Clara Barton's (1821-1912) commitment to providing relief to those most in need put her on the frontlines ready to risk her life for those suffering. Serving those in drove Clara, so much so that she founded one of the most historic humanitarian aid organizations: The American Red Cross.
Happy Women's History Month! We're highlighting leaders who took charge and made lasting impacts on their industries.
This Women’s History Month, Encyclopedia Womannica is brought to you by Mercedes-Benz. Mercedes-Benz celebrates all women driving change and is indebted to those trailblazing women who punctuate the brand’s history like Bertha Benz and Ewy Rosquist. These women defied the odds to change the auto industry forever and Mercedes-Benz applauds the tenacity and courage it takes to pave the road ahead. Listen along this month as we share the stories of more inspiring women in charge and at the top of their fields — powered by Mercedes-Benz.
Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know -- but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Leading Ladies, Activists, STEMinists, Local Legends, and many more. Encyclopedia Womannica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures.
Encyclopedia Womannica was created by Liz Kaplan and Jenny Kaplan, executive produced by Jenny Kaplan, and produced by Liz Smith, Grace Lynch, Maddy Foley, and Brittany Martinez. Special thanks to Shira Atkins, Edie Allard, and Carmen Borca-Carrillo, Taylor Williamson, and Ale Tejeda.
We are offering free ad space on Wonder Media Network shows to organizations working towards social justice. For more information, please email Jenny at jenny@wondermedianetwork.com.
Follow Wonder Media Network:
This Women’s History Month, Encyclopedia Womannica is brought to you by Mercedes-Benz. Mercedes-Benz celebrates all women driving change and is indebted to those trailblazing women who punctuate the brand’s history like Bertha Benz and Ewy Rosquist. These women defied the odds to change the auto industry forever and Mercedes-Benz applauds the tenacity and courage it takes to pave the road ahead. Listen along this month as we share the stories of more inspiring women in charge and at the top of their fields — powered by Mercedes-Benz.
Hello, from Wonder Media Network, I’m Jenny Kaplan and this is Encyclopedia Womannica.
For those of you tuning in for the first time, welcome! Here’s the deal: Every weekday, we’re highlighting the stories of women you may not know about, but definitely should. We’re talking about women from around the world and throughout history. Each month is themed. This month is all about women in the driver’s seat, leaders who took charge and made lasting impacts on their industries.
Our first woman in the driver’s seat redefined volunteerism. Her commitment to providing relief to those most in need put her on the frontlines ready to risk her life for those suffering. Serving those in need fed her soul; so much so that she founded one of the most historic humanitarian aid organizations. Let’s talk about Clara Barton!
Clarissa “Clara” Harlowe Barton was born on December 25, 1821, in Oxford Massachusetts. At the age of 3, her parents, Stephen and Sarah, recognized their daughter’s ease with words and sent her to school with her older brother. She enjoyed learning and excelled in reading and writing.
When Clara was 11, her older brother David fell from the rafter of a barn and suffered severe injuries. Clara took it upon herself to nurse him back to health. Throughout the next two years, she learned how to safely dole out his medicine and even placed leeches on him to improve blood circulation and prevent clotting. This experience, as well as her father’s former stint as a soldier, would later inform her life’s work.
In 1839, Clara became a teacher, one of the few careers available to women at the time. She loved educating and was motivated by her ability to assist and impart knowledge. She taught for 12 years at schools in Canada, Georgia, and New Jersey. In 1852, Clara worked with the city of Bordentown, New Jersey to open the first free public school there. With the help of one other woman, Clara ran a school that taught more than 600 children.
Unfortunately, the success of the school led the city officials to replace Clara as principal with a man whom they paid double her salary. Refusing to be paid less than a man, Clara left the school and moved to Washington, DC to work as a recording clerk in the U.S. Patent Office. Clara was one of the first women to work in the federal government and receive equal compensation as her male counterparts.
When Secretary of Interior, Robert McClelland was appointed in 1853, Clara was demoted to a copyist only making 10 cents per every 100 words. Then in 1857, the newly elected president, James Buchanan fired Clara. She spent a few difficult years at home in Oxford before returning to the Patent Office in 1861 when Abraham Lincoln took office. She was happy to be back at work as staying home and sitting idly by was not her strong suit.
