Aalto, William E. (32175470)

William E. Aalto
Personal details
Born	July 30, 1915 New York City, U.S.
Died	June 11, 1958 New York City, U.S.
Nativity	United States
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch	25px International Brigades
Arm / service	25px International Brigades; 25px Office of Strategic Services
ASN	32175470
Rank	Captain; First Sergeant
Rank at Ritchie	Technical Sergeant
Camp Ritchie	Class 5 (8 February – 9 April 1943)
Section	1B
Enlisted	Cp Upton Yaphank, New York
Battles / wars	Spanish Civil War Battle of Teruel Carchuna Raid World War II

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William Eric Aalto (born William Oliver Ahlström, July 30, 1915 – June 11, 1958) was an American soldier and member of the communist Abraham Lincoln Battalion, a unit that volunteered to fight during the Spanish Civil War for the Popular Front.

Biography

William Eric Aalto (born William Oliver Ahlström, July 30, 1915 – June 11, 1958) was an American soldier and member of the communist Abraham Lincoln Battalion, a unit that volunteered to fight during the Spanish Civil War for the Popular Front.

William Eric Aalto, of Finnish extraction, was born in the Bronx, New York on July 30, 1915. His mother had emigrated to the United States eight years earlier. She enrolled in the local communist party, educating her son with Marxist ideology. After leaving school, he worked as a truck driver and was a member of the Young Communist League.

At the end of 1937, Aalto took part in the Battle of Teruel, working behind enemy lines again with Kunslich, Goff and Spanish guerrillas. He was later promoted to captain on June 5.

In September 1938, with a Republican defeat in sight, the Abraham Lincoln Battalion was withdrawn from the front line and shortly afterwards disbanded. William Aalto returned to the United States.

During his time in Spain, Aalto wrote: "A soldier who is politically conscious that he is right and who has a feeling of community with his society... will do his job well."

With the help of his disability pension and the G.I. Bill, he returned to further his education, studying poetry at Columbia University. At this time, he published several pieces of his writings in the New Masses.

Aalto then travelled to Europe, where he met the poet W.H. Auden. Though sharing the company of other poets, Aalto now wrote little and tended towards alcoholism, frequently becoming violent.

Aalto's association with writers Jack Kerouac and Alan Ansen is mentioned briefly in Kerouac's novel The Subterraneans, where he is called "Nick Spain": "...and Mardou with dame-like majesty all this time in the easy chair in the corner of the library (where once I'd seen the famous one-armed Nick Spain sit when Bromberg on a happier early time in the year played for us the original recording of The Rake's Progress)..."

William Aalto died of leukemia in June 1958, and was buried in Long Island National Cemetery.

Research notes

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Aalto
• Check ASN

Gallery

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Technical record

Field	Imported value
Approx Age at Death	43
Nara ASN	32175470
Nara Name	AALTO WILLIAM E
Nara State	23
Nara County	5
Nara POE	2314
Nara DOE	81041
Nara Grade Alpha	PVT
Nara Grade Code	8
Nara Branch Alpha	BI
Nara Branch Code	0
Branch	Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA
Nara Term or Enlistment	0
Term of enlistment	Unknown
Defer. Date	0
Nara Source	0
Nara Nativity	23
Nativity.1	NEW YORK
Nara Year of Birth	15
Nara Race	1
Nara Race Description	White citizen
Nara Education	4
Nara Civilian Occupation	472
Nara Marital Status	6
Nara Height (inches)	72
Nara Weight (lbs)	212
Class_ASN	32175470
Class_Name	AALTO, William E.
match_method	asn_exact_name_exact
row_source	both

Sources

• Wikipedia: William Aalto
• Camp Ritchie class roster (classes 1–31), merged research file
• NARA World War II Army enlistment records (where a NARA ASN is present)
• 1940 U.S. Census (where a census match is present)