onderduikers, piloten, parachutisten en ontsnapte doktoren" (with Dr Kruimel and Huib de Jongh he hid, with his aunt's knowledge, not only weapons at Sterrehoveke but people in hiding, pilots, paratroopers and escaped doctors) (Elspeet history). The house and its people are on Dirk van Eysinga's, Ima van Eysinga's and Johannes Kruimel's pages.
• ✓ Boeree's chronicle of Ede, printed in 1947, has the paratroopers gathered under Frans Hals and Joop van Amstel, whose base was at Broekhuizen's in Kootwijkerbroek, and who "Op verschillende plaatsen hadden … vertrouwensmannen, Jhr. Dirk van Eijsinga voor de Noorder-Veluwe, Lou (Huib de Jong) voor Ermelo, Brunekreeft voor Kootwijkerbroek" (had trusted men in several places: Jhr. Dirk van Eijsinga for the northern Veluwe, Lou (Huib de Jong) for Ermelo, Brunekreeft for Kootwijkerbroek) (Boeree, p. 199, page image read). Frans Hals was Dick Kragt and Joop van Amstel Joop Piller.

The typed report on him, no. 16, written for the Americans' office and naming no author, filed under "H. de IONGH" with "no dossier" written beside it, says:

Lou transported some 60 - 70 evaders during the latter six months of the occupation of Holland. He also found accommodation for a large number of these.

In conjunction with Dirk EYSINGA (See separate report) he obtained food … from the northern provinces for an even greater amount of evaders.

Assisted with the IJSSEL-crossings from east to west and made all the preparations for the west to east crossings of this river.

Acted as liaison-officer to various underground units on behalf of the FRANS HALS organisation.

— report no. 16 in his helper file, author not named, initials illegible · his file, p. 3

It ends "Made himself useful in many ways and gave himself completely to his work" (same). The report on Dirk van Eysinga, no. 17, has initials that look ◐ like the same hand (his file, p. 3). A slip of 26 January 1948 says the papers on "H. de IONGH" were filed "without complete processing as per final instructions from ODDI, Hq EUCOM, 9 January 1948", and the cover is marked "Unprocessed Case" (pp. 1–2).

✓ Hardy's report, the eyewitness: "At midnight on 6 Nov we were taken by DEREK and LOEW (another member of the Underground) to HARSKAMP", "eight of us including the two guides", Banwell, "the Sergeant Glider Pilot JOHN" (Bernard Haller), Murphy, "P/O. BRENTFORD" (◐ James Branford), "the other Paratrooper" (◐ Sam Walsh; Hardy gives no name) and Hardy; they arrived "about 2100 hours on 7 Nov having broken our journey at the house of a man called DICK (?) for a meal and a rest on route" (Hardy). Noordman reads Hardy's "Lou" (his translation of LOEW) as Huib de Iongh, and Dick's house as Kragt's base with the Broekhuijzen family at Kootwijkerbroek (Noordman, p. 281).

◐ Liesbeth Verweij's account. The Tresoar catalogue's key to her typescript has "Lou = van Vliet senior", so whether her Lou is Huib is open (below); Noordman reads him as Huib. Noordman has Dr Kruimel warn the men at Kijkuit to be ready, and names three guides, "Huib de Iongh (Lou van Welsum), Joop Migchelsen (Joop) en Dirk van Eysinga (Dirk Bussink)" (p. 293). Verweij, at Sterrehoveke, wrote it down from what Dirk told her when he came home at six the next morning (p. 294); she was not on the march. Lou's part in it, in her words:

As soon as Dirk and Lou arrived at the Kijkuit the party set off. On the first stretch to Bes, straight through the Leuvenum woods, Joop Migchelsen walked in front, then came Lou with a revolver. He was in his element and thought of the days when, as a member and co-founder of the K.P. in Rotterdam, he broke into 3 distribution offices and stole 25,000 ration cards.

Dutch originalDirect na aankomst van Dirk en Lou op de ‘Kijkuit’ vertrok het gezelschap. Het eerste traject tot Bes, dwars door het Leuvenumse Bos, liep Joop Migchelsen voorop, daarna volgde Lou met een revolver. Hij was in zijn element en dacht aan de dagen toen hij als lid en medeoprichter van de K.P. in Rotterdam, 3 distributiekantoren kraakte en 25.000 bonkaarten stal.

