PvH Nagelhout War Grave, Roman Catholic Cemetery Sneek

Jacob Cornelis Nagelhout 1917-1945 (resistance fighter)

Jacob Cornelis Nagelhout was born on April 15, 1917 in Woudsend. He was a son of a family with nine children. By profession he was a farmhand. During the occupation years Jacob was an illegal worker and a member of the NBS, the Dutch Domestic Forces.

On Sunday, April 15, 1945, combat groups of the NBS were ordered to defend the Welle bridge in the road between Sneek and Lemmer against the Germans. These planned to blow up the bridge to prevent the advancing liberators from passing through. The NBS managed to disarm a German Sprengkommando, capturing three wagons of ammunition. The Welle bridge was then turned off by the NBS. This was followed by a fierce firefight with about forty well-armed German soldiers. These came from Lemmer. During this fight Jacob Nagelhout was killed. Because their ammunition was rapidly dwindling, the NBS had to retreat. Later Canadian troops arrived. Together with the NBS they advanced to the bridge. The Germans wanted to secure their retreat and therefore blew up the Welle bridge. The following day a fierce battle was fought for (the remains of) the bridge. But at a certain moment the Germans definitively retreated to Lemmer.

Jacob Nagelhout was shot on his 28th birthday. In Woudsend a street is named after him.