But Clara really found her true calling with the start of the U.S. Civil War. Troops from 6th Massachusetts infantry flooded into DC after being attacked by a mob of Confederate sympathizers on a train from Baltimore. Clara greeted these soldiers upon their arrival and immediately began coordinating plans for treatment and shelter. As she made her rounds among the suffering and injured, she realized these were men that she had grown up with, attended school with, and taught alongside. Clara used all her resources and connections in DC, Massachusetts, and New Jersey to collect supplies, including food and medical provisions, for the troops.
Throughout the Civil War, Clara provided tangible and personal support to thousands of troops. She collected and delivered supplies to the men, while also taking time to boost morale by reading to them and listening to their personal stories. Her efforts reached the battles of Fairfax Station, Chantilly, Harpers Ferry, South Mountain, Fredericksburg, Charleston, Petersburg, and Cold Harbor. During the battle of Cedar Mountain, Clara arrived at the field hospital in the middle of the night with a wagon full of supplies to provide some relief to the struggling doctor on site. He deemed her the “Angel of the Battlefield”. Despite having no formal training, General Benjamin Butler named Clara the head nurse of one of his units in 1864.
At the end of the war in 1865, Clara received permission from President Lincoln to establish the Office of Correspondence with Friends of the Missing Men of the United States Army. This operation was designed to locate or identify missing or killed soldiers for inquiring relatives. Clara assembled a small team to sift through more than 63,000 letters regarding missing family members. With her team, Clara located over 22,000 men over four years. Thirteen-thousand of those men were in Andersonville Prison in Georgia. Clara assisted in setting up a national cemetery for those who died there.
As a result of her consistent involvement in these battles, Clara was prone to bouts of extreme exhaustion and depression. In 1869, at the recommendation of her doctors, she traveled to Europe with the intent of getting some rest. Instead, she discovered the International Red Cross based in Geneva, Switzerland. She was inspired by its humanitarian work and played a significant role in the U.S. joining the International Red Cross in 1882.
If there was a war going on, Clara was going to be there to lend her services. While in Europe, she offered her nursing skills in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. She distributed relief supplies throughout France, set up military hospitals, and opened workrooms for the poverty-stricken citizens of Strasbourg. She was one of the few civilians to receive the German Iron Cross military decoration.
Upon her return to the U.S., Clara devoted her time and energy to the creation of the American Red Cross society. She garnered support through writing pamphlets, lecturing, and advocating for its inception with sitting Presidents. The American Association of the Red Cross was officially formed with Clara as its president on May 21, 1881.
The American Red Cross was dedicated to giving relief to armed forces and serving as a conduit between American soldiers and their families. Although not included in efforts of the International Red Cross, Clara made relief from national and international natural disasters a priority. In the first 20 years after its founding, a majority of its resources were directed towards disaster relief.
Clara was a skilled and persuasive public speaker who used that to her advantage to rally volunteers whenever possible. In times of crisis, her charisma and passion for her work mobilized the masses. In 1884, at the hands of Clara’s advocacy, the International Red Cross passed the “American Amendment” which expanded its work to provide relief to victims of natural disasters.
In that same year, Clara and Red Cross volunteers traveled to Pennsylvania to support survivors of a dam break that resulted in over 2000 deaths. In 1892, she shipped 500 railroad cars of cornmeal and flour to Russia during a famine. In 1893, the American Red Cross rehabilitated the African American community on the Sea Islands of South Carolina and their agricultural economy after they were struck by a hurricane. In 1896, Clara was the only woman the Turkish government allowed to intervene during their conflict with Armenia.
Clara served as president of the American Red Cross for 23 years before being forced to resign in 1904. She founded the National First Aid Association of America a year later to teach the public how to provide basic first aid in personal and local emergencies. The Association was later absorbed by the American Red Cross.
Clara died of pneumonia on April 12, 1912, at the age of 90.
She was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 1973, and in 1975 her Maryland home became the first National Historic Site dedicated to the achievements of a woman.
All month, we’re talking about women in the driver’s seat.
For more on why we’re doing what we’re doing, check out our newsletter Womannica Weekly.
Follow us on facebook and instagram @encyclopediawomannica.
Special thanks to Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and co-creator.
Talk to you tomorrow!