— Liesbeth Verweij, in Noordman, Schuilplaats de Veluwe, p. 293

Behind Lou came the six Britons, Tex Banwell with the only Sten, and Dirk at the rear pushing his creaking bicycle, for which Murphy pressed a tin of dubbin into his hand (pp. 293–294; the whole march is on Dirk van Eysinga's page and in Kijkuit and Harskamp). On the Speulderheide, at three in the morning:

Tom Murphy and James Hardy were struggling with the cycling and, with Lou to look after them, had fallen some way behind. Dirk, walking in front, suddenly realised that the agreed alarm signal, the sound of the bicycle bell, would not reach them.

Dutch originalTom Murphy en James Hardy hadden moeite met het fietsen en waren onder begeleiding van Lou een eind achterop geraakt. Dirk die vooraan liep besefte ineens dat het afgesproken alarmsignaal, het geluid van de fietsbel, niet tot hen door zou dringen.

— Liesbeth Verweij, in Noordman, p. 294

When three figures came towards the column, Dirk rang the bell, "zich gelijk beseffend dat Lou, Tom Murphy en James Hardy zich zouden gaan verstoppen" (realising at once that Lou, Tom Murphy and James Hardy would take cover); Banwell stood by Dirk with the Sten and the three passed without a word (p. 294). At about five, at signpost 215 by Boeschoten, Frans Hals gave the agreed whistle, and at Kootwijkerbroek "Bij de gastheer in Kootwijkerbroek moest Lou veel en druk Hollands praten tegen de ‘zes evacués’, om de aandacht van de dorpelingen af te leiden dat het om geallieerden ging" (at the host's in Kootwijkerbroek Lou had to talk a great deal of loud Dutch at the "six evacuees", to draw the villagers' attention away from their being Allied men) (p. 294).

✓ The six were hidden in a chicken hut on Baron Mackay's estate at Harskamp from the evening of 7 November, and Hardy writes: "During our stay we were visited by LOEW who told us that we would probably move on in a few days time"; they left on the evening of 14 November with two other men of the underground (Hardy).

◐ Joop Migchelsen, whose group kept the six at Kijkuit (Noordman, p. 292), wrote, in answer to the helpers' questionnaire, on 14 June (◐ 1945; no year on the page) that they were "Delivered "en bloc" on 11th Nov. 1944 (midnight 1 o'clock) transported through the woods to Bos, Farm Staverden, where the transport was take[n] over by Loet and Dirk, 2 assistants of Ome Joop" (his statement, p. 3). "Ome Joop" is Dr Kruimel on the same page; ◐ "Loet" with Dirk is Lou. His 11 November is against Hardy's 6 November (below).

Helpers of 1945–46 name "Lou" with his address or with the men he worked with:

• ✓ Gerardus van den Beek, Terschuur, 28 March 1946: in section 11, "(LOU) H. de Jongh Sparrendaal 47 Rotterdam (Z)", beside "(UNCLE JOOP) Dr. Kruimel" and "(DIRK) Jhr. Mr. van Eyzinge" (p. 8, image-checked); a typed list of helpers in the same file has "H. de JONGH, Sparrendaal, Rotterdam" (p. 6). Lou is H. de Jongh of Sparrendaal 47.
• ✓ Teunis Platenkamp, Oene, summary of 3 June 1946: from the beginning of 1944 he "rendered help to Lou and Evert (chiefs of pilot-transports from Overyssel to Gelderland)", and more can be had from "Mr. Eysinga, Rynsburgerweg 100, Leiden. (Evert) and Lou H. de Jongh, Sparendaal 47, Rotterdam. (Lou)" (p. 14, image-checked; typed by the Americans' office). ◐ "Evert" is Dirk van Eysinga, by the name Eysinga and the Leiden address that report no. 17 on him and Ima van Eysinga's and Liesbeth Verweij's forms give for Dirk (his report, p. 3).
• ◐ Henk Zwaan, Veessen, 15 February 1946: the remarks on his form say "Henk Zwaan acted as ferry man for Dirk van Eysinga and H. de Jongh during their contact journeys to Overijssel all this notwithstanding German Guards with dogs.", signed "H. de Iongh", with "de Jongh" pencilled at the top of the page (Zwaan's form, p. 4). The spelling is his own file's, and the companion and the river are the ones his file gives; it is a reference he gave for Zwaan, dates none of the journeys and names no evaders.
• ◐ Christiaan Esendam, Apeldoorn, 10 May 1946: "Dick van Ijsinga at Elspeet, "Lou" Henk Berger and wife" (p. 2, image-checked). The "Lou" has no surname.
• ◐ Wouter van de Kemp, Nijkerkerveen, 14 August 1945: of the Englishmen Frank Batterburg and Dick A. G. Davies, who stayed from 3 January to the end of February 1945, "Were brought by William Kuyt and Lou and collected probably by Frans Hals himself" (p. 6). This is very probably Huib: two claim forms (below) name Willem Kuyt of Nijkerkerveen and "H. de Jongh, Sparrendaal 47, Rotterdam" together as witnesses.
• ◐ Evert Kuyt, Zwartebroek: his house was a transit address; the evaders for Zwartebroek and Nijkerkerveen came "for the camp Willem Kuyt-Lou till here", to be "transported by Lou and Willem to the definite addresses" (p. 4; the typing is faint and carbon-blurred, so the words are as read).
• ✓ Dirk van Eysinga's own form gives "Huib de Jongh, Sparrendaal 47, Rotterdam" among the helpers he knew (his file, p. 2). Ima van Eysinga's and Liesbeth Verweij's forms, both of 27 January 1946, list "H. de Jongh, Sparrendaal 47, Rotterdam (Z.)" with Kruimel and Dirk; the three names are ringed in pencil and "de Jongh" is pencilled at the top of each (Ima's, p. 2; Liesbeth's, p. 2).

