Gorsky memo

The Gorsky memo is an internal KI document, dated December 1948, written by Anatoly Gorsky, chief of Soviet intelligence in the United States during World War II. It lists 43 Soviet sources and intelligence officers likely to have been identified to U.S. authorities following the defections of Whittaker Chambers, Hede Massing, Elizabeth Bentley, Louis Budenz and Alexander Koral. It was discovered in the KGB files by former KGB agent Alexander Vassiliev during the brief opening after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1993-96, when he was permitted to make notes of some KGB archives. The contents became public as part of Vassiliev v Frank Cass & Co Ltd., a 2003 libel case in the United Kingdom, identified as "transcript of KGB file 43173 vol.2 (v) pp. 49-55, attached to Alexander Vassiliev to Hartwig, 1 February 2002, in Alexander Vassiliev and Frank Cass & Co Ltd, High Court of Justice Queen's Bench Division Claim No. HQ1X03222, Amended Particulars of Claim." Vassiliev donated his original notes the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, which posted them online in 2009. The translation is by Philip Redko, with annotations by Vassiliev and Library of Congress Cold War historian John Earl Haynes.

Failures in the USA (1938-48)

“Karl’s” group

1. Karl – Whittaker Chambers, former editor in chief of “Time” magazine. Traitor.
2. Jerome – Barna Bukov (Altman), our former cadre employee. Currently in the USSR.
3. Leonard – Alger Hiss, former employee of the State Dept.
4. Junior – Donald Hiss, former employee of the Dept. of the Interior
5. 104th – Henry A. Wadleigh – former employee of the State Dept.
6. 118th – F.V. Reno – former employee of the Aberdeen Proving Ground
7. 105th – Henry Collins, former employee of Dept. of Agriculture, at pres., director of the American-Russian Institute in NY
8. 114th – William W. Pigman, former employee of the Bureau of Standards
9. “Storm” – Joseph Peters (a.k.a. Isadore Boorstein), former member of the Central Committee of the CP USA
10. “Vig” – Lee Pressman, former legal adviser of the Congress of Industrial Organizations
11. 116th – Harry Azizov, former employee of a steel-smelting company in Chicago
12. 101st – Peter MacLean, journalist and photoreporter, not used since '37
13. 103rd – David Carpenter, newspaper employee
14. 107th – Felix Inslerman, place of employment unknown
15. 113th – Harry Rosenthal, employee of an insurance company in Philadelphia
16. 115th – Lester Hutm, former employee of the Frankford Arsenal
17. “Ernst” – Noel Field, former employee of the State Dept.
18. “Rupert” – V.V. Sveshnikov, former employee of the War Dept.
19. “Richard” – Harry White, former assistant to Sec. of the Treasury Morgenthau, died in ‘48
20. “Aileron” – G. Silverman, former chief of the Planning and Statistics Division of the AAF
21. “Ruble” – Harold Glasser, former director of the Monetary Division of the Dept. of the Treasury

“Redhead’s” group

1. “Redhead” – Hedwiga Gumpertz, “Vatsek’s” wife. Sent to the USA in ’38 to carry out our assignments. A traitor since ’48.
2. “Vatsek” – Paul Massing, a scientist at the “Institute for Social Research” at Columbia University. Traitor.
3. “Oscar” – Oscar Bernstein, a lawyer, used for setting up covers for our workers in the USA.
4. “Prince” – Laurence Duggan (a.k.a. 19) former employee of the State Dept. Suicide.
5. “Ruff” – Franz Neumann, former consultant for the Research and Analysis Branch of the OSS.
6. “Vardo” – E.Y. Zarubina, our former cadre employee. Currently in the USSR.

“Buben’s” group

1. “Buben” – Louis Budenz, former member of the Central Committee of the CP USA, former editor of the “Daily Worker,” at pres., he is a professor at Fordham Catholic University.
2. “Bob” – Robert Menaker, traveling salesman for various trade firms
3. “Liberal” – Frank Palmer. Place of employment unknown. Former member of the CP USA, broke with the Comparty in ’37. “Buben” was recruited with his help.
4. “Chap” – Franklin Zalmond, no specific occupation. “Rita’s” husband. Used as a courier.
5. “Rita” – (a.k.a. “Satyr”). Sylvia Caldwell, tech. secretary for a Trotskyite group in NY
6. “Harry” – Rabinovich, our former cadre employee. Currently in the USSR.

