Liudes Kisielis | Canadian Cultural History About The Spanish Civil War

Alternate name(s):

Kisielis; Kisiel; Kisselis; Ludwig; Liudas; Louis

Nickname:

Louis

Date of birth:

Tuesday, 29 July 1902

Marital status:

single

Ethnicity/Nationality:

Lithuanian

Profession:

miner; farm worker; brickmaker

Hometown(s):

Pasodas, Lithuania; Port Arthur, Ontario; Bienfait, Saskatchewan; Montreal, Quebec

Date of Immigration to Canada:

1928

Political affiliation:

Communist Party of Canada, 1931

Affiliations to union and social groups:

Involved in unions; Participated in Estevan coal mines and was "blacklisted"; American-Lithuanian Workers Literature Association for 8 years, one year as secretary; participated in Winnipeg General Strike, arrested at Fort William in strike and jailed for six months in 1935;

Prior military experience:

Lithuanian Army, 1924

Approximate date arrived in Spain:

1937-05-14 - arrived

Unit:

Dimitrov Battalion; 15 Brigade; Artillery; Anti-tanks; Telephonist; Pointer; Served at Quinto, Aragon, Fuentes de Ebro, and Levante;

Final status:

WIA (right hand, 1937) hospitalized for one month in Barcelona; WIA (left foot, May 1938) hospitalized in Arcola for two months Survived; Returned home sick; Returned to Canada February 11, 1939; d. 1989

Other:

MacPap Veterans Association

Sources:

RGASPI Fond 545, Opis 6, Delo 610 ll 22-29 (with letter to Jack Taylor); NAC, M-P Collection, Dent, V. 3, F. 21, Subject Files, Kisielis, Louis: Reminiscense of SCW (interview notes), 1980; Momryk; Petrou; Ancestry;