Davidow, Ruth (1911-1999) | Rare Book & Manuscript Library, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Ruth Rebecca Davidow was born on September 1, 1911 in Volkovysk, Russia (now Belarus) to Maria Hertzman, a seamstress, and Joseph Davidow, a photographer. The Davidow family immigrated to the United States circa 1917 and settled in Brooklyn, New York. Davidow’s mother was an active socialist and organizer for the International Ladies Garment Workers Union, and encouraged her children to be involved in politics from an early age.

By 1930, Davidow worked as a nurse at the Jewish Hospital of Brooklyn, and in June 1937, she volunteered to serve as a nurse with the Republican Medical Services at Pozoblanco during the Spanish Civil War. Davidow returned to the United States in December 1938 and settled in California, where she resumed her work as a devoted nurse and activist. A veteran of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, she was made an honorary Spanish citizen in 1996.

Davidow married Fred Keller (1913-1993) on September 4, 1940; the couple had one child, filmmaker Joan Keller Selznick, and later divorced. Davidow died on June 15, 1999 in San Francsico, CA.

Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives (ALBA). “Fred Paul Keller was born #otd in NYC in 1913.” Instagram, June 4, 2026. https://www.instagram.com/p/DZKqmZPljzA/.

“Obituaries: Ruth Davidow; Documentary Filmmaker.” Los Angeles Times, July 17, 1999. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-jul-17-mn-56817-story.html.

The Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives. “Davidow, Ruth Rebecca: Biography.” Accessed October 12, 2026. https://alba-valb.org/volunteers/ruth-rebecca-davidow/.