Author Archive for Chris Brooks

Finding My Father by Shirley J. Vail

September 10, 2018
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Finding My Father by Shirley J. Vail

At the age of 70, I gathered my courage and learned how to use the Internet.  The first thing I wanted to do was find out anything I could about my father, Earl Frederick Vail.  I began with Ancestry.com.  Setting out on a journey that would take me I knew not where. I was...
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Snowman in Madrid, by M. Mickenberg

September 2, 2018
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Snowman in Madrid, by M. Mickenberg

The Volunteer for Liberty, V. 2, No. 3, January 29, 1938                                     SNOWMAN IN MADRID Franco, Franco, Generalissimo, The little kids are making you Of effigies in snow.   Of you, Franco, Generalissimo! They’re making you and...
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On Beards –A Reply by M. H.

August 26, 2018
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On Beards –A Reply by M. H.

On Beards –A Reply, By M. H. The Volunteer for Liberty, V. 2, No. 2, January 13, 1938 In a recent issue of “The Volunteer for Liberty” we find a scholarly article deriding the many beard wearers in the International Brigades. A very astute and interesting article –to the beardless. But to the man...
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What’s In A Beard? by Unattributed

August 26, 2018
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What’s In A Beard? by Unattributed

What’s In A Beard? Unattributed The Volunteer for Liberty, V. 1, No. 28, December 27, 1937 Beards were introduced by Sampson an ingenious Easterner who put over the slogan “Hair for Strength” and made big money. Like other speculators he wrecked his career on a woman and ended his life in an orgy of...
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Look Pretty Please by Harry Randall, Brigade Chief Photographer

August 18, 2018
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Look Pretty Please by Harry Randall, Brigade Chief Photographer

Look Pretty Please by Harry Randall, Brigade Chief Photographer The Volunteer for Liberty, V.2, No. 32, September 17, 1938   When the photographic section of the XVth International Brigade Commissariat was established, its tasks were seen as threefold: first, to make a photographic record of the XVth Brigade –where we have been, what we...
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Aaron Lopoff by A. C. B. [Alvah Bessie]

August 12, 2018
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Aaron Lopoff by A. C. B. [Alvah Bessie]

                          Aaron Lopoff  ~ Alvah Bessie The Volunteer for Liberty, V. 2, No. 33, October 6, 1938. During the days when we used to joke about withdrawal of the volunteers and wonder when the car was coming down the road with the...
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Lincoln Battalion Commissar by H. A.

August 5, 2018
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Lincoln Battalion Commissar by H. A.

The Volunteer for Liberty, V. 1, No. 9, August 9, 1937. Lincoln Battalion Commissar by H. A. “Don’t let ‘em get Steve!” This is the word that travels like a flash of lightning through the Lincoln-Washington Battalion lines before and during the attack. Steve Nelson, Political Commissar of the Lincoln-Washington Battalion, tireless worker. At...
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“Chofers” As Seen By One Of Them by Easey Goldstein, Sargento

July 31, 2018
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“Chofers” As Seen By One Of Them by Easey Goldstein, Sargento

The Volunteer for Liberty, V.2, No. 33, October 6, 1938. Among the unsung heroes of the Ebro action are the Brigade chauffeurs who bring the men food, munitions, and material. Because they work unostentatiously and efficiently, they have become accepted in a matter of fact way, as a cog in the war machine. And...
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Commissar Nicholas Myer — unattributed

July 24, 2018
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Commissar Nicholas Myer — unattributed

The Volunteer for Liberty, V.2, No. 35, November 7, 1938. Nick Myers, Commissar of Co. 1, Mac-Pap Battalion was wounded in the attack on Asco by the same shell that laid out Lionel Edwards the Company Commander. “I heard it coming” he says “but I was in a hurry and kept going. I ran...
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Ukes and Finns of the Mac-Paps, unattributed

July 21, 2018
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Ukes and Finns of the Mac-Paps, unattributed

Ukes and Finns of the Mac-Paps, The Volunteer For Liberty, v. 2, No. 29, August 13, 1938. Our battalion has them too. We mean the Ukes and the Finns. They come from Canada too, but most of them have not only experienced the class struggle in Canada but have received an even more adequate...
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