“Sound” and “Myrna’s” group

1. “Sound” – Jacob Golos (Raisin), our former illegal employee in the USA. Died in ’43.
2. “Myrna” – Elizabeth Bentley, former vice president of the “United States Service and Shipping Corporation.” A traitor since ’45.
3. “Tan” – Harry Magdoff, former official at the Dept. of Commerce
4. “Ted” – Edward Fitzgerald, former official at the Dept. of Commerce
5. “Mole” – Charles Kramer, former adviser to Senator Pepper.
6. “Izra” – Donald Wheeler, former OSS official
7. “Sid” – Allan Rosenberg, former Foreign Economic Administration official
8. “Dan” – Stanley Graze, State Dept. intelligence employee
9. “Arena” – Gerald Graze, “Dan’s” brother, former employee of the War Dept.
10. “Boy” – Charles Flato, former employee of the Foreign Economic Administration
11. “Raid” – Victor Perlo, former War Production Board official
12. “Robert” – Gregory Silvermaster, former official of the Reconstruction Financial Corporation at the Dept. of Commerce
13. “Vim” (a.k.a. “Page”) – Lauchlin Currie, former aide to President Roosevelt
14. “Peak” – Frank Coe, former chief of the Monetary Section of the Dept. of the Treasury
15. “Acorn” – Bela Gold, former Dept. of Commerce official
16. “Zhenya” – Sonia Gold, former secretary to the chief of the Monetary Research Division of the Dept. of the Treasury
17. “Tino” – Irving Kaplan, former employee of the Foreign Economic Administration
18. “Sachs” – Solomon Adler, former employee of the U.S. Dept. of the Treasury
19. “Pilot” – Ludwig Ullman, former employee of the U.S. Dept. of War
20. “Bak” – David Weintraub, former employee of the UNRRA
21. “X” – Joseph Katz, our old agent/group handler, co-owner of a cover that we set up — a glovemaking factory. Currently in Italy, forming a company on our instructions to cover the illegal courier line between Europe and the USA.
22. “Adam” – Eva Getzov, employee of the “Jewish Welfare Board”
23. “Hare” – Maurice Halperin, former OSS employee
24. “Koch” – Duncan Lee, former OSS employee
25. “Muse” – Helen Tenney, former OSS employee
26. “Flora” – Ruth Rivkin, f. UNRRA employee
27. “Mon” – Bernard Redmont, f. employee of the “Rockefeller Committee”
28. “Mirage” – Robert Miller, f. State Dept. official
29. “Dir” – Mary Price, f. secretary to American journalist Lippmann
30. “Gor” – Joseph Gregg, f. “Rockefeller Committee” official
31. “Fedya” – William Remington, f. War Production Board official
32. “Cautious” – Julius Joseph, f. OSS employee
33. “Echo” – S. Schuster, staff member of the Central Committee of the CP USA
34. “Irma” – Ray Elson, f. vice president of the “United States Service and Shipping Corporation”
35. “Grin” – John Spivak, journalist, used on the Trotskyites until ’41
36. “Vadim” – A.V. Gorsky, f. station chief of the MGB USSR in Washington, currently in the USSR.
37. “Lucy” – Pravdina, f. Amtorg employee, wife of the former station chief in NY, “Sergey.” Currently in the USSR.
38. “Sergey” – V. Pravdin, f. station chief of the MGB USSR in NY. Currently in the USSR.
39. “Stock” – our cadre employee M. Shalyapin. Currently in the USSR.
40. “Gennady” – G.B. Ovakimyan, f. station chief of the MGB USSR in NY. Currently in the USSR.
41. “Albert” – A.I. Akhmerov, f. illegal station chief of the MGB in NY. Currently in the USSR.
42. “Elsa” – Akhmerova, Albert’s wife, American, a Soviet citizen. Currently in the USSR.
43. “Mushroom” – Willard Park, f. employee of the “Rockefeller Committee”
44. “Charlie” – Cedric Belfrage, f. employee of the English intelligence station in NY. At pres., he is a

journalist.

“Berg” and “Art’s” group

1. “Berg” – Alexander Koral, f. engineer of the municipality of NY
2. “Art” – Helen Koral, “Berg’s” wife. Housewife.
3. “San” – Richard Koral, son. Student.
4. “Long” –Norman Hait, engineer for the “Sperry Gyroscope Company” in New Jersey.
5. “Smart” – Elliot Goldberg, engineer for an oil equipment manufacturing company in NY.
6. “Huron” – Byron T. Darling, engineer for the “Rubber” Company
7. “Teacher” – Melamed, teacher at a music school in NY
8. “Cora” – Emma Phillips, housewife
9. “Lok” – Sylvia Koral, former employee of the Code Section of the Office of War Information.
10. “Siskin” – Eduardo Pequeño, businessman in Caracas (Venezuela)
11. “Express Messenger” – Richard Setaro, journalist/writer, f. employee of the “Columbia Broadcasting System.” Currently in Buenos Aires.
12. “Artem” – A. Slavyagin, our cadre employee. Currently in the USSR.
13. “Twain” – S.M. Semenov, station chief of KI tech. intelligence in Paris. At pres.- on leave in Moscow.
14. “Aleksey”– A.A. Yatskov, our cadre employee, currently in the USSR.
15. “Julia” – O.V. Shimmel, our cadre employee, currently in the USSR.
16. “Shah” – K.A. Chugunov, our cadre employee, currently in the USSR.

Signature and Date

A. Gorsky (Dec. ’48)

Sources

• Alexander Vassiliev, Black Notebook (The Vassiliev Notebooks (Archive), Cold War International History Project, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars)

• Original, pp. 39-40
• Transcribed, pp. 77-79
• Translated pp. 77-79

• See also:

• Gorsky Symposium, History of American Communism (H-HOAC) Discussion Network, March 14–20, 2005

• Ronald Bachman and Harold Leich (tr.), with John Earl Haynes, Alexander Vassiliev's Notes on Anatoly Gorsky's December 1948 Memo on Compromised American Sources and Networks, March 14, 2005
• Svetlana Chervonnaya, Gorsky memo, March 15, 2005

• The Alger Hiss Story: Search for the Truth

• Scans of Vassiliev's notes on "Gorsky's List",
• "Gorsky's List" Transliterated, March–April 2005
• "Gorsky's List", April 2005

• David Lowenthal with Svetlana A. Chervonnaya, Gorsky Report, History News Network (George Mason University), May 2, 2005