Alternate name(s):
Edward Shirley; Edwin; Samuel
Date of birth:
Wednesday, 14 April 1909
Marital status:
single
Ethnicity/Nationality:
English
Profession:
mechanic; cook;
Hometown(s):
Vancouver, British Columbia; Upper Norwood, England
Date of immigration to Canada:
Wednesday, 10 May 1922
Education:
public school
Political affiliation:
Communist Party of Canada, 1937; Communist Party of Spain; He chose to turn in his party book rather than defend Barcelona after the demobilization of the International Brigades
Involvement in On-to-Ottawa Trek:
Participated in the On-to-Ottawa Trek.
Approximate date arrived in Spain:
1937-07-01
Unit:
Trained with the 2nd Battalion of Instruction, Tarazona; 15 Brigade; Cook; Sanitary Unit, possibly ambulance driver; Corporal, September 30, 1937; Sergeant, May 10, 1938; Abraham Lincoln Battalion; Mackenzie Papineau Battalion; Listed as driver of water tankers under his alias of Edwin/Edward Shirley; Served at Teruel and Ebro Offensive
Final status:
WIA 20 January 1938 at Teruel, possibly by a sniper; Hospitalized in Benicasim; Survived; Returned to Canada in February 3, 1939 on the Duchess of Richmond; Enlisted in the Royal Canadian Navy during World War II
Sources:
RGASPI Fond 545, Opis 6, Delo 561, ll. 31-37 (37 is a letter from his mother Jessie Norman inquiring as to his health); Ancestry; Momryk; Petrou; Interview with Mac Reynolds --No British accent, but recalls his mother still being in London when they left Spain on way back to Canada
