Researcher: Vivian Loeb, Stuyvesant '25

Rubin Markowitz was born on June 7, 1914, in Brooklyn, New York to parents Katie and Isidor (also spelled Isodore) Markowitz. His parents were immigrants from Poland, then part of the Russian Empire, and moved in 1912 to the United States. He had four siblings: Herman (also spelled Hyman), Florence, Rose, and Herbert. Their place of residence was 348 Williams Avenue, between the neighborhoods of Brownsville and East New York.

In 1936, Markowitz became affiliated with the Communist Party through the Young Communist League. This is most likely what inspired him to join the fight in Spain against the fascist forces. He sailed from the U.S. aboard the Ile De France on February 20, 1937, and arrived in Spain on March 7, 1937. He was one of the many Jewish volunteers in the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, serving with the Washington Battalion, Company 1, Section 2 as well as the Lincoln-Washington Battalion, Company 4. While serving in the XV International Brigade, Markowitz was reported for trying to desert, thus he was detained abroad and sent to the disciplinary unit. He also served with the Intendencia in Albacete, the headquarters of the International Brigades in southeastern Spain. The Intendencia was the central administrative system that managed resources during the war, providing essentials to the troops. Markowitz held the rank of soldado, equivalent to a private – the lowest enlisted rank. He departed from Le Havre, France, and returned to the US on December 31, 1938, aboard the President Harding.

On October 16, 1940, Rubin Markowitz filled out his draft registration card. At the time, he was employed by his mother and worked at a pushcart on Blake Avenue between Williams and Alabama Avenue in Brooklyn, NY.

Rubin Markowitz obtained a marriage license on August 1, 1942, and married Beatrice Warshafsky in New York. They had one daughter, named Arlene, who was likely born in 1944 or 1945. She attended Thomas Jefferson High School in East New York and lived with her family at 2726 Linden Boulevard in Brooklyn.

Markowitz enlisted in the US Army on November 6, 1942, and served in the World War II Armed Forces. On November 23, 1942, he wrote a letter to his friend Jack, reporting on how he was holding up in the camp. Markowitz described his experience in a tank outfit, where his tasks involved getting into contact with the enemy and reporting to tank headquarters. He believed he had a good chance of succeeding because of the good training he received. He was discharged on July 2, 1943, returning to the United States and starting a family with his wife, Beatrice. His occupations included being a building operator, more specifically, a watchman, according to the 1950 US Federal Census.

On October 14, 1972, Markowitz filed a Social Security claim, likely for retirement or disability. He became a widower when his wife, Beatrice, passed away on December 10, 1991. Rubin Markowitz passed away on September 30, 2002, in Brooklyn, NY at the age of 88. He was buried in New Montefiore Cemetery, West Babylon, Suffolk County, New York, next to Beatrice Markowitz.

Sources

“Markowitz, Rubin.” The Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives, October 7, 2022. https://alba-valb.org/volunteers/rubin-markowitz/.
Markowitz, Rubin. November 1942. Box 2, Folder 62. Mixed materials. Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives, Tamiment Library, New York University.

"New York, New York Passenger and Crew Lists, 1909, 1925-1958", FamilySearch(https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:242K-QPX : Sat Apr 12 14:47:31 UTC 2025), Entry for Rubin Markowitz, 1938.

"United States, Social Security Numerical Identification Files (NUMIDENT), 1936-2007", FamilySearch(https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:6K99-ST3H : Sat Apr 26 15:53:28 UTC 2025), Entry for Rubin Markowitz.

"New York, New York Passenger and Crew Lists, 1909, 1925-1958", FamilySearch(https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:242K-QPX : Sat Apr 12 14:47:31 UTC 2025), Entry for Rubin Markowitz, 1938.

"United States, Census, 1920", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MJPG-F8W : Fri Jan 10 20:37:51 UTC 2025), Entry for Isidor Markowitz and Kate Markowitz, 1920.

"United States, Census, 1950", FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:6XYQ-ZBH8 : Fri Oct 06 03:33:17 UTC 2023), Entry for Joseph Jazcar and Martin Jaffe, 11 April 1950.

"United States, Social Security Numerical Identification Files (NUMIDENT), 1936-2007", FamilySearch(https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:6K99-ST3H : Sat Apr 26 15:53:28 UTC 2025), Entry for Rubin Markowitz.

"United States, Social Security Death Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JP4R-J6K : 7 January 2021), Rubin Markowitz, 30 Sep 2002; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing).

“Rubin Markowitz.” Find a Grave, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/151744278/rubin-markowitz.
Browse yearbooks. https://www.museumoffamilyhistory.com/Jefferson/yearbooks.htm?year=1962&month=6&page=104.


Klehr, Harvey, et al. The Secret World of American Communism. New Haven ; London, Yale University Press, 1996.
https://www.museumoffamilyhistory.com/Jefferson/yearbooks.htm?year=1962&month=6&page=104