◐ The appendix to the escape report of the airmen Sidney Willig and Harold Bonekat, whom Willem Kuyt brought to Van de Kemp's at Nijkerkerveen at the end of February 1945 (Van de Kemp's form, p. 6), lists a "LOU", whose help it gives as "Same as for \"DICK\"":

"LOU", NIJKERK, HOLLAND (Z4605). 6', 160 lbs., 26-27 yrs. old, lean. Looked like GARY COOPER. Spoke English well. Brother had been a Dutch flier who was killed in aerial action.

— US Army · E&E reports 2976–2977, Appendix C, p. 2 · April 1945 · the report

For his help the report has "Same as for 'DICK'", whose entry reads "Provided new civilian clothing, made arrangements for helpers and food. Furnished tobacco, transportation, and contacts" (same, pp. 1–2, read on the images). Whether this is Huib is open: the place and the company fit the Lou of Van de Kemp's and Evert Kuyt's forms, but the age does not, since Huib, born in August 1913, was 31 in April 1945; and no record held names a brother of his.

In the helper file of M. van Meerveld Tzn., "H. de Jongh, Sparrendaal 47, Rotterdam (Z.)", the address Dirk van Eysinga's own form gives for Huib de Jongh, is the witness to a claim of 13 September 1945 (p. 8). A typed note signed "sgd. H. de Jongh." asks I.S.9 to write van Meerveld a recommendation for a post he had applied for by an advertisement and been refused because "he was not a member of the B.S. and so he could not have done underground work", to be sent to A. J. van de Wiel at Kootwijkerbroek "under mention of the name "Lou"." (p. 10). The advertisement is the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries asking for applicants, with preference for "Those who worked in the underground", with A. J. van de Wiel's address among those for applications (p. 9, image only). ✓ The note says "under mention of the name \"Lou\"". ◐ That the signer is Huib rests on the Sparrendaal 47 witness entry on p. 8 of the same file; the note itself gives no address. All three pages checked on the image.

In the Americans' files of helpers around Nijkerk, Zwartebroek and Amersfoort, typed claims carry "H. de Jongh" in the place of the claimant's signature, with a date in September or October 1945:

• ✓ Kaats, Nijkerkerveen, 12 September: 14 days at f. 2 a day, f. 28; signed "H. de Jongh.", with the witnesses "Willem Kuyt, Schoolstraat F III Nijkerkerveen (Nijkerk)" and "H. de Jongh, Sparrendaal 47, Rotterdam" (p. 7, read on the image).
• ✓ Van Wessel, 12 September: 21 days at f. 2, f. 42, with the same two witnesses and "sgd. H. de Jongh" (p. 7, image-checked).
• ◐ Mazier, 13 September: "Owing to the transport of evaders the K.P. burned down the house with furniture" (p. 5); Smit Duyzenkunst, 13 September: "Hans Smit Duyzenkunst lent his bicycle for the evaders transport, but never got it back" (p. 9); Van Veluw, 13 September: 10 days at f. 2, f. 20 (p. 13). Each is signed "sgd. H. de Jongh" (the foot of each page image-checked) and gives no address; they are the same form and name as the two above, a day later.
• ◐ Piller, 13 September: a claim for f. 630,35 "(not f. 730,35)" with a list of stolen goods, and "The financial loss as a result of the attack on the farm" left to I.S.9, witness "Mrs. van Amstel, Kokshuisje, Barneveld", signed "sgd. H. de Jongh." (Joop Piller's file, pp. 15–16, read on the images). It gives no address for the signer; the farm is on Joop Piller's page.
• ✓ Van Eijden, Amersfoort, 7 October: "Three hundred guilders", signed "sgd. H. de Jongh" (p. 14, image-checked), and the action report on the case says "Claim for billeting f. 300.- filled in by Mr. de Jongh" (p. 15).

