Mark Rauschwald Papers
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Abstract
Mark Benjamin Rauschwald (1908-1985) was a graphic artist who sailed for Spain in March 1937. He served in the Abraham Lincoln Battalion, where, after being wounded at Brunete, he worked with the Cultural Commission and in the Censors Office before returning to the States in December 1938. He worked as an artist throughout his life. The collection includes military and other documents from the Spanish Civil War, correspondence with International Brigades veterans, reproductions of artwork, and family correspondence and documents.
Historical/Biographical Note
Mark Benjamin Rauschwald, the son of recent immigrants from Poland, was born in 1908 and grew up in New York City. After attending Cooper Union, Rauschwald joined the Commercial Artists and Designers Union and worked as a graphic artist. He sailed for Spain in March 1937, where he served in the Abraham Lincoln Battalion at Jarama and Brunete. He was wounded at Brunete. Rauschwald later worked with the Cultural Commission and in the Censors Office in Albacete. After returning to the States in December 1938, Rauschwald resumed his career as an artist. He continued to paint and draw throughout his life, often basing his work on political and socially progressive themes. Artwork that he produced in Spain was included in an exhibit put on by the Veterans of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade (VALB) as a fundraising benefit in 1963. Rauschwald died in San Diego in 1985.
Arrangement
Folders are arranged alphabetically.
The files are grouped into two series:
Missing Title
- I, Subject Files
- II, Family
Scope and Content Note
Series I, Subject Files. Spanish Civil War materials include Rauschwald's Carnet Militar for the International Brigades, his embarkation pass for his departure from Spain, a repatriation document, and letters from comrades still in France and Spain after Rauschwald had returned home. Other materials include a letter from Spanish Civil War veteran Steve Nelson from jail urging Rauschwald to gather support for his 1952 sedition case; a letter from Rauschwald to veteran Fredericka Martin discussing, among other topics, his political beliefs and his work as a censor in Spain; and a list of Spanish Civil War papers, ephemera and artwork Rauschwald loaned to VALB (and that was apparently never returned). Other materials include documentation of Rauschwald's career as an artist.
Series II, Family. Materials include correspondence relating to Rauschwald's father, Morris, and other family members, including Morris's U.S. citizenship certificate, and correspondence and documents in Yiddish, German and Polish.
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Access Restrictions
Materials are open to researchers. Please contact the Tamiment Library & Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives for more information and to schedule an appointment, tamiment.wagner@nyu.edu or 212-998-2630.
Use Restrictions
Any rights (including copyright and related rights to publicity and privacy) held by the Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives (ALBA), were transferred to New York University in November 2000 by the ALBA Board of Governors. Permission to publish or reproduce materials in this collection must be secured from the Tamiment Library & Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives. For more information, contact tamiment.wagner@nyu.edu or 212-998-2630.
Preferred Citation
Published citations should take the following form:
Identification of item, date; Collection name; Collection number; box number; folder number;
Tamiment Library/Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives
Elmer Holmes Bobst Library
70 Washington Square South
New York, NY 10012, New York University Libraries.
Provenance
The Mark Rauschwald Papers were donated to Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives by Mark Rauschwald in 1976 and 1994. This collection came to New York University in January 2001 as part of the original acquisition of ALBA collections, formerly housed at Brandeis University.
Separated Material
Photographs and slides of Rauschwald's artwork as well as photographs from a disassembled scrapbook were separated from Rauschwald's manuscript materials in the course of processing. They have been transferred to the non-print section of the ALBA collection in the Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives (ALBA Photo #36).
