Manuscript logbook of plane spotters after the German bombing of Rotterdam

Daily logbook maintained by a team of 7 plane spotters in Rotterdam, begun shortly after the bombing of the city, with altogether ± 1000 entries, beginning on Sunday 29 June 1941, and ending on Tuesday 6 October 1942, 78 leaves written on both sides (no blank leaves remaining), contemporary cardboard, thin folio.

Several leaves loose, lacks backstrip and boards tender. Highly extraordinary and historically important logbook, compiled by H. de Koning, H.J. van Ginneken, C.W. van Ginneken, C. Schröder, J. Ekkerman, P.W. van Breugel and A.H. van Helden. From some of the entries in the book and an annotation on the back board ("Loterijclub Brandwacht" with the aforementioned names) it appears that the men formed a company fire watch. A typed label has been pasted to the inside of the front board with the names of the men and Rotterdam addresses of the members of the team, three of these also with phone number. Below large written phone number for the fire department "99" and three numbers for the police. On the first and second page the phone numbers of several emergency services and the electricity company have been noted, and several private names (e.g. 4 members of the Peekel family, one Thelen and one Kuppens). Each entry with written initials "Th" (of the aforementioned Thelen, several times Thelen in full) or "J.E.". From the various entries it appears that the watch took place in an office building with warehouse, "bontafdeeling", "bonthok" and "pelshok". The building itself is damaged several times by bombs. Each day, the watch ran from 5:30 to 12:00 and from 12:00 uur to 7:30 or beginning and ending at slightly different, comparable times, with the team members alternating. Each particularity was noted with the accompanying time. The messages end with the line "niets te melden" or "verders niets te melden". A few interesting notes: "Pekel met verschillende menschen het pakhuis bezigtigd"; "Heini denk om de lampen. Lamp weg uit de kamer van den heer G. Kaufman"; "Duitsch vliegtuig over en zoeklichten aan"; "Vliegtuigen zoeklichten afweer 1 lichtkogel richting Park 1 richting Charlois en 2 richting Waalhaven. Bommen gegooid in verschillende richtingen, brand in noordoostelijke richting" (6 July 1941); "Door de wind een deurruit stuk geslagen van de kamer Consul"; "Tuimelraam bij de deur éérste zolder raam gebroken"; "Van 2,50 tot 4,50 uur de zoon van Mogendorf op het kantoor wezen type bij de heer J. Mogendorf (...)." "De pot van het achterste privaat stuk." (19 July 1941); "(...) verschillende malen bommen gegooid groote brand in de richting Delft"; "In verschillende richtingen bommen gegooid en op diverse plaatsen groote branden. Op de tweede droge zolder groot gat in de deur aan de voorkant waarschijnlijk van een bomscherf" (3 October 1941); "(...) Slechte nacht geweest!" (11 October 1941); "Gelieve de heeren van het bazen kleedlokaal er op attent te maken niet meer met messen in de blinden van de verduistering te gooien, daar deze al vol gaatjes zitten"; "3 pak pelterijen-afval binnengenomen van Bijloo"; "(...) luchtgevechten en een vliegtuig brandend omlaag geschoten. Vermoedelijk nog een vliegtuig brandend neegestort" (11 September 1942).