Biography
Rogers, Frank. (Henderson, Frank Joseph; Halttunen, Hannes); b. July 25, 1905, Finland (Bessemer, Pennsylvania), to the US in 1909; Finnish American; [mother Finnish, father American] father Paul Henderson; 1.5 years Ohio college; Married; Journalist, Automobile Worker, and Full-time Party organizer; CP November 1927, district bureau, CP of Spain; 1930 went to Germany and Soviet Union; Domicile 1711 W. 31st Street, Cleveland, Ohio; Passport under Frank Joseph Henderson; Sailed May 29, 1937 aboard the Britannic; Arrived in Spain via Massanet, on June 13, 1937 crossed Pyrenees; Trained with the 2nd BN of Instruction at Tarazona June 13 to July 1937; Pozo Rubio OTS school, after completing the course he was retained as an instructor and Commissar of the Anglo American Section; Transferred back to Tarazona as the Commissar of the training base until November 10, 1937 when he went to the front; Served with the XV BDE, Lincoln-Washington BN, Company Commissar and then Adjutant BN Commissar; With battalion from November 10 to March 10, 1938 when he was wounded during the artillery attack that killed or wounded the entire command of the Lincoln-Washington BN; Spent 3 weeks in the hospital then returned to BDE on April 3, 1938; Rogers was assigned to the Mackenzie-Papineau BN as BN Commissar; Served in that capacity through the Ebro Offensive; Rank Major (Comisario de Guerra); Served at Teruel. Segura de los Banos, Retreats, Ebro Offensive; WIA March 10, 1938 hit in left leg near knee and in back, in Hospital General Militar Barcelona and Balcaca; Returned to the US on December 15, 1938 aboard the Paris; d. 1949; Spoke Finnish and English.
Siblings: brother Paul and sisters Elma and Aryi.
Sources: Sail; Scope of Soviet Activity; Cadre (under Rogers); Figueres List (under Henderson, Frank J.); Pay; RGASPI Fond 545, Opis 6, Delo 566, ll. 34 (fiche);. Opis 6, Delo 974, ll. 22-47; Opis 6, Delo 1021, ll. 28-39; Petrou; MPE. (Can Mac Pap BN; clerk, kept records, too)
Frank Rogers, War Commissar of the Mac-Paps by Johnny McGrandle, The Volunteer for Liberty, V2, No. 25, July 19, 1938; reprint The Volunteer Blog, posted February 8, 2019.
Photograph:
Siblings: brother Paul and sisters Elma and Aryi.
Sources: Sail; Scope of Soviet Activity; Cadre (under Rogers); Figueres List (under Henderson, Frank J.); Pay; RGASPI Fond 545, Opis 6, Delo 566, ll. 34 (fiche);. Opis 6, Delo 974, ll. 22-47; Opis 6, Delo 1021, ll. 28-39; Petrou; MPE. (Can Mac Pap BN; clerk, kept records, too)
Frank Rogers, War Commissar of the Mac-Paps by Johnny McGrandle, The Volunteer for Liberty, V2, No. 25, July 19, 1938; reprint The Volunteer Blog, posted February 8, 2019.
Photograph: