Eugene Victor Debs Eugene Victor Debs was the most well known as a leader of the American Socialist Party. Eugene Debs had no executive positions but he was most popular leader of the socialist movements in American history. He was a revolutionary and he wanted to establish a socialism in America. Eugene V. Debs was born on fifth of the November, 1855. His father Jean Daniel Debs small storekeeper was originally from the Colmar, Alsace and emigrated with his wife Marguerite Marie Debs to Terre Haute, Indiana. Eugene Victor was named for two writers Eugene Sue and Victor Hugo. Eugene Debs was five years old when the Ci