Background
Bellush was born in the Bronx, New York City on November 15, 1917.
Bellush was born in the Bronx, New York City on November 15, 1917.
He graduated from City College of New York in 1941. He completed a master"s degree with a thesis on Eugene V. Debs, and two days after submission in November 1942 he was inducted into the United States Army.
He taught at the City College of New New York He entered Columbia University in 1941 for graduate training in history. During the war he served with the 616th Ordnance Ammunition Company, and as part of the 5th Engineer Special Brigade he landed on Omaha Beach on Doctorate-Day, June 6, 1944.
Returning to the United States and demobilized after the war, he attended Columbia University"s doctoral program in history and received his Doctor of Philosophy in 1951 under the direction of Allan Nevins.
He subsequently taught at his alma mater, the City College of New York, for the remainder of his academic career. Bellush"s work is remembered through several memorial awards.
The City College of New York History Department awards undergraduates the Bellush Service Award to a student for social service as well as scholarship. In commemoration of Bellush"s influence on the field of labor history, the New York Labor History Association established the Bernard Bellush Prize in his honor to be given for a student research paper in the field of labor and work history.