The summary sheets of many helpers' files carry "Mr. de Jongh" and a date above the summary: on Van de Kemp's it is "Mr.de Jongh / 19th October 1945" (p. 2, read on the image), and in Van Eijden's file 19 October 1945 is the conference date of his case (p. 12, p. 15). Several helpers' questionnaires have "DE JONGH" typed or stamped in the header: Van de Kemp's has it typed with "de Jongh" in red pencil beside it (p. 6), and Albert van Meerveld's has "H. DE JONGH" stamped, with "de Jongh says no claim. Was not shot for pilot work" written in ink lower down (Albert van Meerveld's file, p. 3; Albert van Meerveld).

On 7 March 1946 Captain Franklin D. Coslett of the 6801 MIS-X Detachment's Holland Office wrote to Lt M. Kiek of I.S.9 about Van Eijden's case:

The investigation at that time was made by Mr. de Jongh, who was in the habit of putting in a claim for billeting for almost every case he investigated. There was a claim attached to this case for fl. 300 and our decision on 19 October was for further investigation by Captain Atkinson but that has not been done and as you are working in the Gelderland area will you please make a casual visit to this gentleman to determine whether it is his actual wish, in view of our not paying this, to receive the amount of fl. 300 as requested by de Jongh.

— US Army · MIS-X Detachment, Holland Office · memorandum, Capt Franklin D. Coslett (typed COSIETT) to Lt M. Kiek · 7 March 1946 · the memo

The memo says that such claims were habitual and that this one was not paid; it does not say they were false, and the memo records Van Eijden's Grade 5 as awarded. ◐ "Mr. de Jongh" here is the H. de Jongh who signed Van Eijden's claim on 7 October and whom the action report names as filling it in; that he is Huib is ◐, from the claims above that give "H. de Jongh, Sparrendaal 47, Rotterdam" as witness. ⚠︎ No document says that Huib worked for the Americans or in what capacity, and the headers on other helpers' files, with the dates, say only "Mr. de Jongh". Whether every "Mr. de Jongh" is him stays open. Every bare "De Jongh" on the site links here, including the stamp or note on Albert van Meerveld's page, so each of those links rests on the same ◐ reading.

✓ The Americans' list of Grade 5 certificates has "(2066) De JONG, Lou", "Sparrendaal 47", "Rotterdam, The Netherlands" (the list, p. 79, image-checked): his cover name as the first name, and his address. His own file was closed in January 1948 without being fully processed (above).

Nothing about his life after 1946 has been found.

• Who "Lou" was. Noordman has Lou as Huib de Iongh, alias Lou van Welsum (Noordman, pp. 281, 293); Boeree as "Lou (Huib de Jong)" (Boeree, p. 199); Van den Beek's and Platenkamp's forms and the Grade 5 list tie "Lou" to H. de Jongh of Sparrendaal 47 (above). The Tresoar catalogue's note on Liesbeth Verweij's typescript "De Pilotenlijn" has "Lou = van Vliet senior" among the cover names in it (Tresoar, item 7665); the typescript is closed until 2067.
• The "LOU" of Nijkerk. 26–27 years old in the Americans' report of April 1945 (E&E 2976, Appendix C, p. 2); Huib was born in August 1913 (his file).
• How many guides, and the date. Two in Hardy's report, "DEREK and LOEW", on the night of 6 November; three in Noordman, with Joop Migchelsen leading the first stretch; Migchelsen's own statement has the six handed over to "Loet and Dirk" at Staverden on 11 November (Hardy; Noordman, p. 293; Migchelsen, p. 3).
• His name. "Huib de Jongh. (Loe.)" on Dirk van Eysinga's form, among the reports to consult (p. 2), beside Hardy's "LOEW" and Migchelsen's "Loet"; De Jongh on most forms and in the Elspeet history; "de IONGH" on his own file and Noordman's De Iongh; "De JONG, Lou" on the Grade 5 list and "Huib de Jong" in Boeree.

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