Researcher: Aleksander Nikolov, Stuyvesant '30

Joseph Maier was an Austrian-American political commissar in the Abraham Lincoln Brigade’s 2nd logistics regiment.

He was born in Obervellach, Carinthia, Austria, on March 7, 1907. Though he was baptized the next day at St. Martin’s parish, his family may have been Jewish, or he converted later.

He emigrated from Austria at 16 years old, leaving behind his parents Johanna and Joseph. He left from Hamburg on the America, arriving at the Port of New York on December 15, 1923.

He took his experience as a butcher’s apprentice and started working in the meatpacking district. Shelko Products Corp (547 Greenwich St) was one company he worked at. Commuting all the way from his apartment at (1031 2nd ave), he probably took the BMT to work every day from Lexington Ave to Union Square. He took the E, basically.

Hit hard by the depression, Joe registered as a Communist in 1932. He was likely around for its “Extraordinary National Conference” in ‘33 as well as its “9th National Convention” in June of ‘36 which probably influenced him to start thinking about anti-fascism. He sailed for Spain on February 10th, 1937.

He joined up with the 2nd Battalion’s Regiment del Tren, the logistics force behind the British, Lincoln, and Washington battalions. His regiment, being mostly logistics, was pretty removed from the front. It trailed behind the British, Lincoln, and Washington battalions, connecting them to smaller logistics depots and cities near the front. Its concern was mainly

Here, he learned how to drive, and likely supplied troops during Jarama, Guadalajara, Brunete, and Belchite. He probably got real acquainted with on-the-go engine repairs, wore tires all the way down, and made gas caps out of food cans. His regiment was constantly reassigned to whoever needed the most logistical support. One day he could be supplying the Lincoln battalion, and the next day the British, and after that the Washington. Joe got into Commissar school (being a communist definitely helped) and learned education techniques, discipline strategies, and how to be receptive to his troops’ needs.

By the time graduated from Commissar school at Tarazona, Commissars were an (in theory) politically neutral bridge between the bigwig educated military commanders and the untrained militias who had to carry out the plans. They were both “wiggle room” and a rock to hold onto, allowing for a diverse, amateur group of people to fight cohesively. They had separate and similar power to a battalion commander: Distributing and acquiring supplies, handing out orders, and getting under a truck to fix it personally were all on the table. They were also in charge of education and smoothing out political friction, though that would be mostly through a communist lens.

As a Company Commissar, he was in charge of soldiers’ morale, but was later promoted to Regimental Commissar. He was likely socializing with clerks and mechanics at the motor pool (known as an Auto Park), asking if they’ve seen anyone suspicious, and maybe sneaking in a Marxist speech or two. He’d probably spend time explaining mutual aid to the truck driver who “lost” a case of beer during his supply run to the front. Joe left Spain on December 10, 1938 on the Ausonia.

After the war, Joseph (33) met Greta Hirsch (31), a German-American social worker and American Labor Party member. They got married on July 16, 1940. They moved to a roomier apartment on the opposite of central park at (215 W. 66th St.)

By the 1950 census, Joe had moved his wife and daughter Jean (b. 1945) to Brooklyn (1081 East 27th st, pictured.) He was working as a bus driver for the city, using the skills he picked up during logistics duty. His information here confirms that he didn’t serve in WW2. He probably didn’t get drafted because of his heritage, his wife’s heritage, and the scrutiny SCW vets faced.

Joe (60) died in December of 1967, followed by his wife 31 years later.

Author’s note: If you’d like to continue learning about Joe, the biggest source I’m missing is the Russian state archive files. Also, NYU’s Biographical Archive files (separate from the American Labor Conference files) has at least one document from Greta Maier, but it’s restricted for privacy reasons.

Sources

Brooks, Chris. “Jarama Series #16: The Regiments.” The Volunteer. July 13, 2016. https://albavolunteer.org/2016/07/jarama-series-16-the-regiments/.

Brooks, Chris. “Keep ’Em Rolling by Hy Chesler.” The Volunteer. April 12, 2018. https://albavolunteer.org/2018/04/14194/

Matthews, James. “Annual Lecture 2017/18: Commissars in the Republican Popular Army during the Spanish Civil War, 1936–1939.” Munitions of the Mind. March 21, 2018. https://blogs.kent.ac.uk/munitions-of-the-mind/2018/03/21/annual-lecture-201718-commissars-in-the-republican-popular-army-during-the-spanish-civil-war-1936-1939/.

Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives. “Blast from the Past Revisited.” December 2015. https://albavolunteer.org/2015/12/blast-from-the-past-revisited/.

Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives. “Joseph Maier.” Accessed June 10, 2026. https://alba-valb.org/volunteers/joseph-maier/.

Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives. “Post.” April 2018. https://albavolunteer.org/2018/04/14194/.

Brint, Sidney. “Joseph Maier.” SIDBRINT: Brigadistas from the Spanish Civil War. Accessed June 10, 2026. https://sidbrint.ub.edu/brigadista/maier-joseph.

1940s NYC. Accessed June 10, 2026. https://1940s.nyc/.

Ancestry.com. U.S., UK and Irish Newspapers.com Marriage Index, 1800s—. Record ID 4778626. https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61847/records/4778626.

Ancestry.com. U.S., Border Crossings from Canada to U.S., 1895-1960. Record ID 3554512. https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2280/records/3554512.

Ancestry.com. 1930 United States Federal Census. Record ID 42782181. https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/6224/records/42782181.

Ancestry.com. Manhattan, New York, New York, U.S., Voter Registers, 1915-1956. Record ID 14828489. https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/62363/records/14828489.

Ancestry.com. U.S., Newspapers.com Obituary Index, 1800s—. Record ID 257633. https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/61788/records/257633.

Ancestry.com. U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947. Record ID 194690037. https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/2238/records/194690037.

Ancestry.com. 1950 United States Federal Census. Record ID 280470926. https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/62308/records/280470926.

Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014. Record ID 38461190. https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/3693/records/38461190.

Ancestry.com. U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014. Record ID 38460421. https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/3693/records/38460421.