Clara Barton National Historic Site ⓘ

September 17, 1862 Battle of Antietam, Maryland - Miss Barton and her wagons arrived on the field prior to the battle. She provided surgeons with desperately needed medical supplies. She later wrote an account of her experience, Notes on Antietam. www.nps.gov/clba/historyculture/antietam.htm

February 21, 1866 Clara Barton testifies during the 39th Congress, First Session, concerning her experiences and observations while working in Andersonville, Georgia. Her testimony is recorded in the official record for the Reports of the Committees of the House of Representatives. www.nps.gov/clba/historyculture/cbcongress.htm

March 10, 1866 The United States Congress appropriates $15,000 to reimburse Miss Barton for expenses associated with her search for missing soldiers. www.nps.gov/clba/historyculture/66res.htm

1878 Clara Barton writes and distributes a small pamphlet, The Red Cross of the Geneva Convention: What It Is. www.nps.gov/clba/historyculture/rcwhat.htm

1892 Miss Barton composes and delivers her poem, The Women Who Went to the Field. www.nps.gov/clba/historyculture/fieldpoem.htm

1900 September 8, 1900 a hurricane devastated Galveston Texas. Miss Barton directs her last major field relief work in the wake of a storm which left 6,000 dead. In two months, the operation distributes $120,000 worth of money and supplies and one and a half million strawberry plants. www.nps.gov/clba/historyculture/strawberry.htm

1902 Clara Barton heads the U. S. delegation to the Seventh International Conference of the Red Cross held in St. Petersburg, Russia. She publishes her official report. www.nps.gov/clba/historyculture/russia.htm

Excerpted and transcribed from an essay entitled, "Clara Barton and the International Red Cross Association", Clara Barton papers, Library of Congress, reel # 109, beginning at frame # 409.

On the way to Antietam my wagons were at the rear of the army; the road was filled for ten miles with a solid moving mass. It was impossible to get by until they stopped for the night. You understand that if one wagon tries to pass another at such a time, it simply is pushed into the ditch. But at dusk the train drew to one side of the road and halted for the night. At midnight I directed my drivers to harness quietly and drive on past them, if possible without creating suspicion. We made the entire ten miles before daybreak and took our place in the rear of the headquarters wagon, and moved on next day unquestioned - passing the field of South Mountain, the guns of which had rung in our ear all the day before. On the evening of the 16th of September we reached the valley of Antietam.

It was a miserable night. There was a sense of impending doom. We knew, every one knew, that two great armies of 80,000 men were lying there face to face, only waiting for dawn to begin the battle. It gave a terrible sense of oppression. Then the came was in a hollow which was filled with men and beasts; it was all used and made fetid by this press of human beings and animals. Before dawn I went up on the hill, and there I could sweep the country with my glass, see the countless watchfires of both armies, lying face to face, ready to spring, yet not a man to be seen. Before I left the hill, the dawn came, and the firing began away on the right. There was to be the beginning of the battle, and there I should be needed first. I hastened down; my men were all ready with their wagons, and ordered them to drive to the right, eight miles. We galloped the whole distance, and drew up behind the line of artillery which was covering our infantry and slanted away to the left. There was a big cornfield, and we drove in, and up towards an old barn which was standing in the midst. My men unharnessed the mules and tied them to the wheels and we were ready for work. They were always my helpers. We knew the wounded were in there somewhere, the men went in search of them. The corn was immensely tall, it entirely hid the house from us. Presently, the men came back saying, "yes, they are over there, the tables and surgeons" and I followed them through the corn and came upon the house. It had a high, broad verandah, and on this every kind of thing that pretended to be a table was standing, and on the tables were the poor men, and beside them the surgeons. They were the same with whom I had just been at the second Bull Run.

"Look here," he said, "see what we need, and how much we need it, we have no more chloroform, no more bandages nor lint, no more liquor, nothing. See here" and he showed me some poor fellows whose raw new wounds were actually dressed with those rough corn leaves.

And this was the beginning of the battle. You must know that we had passed the supplies the night before; they could not come up until the fate of the day was decided. Those were their orders; they must not risk falling into the hands of the enemy. That was the point I always tried to make, to bridge that chasm, and succor the wounded until the medical aid and supplies should come up. I could run the risk; it made no difference to anyone if I were shot or taken prisoner and I tried to fill that gap. My men unloaded the wagons, and brought up everything the good women of the country had provided; the wounded kept pouring in, and we kept working over them. After a time my stores for feeding the men began to give out; not the other things, oh no there were plenty of those; but of food I had naturally not enough for thousands, and by afternoon the line of wounded stretched out for five miles.

A curious thing happened there. I had twelve cases of wine, the first nine opened were packed in sawdust; but the last three, when we were nearly in despair of food, were packed in corn meal. My men were almost superstitious over that; they had the idea it must have changed some way from sawdust to meal. It was a lucky sign too, for when we went into the house to reconnoitre for food; down in the cellar we found three barrels of Indian meal and a bag of salt; there were three or four great kettles in and about the house, and we made gruel, gruel, gruel and my men carried it up and down the...

Towards sunset the third charge was made on the line of artillery covering our infantry. Of course, all day the cannonading had been close upon us; but the house and corn field were under the lee of a hill and the enemy's guns were mostly trained on that hill so that the firing went over us. The upper stories of the house were riddled to be sure and several shells fell in among us and at the edge of the verandah, yet none explored to do harm, fortunately.

This third charge was the most terrific artillery duel I ever heard, and I have had some experience. The tables jarred and rolled until we could hardly keep the men on them, and the roar was overwhelming. After a while I looked around, and to my surprise saw all the surgeons gone, except one man, the chief, who was standing by a table where a man lay, but there was no one to help him with the operation.

