Spanish Civil War

Learn about each of the service members listed on the memorial:

• Charles Harvey Boyer
• Charles P. Clyde
• Lieutenant Walter Cotchett
• Corporal Edwin Fredlund
• Corporal George Gaches
• Lieutenant Oliver Hazzard
• John Hollis Jenkins
• Edgar A. Lehmann
• Jack Lucid
• John McGlinn
• David Nieder
• James Norie
• Private George Page
• Robert Pettijohn
• Franklin Plumb
• Private Chauncey Rathbun
• Robert L. Reed
• Sergeant William Reinhart
• Sergeant J. Willis Sayre
• Corporal Frank Smith
• Thane Summers

History of the Spanish Civil War Monument

The Spanish War Memorial is located to the West of the HUB, and it was built and dedicated in October, 1998. There were 11 University of Washington students who served in the Spanish Civil War. The construction and dedication of the monument was led by the Veterans of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade and Friends in Washington. The 11 UW veterans were honored, in addition to the other 40,000 volunteers from over 50 different countries, who fought for the Spanish people in the US’s first clash against fascism (Roseth).

There were about 20 of the brigade veterans at the dedication ceremony, all of which were in their 80s and 90s. Some of the veterans had flown 3,000 miles just to see the recognition for their sacrifice. The artist, David Ryan of Oakland California, has been reached out to, but has not responded. This was the first public memorial in the United States about the Lincoln Brigade’s service, and many of the veterans had tears streaming down their face as they witnessed the dedication (Verhovek). While recognition for the war is extremely uncommon in the US, there are many memorials to their service in Europe; and brigade veterans have even been made honorary citizens of Spain by the Parliament of Spain. As of March 2016, there are no more surviving members of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade (Graham).

Despite the brigade veteran’s service and sacrifice to fight fascism, almost all the veterans were hounded by the FBI and the rest of America for being “communists”. While some of the veterans did support communism, many were just anti-fascist and extremely liberal. However, during the extreme paranoia of the Cold War, anyone who was considered a Communist was ostracized by the nation. Many of the surviving veterans are not embittered about the scorn they received, some say that positive experiences came out of the ordeal.

The 11 UW students that the memorial honors are: Charles Harvey Boyer, Charles P. Clyde, John Hollis Jenkins, Edgar A. Lehmann, Jack Lucid, David Nieder, James Norie, Franklin Plumb, Robert Pettijohn, Robert L. Reed, and Thane Summers. Three out of the eleven volunteers either went MIA or KIA during the war. These students were James Norie, Robert Pettijohn, and Thane Summers. Robert L. Reed’s (AKA Bob Reed) information on other veterans from the war can be found in UW special collections library (University of Washington).

Ten other students were recognized by the University of Washington’s’ 1919 Tyee yearbook for their service in the Spanish American War with the Washington Volunteers. Lieutenant Oliver Hazzard, Lieutenant Walter Cotchett, Sergeant J. Willis Sayre, Sergeant William Reinhart, Corporal Edwin Fredlund, Corporal George Gaches, Corporal Frank Smith, Private Chauncey Rathbun, Private George Page, and John McGlinn were all recognized for their service and bravery.