A Visit to the Corrie ten Boom Museum in Haarlem

Corrie ten Boom’s story is one the world has never seen. And sadly so since Corrie’s story is so moving and inspirational. My wish is for more people from around the world to discover her story, read up on it and visit the museum in Haarlem, the Netherlands.

The Corrie ten Boom Museum is situated in a sidestreet, 19 Barteljorisstraat, just off one of the main streets in Haarlem. The history of the house dates back to 1837 when Willem ten Boom opened a watchmaking store on the bottom level with family members living in the rooms on top. The house was passed down to Willem’s son Casper, and then to his daughter, Corrie.

The ten Boom’s were devoted Christians who had an open house. They received many travellers and people seeking refuge over the years. The family was known to be actively involved in social work, always caring for those who needed help and putting others before themselves.

During the Second World War the house naturally became a hiding place and a refuge for Jews. The ten Boom’s risked their lives in doing so. Corrie became the ringleader of these activities and if she couldn’t hide people herself because of space issues in the house, she would seek out other safe houses for them. In fact, it is said that the ten Boom’s saved around 800 Jews during the war. Unfortunately the family was found out and they were all imprisoned. The police never found those in hiding and they were luckily rescued by the resistance later on.

Sadly, while imprisoned, Corrie’s sister Betsie died along with their other family members. Corrie survived and when the war was over she travelled the world to tell her tale and spread the word of God. She wrote a book called The Hiding Place which became a bestseller in the 70s.

Today the museum retains its old-school feel so that the visitor can be fully immersed in the experience and place themselves in Corrie’s shoes.

Little clocks are on display in a small glass panel on the front door so you know exactly when tours of the museum begin. The guided tour is a very intimate experience since a maximum of 20 people can be let in at a given time (it is also free but one should definitely give a contribution or buy a book from the small store if you are able to). The tour guide makes it a very special, personal and humbling experience (something which is often lost when you visit larger museums).

Inside the museum you get an idea of what life was like during the war. Even the furniture inside has been replicated in the style of the 1940s.

Below is the fake wall behind which the Jews were hidden. As you can see the area behind the fake wall is so narrow and one can hardly move there let alone sleep. The ten Boom’s had 6 – 7 people hiding out in this space at any given time (around 4 Jews and 2 members of the Dutch underground who were opposing the regime).

During the tour I came across this very beautiful poem about Corrie’s family name – which means ‘tree’ in Dutch. This made me smile as it demonstrates the willpower of these people and their determination to put others first and risk their lives:

The Corrie ten Boom Museum is by far one of the most humbling experiences I’ve had inside a museum. It once again confirms my belief that the smallest of museums are often the most rewarding and fascinating.