John M. Lucid Papers
Call Number
Date
Creator
Extent
Language of Materials
Abstract
John Michael Lucid (1915-1977) fought with the International Brigades in the Spanish Civil War from February 1937 through December 1938. Lucid joined the U.S. Army in 1942, and was stationed in the U.S., North Africa, and Italy. The collection consists of letters from Lucid to another Spanish Civil War veteran written while Lucid was in the Army.
Historical/Biographical Note
John Michael Lucid (nicknamed Jack) was born in Everett, Washington in 1915. Before joining the International Brigades in the Spanish Civil War, Lucid earned his B.A., studying literature, journalism and history. He worked in food canning factories in Mexico and Alaska and as a railway technician, among other jobs. A member of the Newspaper Guild and the Communist Party, Lucid aspired to become a reporter for a left-wing publication.
Lucid sailed to France in February 1937 and hiked over the Pyrenees into Spain. After training he was assigned to the British Battalion as an anti-aircraft and anti-tank observer. He saw action in the battles of Ebro and Gandesa, where he was put in charge of a trench-mortar unit, and was hospitalized briefly in March 1937. He returned on the S.S. Paris in December 1938 when the International Brigades were evacuated out of Spain.
Lucid joined the U.S. Army in October 1942. Although he wanted to be sent overseas to join a combat unit, for months he was shuffled from U.S. base to U.S. base performing menial tasks. Finally he shipped out to North Africa and fought with the Rangers in Italy, where he won a Silver Star.
Lucid died in 1977.
Arrangement
Folders are arranged chronologically.
The files are grouped into one series:
Missing Title
- I, World War II Letters
Scope and Content Note
Series I, World War II Lettersconsists of five letters and one greeting card ("Greetings from Italy") from Lucid to Spanish Civil War veteran Archie Brown and/or to Brown's wife, "Hon," during Lucid's first months in the Army. One letter is from North Africa and the others from various army bases in the U.S. In his U.S. letters Lucid expresses frustration and the belief that he and other Spanish Civil War veterans were being sidelined, kept from active combat participation in World War II because of their political views.
Subjects
Organizations
Genres
People
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
The Tamiment Library & Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives has no information about copyright ownership for this collection and is not authorized to grant permission to publish or reproduce materials from it. Copyrights held by original creators of individual items in the collection are expected to pass into the public domain 70 years after the creator's death. For more information, please contact the Tamiment Library & Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives, 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 John M. Lucid Papers were donated to Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives at New York University in March 2003.
