Alonzo Watson
Alonzo Watson | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 4, 1892 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | February 25, 1937 (aged 45) |
| Allegiance | United States Spanish Republic |
| Branch | United States Army International Brigades |
| Service years | c. 1917–1918 1937 |
| Rank | Quartermaster |
| Unit | 365th Illinois Infantry The "Abraham Lincoln" XV International Brigade |
| Conflicts | |
Alonzo Watson (February 4, 1892 – February 25, 1937) was an American volunteer who was killed in action fighting for the Loyalists during the Spanish Civil War.[1] He was the first African-American man to die in the war.[2]
Biographical sketch
Alonzo Watson was born in Chicago, Illinois in February 4, 1892. A veteran of World War I and painter, Watson moved to New York City and joined the Communist Party upon finding common cause with its Harlem activism in the 1930s.[3]
He left New York City for Spain on the day after Christmas in 1936; his was one of the first groups of volunteers to see service in the American outfit known as the Abraham Lincoln Brigade.[4] Staffed mostly by Americans who supported the Second Spanish Republic against the coup led by General Francisco Franco, the Lincoln Brigades composed the first completely integrated American fighting force.[5]
Watson died on February 25, 1937, at the Battle of Jarama. Fellow veteran John Tisa recalls that Watson died in hand-to-hand combat.[6]
His name occurs briefly as a historical character in Captain Blackman (1972), a novel written by African-American writer John Alfred Williams and Bruce Palmer's They Shall Not Pass: A Novel of the Spanish Civil War (1971).
See also
References
- ^ "Watson, Alonzo". alba-valb.org. Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives. December 11, 2019. Retrieved August 25, 2025.
- ^ "Watson, First Race Man To Die In Spain". The Chicago Defender. Chicago. May 15, 1937. Retrieved August 25, 2025.
- ^ Carroll, Peter N., and James D. Fernández. Facing Fascism: New York and the Spanish Civil War. New York: Museum of the City of New York, 2007. ISBN 0-8147-1681-4, ISBN 978-0-8147-1681-6. P. 79.
- ^ Collum, Danny Duncan, and Victor A. Berch. African Americans in the Spanish Civil War: "This ain't Ethiopia, But It'll Do". New York: G.K. Hall, 1992. ISBN 0-8161-7378-8, ISBN 978-0-8161-7378-5. P. 24.
- ^ Lendman, Stephen. The Abraham Lincoln Brigade - A profile in Courage, Honor and Hope. Archived 2012-02-19 at the Wayback Machine Independent Media Center. 27 December 2007. Retrieved 1 May 2009.
- ^ Tisa, John. Recalling the Good Fight: An Autobiography of the Spanish Civil War. South Hadley, Massachusetts: Bergin & Garvey, 1985. ISBN 0-89789-078-7, ISBN 978-0-89789-078-6. P. 51.
External links
- James Yates "Mississippi to Madrid" http://www.alba-valb.org/volunteers/james-yates