Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives

Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives www.alba-valb.org
Teaching History – Inspiring Activism – Upholding Human Rights

Iconic photographs sometimes appear to say so much that it seems unnecessary to ask questions. Still, I’m a bit embarras...
08/23/2026

Iconic photographs sometimes appear to say so much that it seems unnecessary to ask questions. Still, I’m a bit embarrassed to confess I never seriously researched the precise circumstances of the image that ALBA has used most frequently over the past decades. Until now.

With thanks to Ray Hoff and the Tamiment staff.

Link below.

Orrin Erland Feldt was born in Detroit, 1910 to socialist Finnish immigrants. Trained as a metal finisher, he organize...
08/23/2026

Orrin Erland Feldt was born in Detroit, 1910 to socialist Finnish immigrants. Trained as a metal finisher, he organized the Detroit Unemployed Council and was at the 1932 Ford hunger march. He joined the CPUSA and UAW before he took part in the 1936-37 Flint sit-down strike.

Orrin got his passport two weeks after the strike ended. He arrived in Spain on April 17, 1937 and served with ALB as a driver. He ran a gas depot and was known as the Sheriff of Blasquez. He was WIA in the leg before he returned to the US on December 20, 1938.

Orrin married Helmi Johnson on August 15, 1941. He continued to work as a metal finisher in Detroit and moved to Kenosha, WI in 1960. He returned to Spain with others from VALB in 1986. He passed on July 5, 1993.

Sidney Kurtz was born in NYC, 1911. He attended Columbia, NYU and CCNY from 1930-1932. He joined the CPUSA in 1936 and...
08/22/2026

Sidney Kurtz was born in NYC, 1911. He attended Columbia, NYU and CCNY from 1930-1932. He joined the CPUSA in 1936 and worked for the Federal Writers Project before he arrived in Spain on March 17, 1937. He served with ALB at Jarama until he got appendicitis in June 1937.

Sidney served with the Voice of Spain broadcast and suffered from poor health until he returned to the US on July 31, 1938. He later served in the US Army Air Corps until he was KIA on November 14, 1943.

Your gift to ALBA preserves the legacy of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade while also supporting teacher-training workshops, ...
08/21/2026

Your gift to ALBA preserves the legacy of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade while also supporting teacher-training workshops, the maintenance and expansion of the public Abraham Lincoln Brigade Volunteer Database, and antifascist cultural and educational programs.

For a limited time, give $100 or more and receive an ALBA T-shirt: https://alba-valb.org/shop-donate/

Show off your commitment to resisting fascism! If you’d like to share photos of yourself wearing your ALBA T-shirt, send them to us in a private message or by email to [email protected].

William Lindsay Gresham was born in Baltimore, 1909. Raised in NYC, he frequented the Coney Island carnival. He worked...
08/20/2026

William Lindsay Gresham was born in Baltimore, 1909. Raised in NYC, he frequented the Coney Island carnival. He worked many jobs and joined the CPUSA in 1935. He arrived in Spain on October 9, 1937 and served with ALB until he returned to the US on February 4, 1939.

ALB nurse and former carny Joseph Halliday rekindled his childhood passion for Coney Island. He published Nightmare Alley in 1946 which was adapted for film in 1947 and 2021.

ALBA Board Member Chris Brooks wrote about this for the : https://albavolunteer.org/?s=nightmare+alley&submit=search

Despite his success, William had a difficult personal life and suffered from repeated illnesses. Diagnosed with tongue cancer and suffering a loss of vision, he took his own life on September 14, 1962.

Donate to ALBA in honor of William or another volunteer who fought fascism in Spain: https://alba-valb.org/donate/

May Levine was born in NYC, 1914. She attended an IWO sponsored Jewish school and graduated from Lebanon Hospital nurs...
08/19/2026

May Levine was born in NYC, 1914. She attended an IWO sponsored Jewish school and graduated from Lebanon Hospital nursing school in 1935. She joined the CPUSA before she arrived in Spain on May 29, 1937. She served as nurse until she returned to the US on September 26, 1938.

May served at the Panama Canal Zone during WWII. She married ALB veteran Jacob Hartzman in 1946. She continued to work as a nurse until the 1970s. She passed on May 16, 1996, 6 months after Jacob.

Barcelona, 1937: Full-color posters, banners, and fliers, brandishing dramatic swaths of red and black or blue or yellow...
08/18/2026

Barcelona, 1937: Full-color posters, banners, and fliers, brandishing dramatic swaths of red and black or blue or yellow were all over the city.

By the second week of the war, early in July 1936, posters were already defining the public space across major cities. They were an excellent mode of communication for a population with a high rate of illiteracy. For many years, Spain’s Catholic church, in control of public education, believed there was no need for either peasants or women to read.

The Republic would begin to reverse that pattern, but in the meantime, posters in public places combining striking iconography with brief slogans made it possible to get basic messages out quickly. Strong graphics and concise captions made the posters memorable and convincing.

About some poster artists little is known, but basic biographical information does exist for several, including Bardasano, Fontsere, Francisca, Puyol, Renau, and Sim, who are among the most important poster artists of the war.

We thought to spotlight a collection of posters, created by various artists and activists, from our database. Learn more about Spanish Civil War posters in ALBA’s online lesson plans here: https://alba-valb.org/online-lesson-spanish-civil-war-posters/

During four visits to wartime Spain in 1937 and 1938, Ernest Hemingway reported from sites of conflict all over the coun...
08/17/2026

During four visits to wartime Spain in 1937 and 1938, Ernest Hemingway reported from sites of conflict all over the country, bearing witness to the bombing of civilians, the suffering of refugees, and the military support that fascist Italy and N**i Germany provided to Franco’s forces. In August 1938, he predicted that a wider European war would begin within a year. He was off by only 21 days.

Hemingway also contributed material support for the Republic. He contributed $5,000 to The Spanish Earth, helped film the documentary, and later wrote and narrated its voiceover. Screenings across the United States helped raise $20,000 for twenty custom Ford ambulances. He also contributed to medical aid, helped pay passage to Spain for several Lincoln volunteers, and donated manuscripts to raise funds for returning brigadistas.

Even so, his relationship with Spain was complex. Some saw him as a privileged outsider whose political understanding had clear limits. His later return to Franco’s Spain further complicates the story.

In “The Earth Endureth Forever”: Hemingway in Spain, historian Dale T. Graden offers a thoughtful examination of these contradictions and considers how the war shaped Hemingway’s activism, political outlook, and writing, including For Whom the Bell Tolls.

Read the full article in The Volunteer: https://albavolunteer.org/2016/06/the-earth-endureth-forever-ernest-hemingway-and-the-spanish-civil-war/

Bennet Jeffries Doty was born in Faunsdale, 1900. He is a descendant of Edward Doty from the Mayflower. He joined the ...
08/16/2026

Bennet Jeffries Doty was born in Faunsdale, 1900. He is a descendant of Edward Doty from the Mayflower. He joined the Tennessee National Guard at 16 and was sent to France by March 1918. He saw combat at St. Miguel and Meuse-Argonne but returned by March 1919.

Bennett soon left for Europe to join the Spanish and French Foreign Legions. He eventually deserted both. Caught and returned to France, his death sentence was reduced to eight years in prison but he was released after 17 months. He wrote a memoir about these experiences.

In between his stints as a solider Bennett studied at Vanderbilt, University of Virginia, and Tulane Law. He briefly worked as an attorney before he arrived as a foreign soldier in Spain for the second time in March 1938 during the Retreats. He was KIA by April 4, 1938.

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