"What has become of your assistants?" said I going up to him. "Don't blame them, madam" said he. "They have been here through ghastly scenes since daylight and then cannonading is nerve-breaking. Don't blame them that they have retired, and some have gone down the line to the wounded."

"Very well" said I, "and how about this man? Do you want to go on with the operation? Can I assist you?"

"Oh, yes" said I, and I took the chloroform. He gave me directions and we tended the man through the whole of the frightful firing.

With night the firing ceased, and I went to see about lighting up the barn. I had brought plenty of lanterns with me this time... When I came back from the barn I went into the house where I saw a solitary light burning. The surgeon was sitting in one of those dark, dank rooms with two inches of a candle by him, and his head on his hand, the picture of despair.

"Tired" he exclaimed, lifting his head with a wrathful gleam in his eyes, "yes, I am tired of this human incompetence, this neglect and folly which leaves me alone with all these soldiers on my hands, five hundred of whom will die before daybreak unless they have attention, and I with no light by that two inches of candle," and he let his head fall on his hand again.

"Come, doctor", said I gently, for from my heart I pitied him, "I want to show you something." I took him to the door, and told him to look towards the barn; it was like a garden illumination of Chinese lanterns.

"I brought them. The men will be here in a few moments to light the house. You will have plenty of light and plenty of assistance. Don't despair in your good work doctor". He didn't say a word, but he looked at me, and afterward set his own particular guard to keep close by me all the time, to follow me like my shadow ... so that I should always have some one at my elbow to help me. The doctor and I have been good friends ever since. We worked through that long bloody night together, and the next morning the supplies came up, my things were all gone, my strength was all gone, they made up a bed for me of an old coverlet on the floor of a wagon; and I lay down on it, and was jogged back to Washington, eighty miles. When I reached there, and looked in the mirror, my face was still the color of gunpowder, a deep blue. Oh yes I went to the front!

The following was transcribed from The Reports of the Committees of the House of Representatives, 39th Congress, First Session, 1865-1866 :

Answer. Nowhere else in that business. That business has led to other matters which have called me away.

Answer. I commenced to search in the spring of 1865. In the latter part of June, 1865, I formed the acquaintance of a young man who had been a prisoner at Andersonville, and who had brought away the death record of that prison. He requested an interview, and, on giving it, I learned from him how the dead were buried in Andersonville, and I became satisfied that it was possible to identify them. I carried the question before General Hoffman, who, with the assistance, I think, of the Assistant Secretary of War, laid before the Secretary, Mr. Stanton, who sent for me to come to him the next day. I did so, and stated to him my impressions, requesting that parties be sent out to identify the graves at Andersonville, and mark to them. He declared his gratitude even at the suggestion, all having thought it impossible; stated that an expedition should be started immediately, and that he would select some officer for the purpose, and he invited me to accompany it. We were ready in a week, and on the 8th of July we left Washington. I requested that the young man should also go with the party to identify the graves. We reached Andersonville, Georgia, on the 25th of July, and very soon the colored people there commenced to gather around me.

Answer. I discovered that they were in a state of ignorance, generally, at that time of their own condition as freedmen. Some of them knew it. They all, of course, mistrusted it. They had all heard it from one another. A few knew it from their masters, and only a few ; and what they did hear they had very little confidence to believe. Hearing that a party of Yankees, and especially a Yankee lady, was there, and they commenced to gather around me for the facts, asking me their little questions in their own way, which was to the effect, if they were free, and if Abraham Lincoln was really dead. They had been told that he was dead ; that he had been killed ; but at the same time they had been informed that, now that he was dead, they were no longer free, but would be all slaves again ; and with that had come the suspicion, on their part, that he was not dead, but that it was a hoax to hold them in slavery. They would travel twenty miles in the night, after their day's work was done, and I would find them standing in front of my tent in the morning to hear me say whether it was true that Abraham Lincoln was dead, and that they were free. I told them Abraham Lincoln was dead ; that I saw him dead ; that I was near him when he died ; and that they were free as I was. The next question was, what they should do. There were questions between the negro and his master in regard to labor and in regard to pay. I saw or discovered that the masters were inclined to get their labor without pay. Of course I had no way of proving that, but I inferred it. They were at work. Most of them offered to work until Christmas time, and to take a part of the profits. General Saxton, I should think, made some regulation specifying just what portion of each crop the negroes should have. They were all very anxious to hear the rules read. The commandant of each post had issued certain rules and regulations. These they had never heard read, and they came to me to know what the paper said. The rules were published daily in the Macon papers. They said they had been told that General Wilson's orders said that they should work six days in the week hard, and half a day on Sunday. They wanted to know if it was so. My course with them was to read General Wilson's paper, as they called it. I have read it through sometimes forty times a day. They stood around my tent in great numbers on a Sunday ; more than a hundred, men, women, and children, and every day more or less. Perhaps there were very few hours that I was not engaged in advising them, and attempting to decide some causes for them.

Answer. Oh, no, sir ; General Wilson's order was protective of them in its character. The order was good, and the best of it was that they could understand it. When it was read to them they never failed to comprehend the most important parts of it. It was well drawn. I found that, if it had been read to them properly by their owners or masters, they would have understood it ; for, as I read along to them, I would ask if they understood that ; "Oh, yes," they would say, "we understand that." Then I would read another passage, and ask them if they understood that ; "Oh, yes." "What do you understand by it?" They would put it in their own terms, and I saw that they understood it.

Question. Did they pretend to you that their old masters had given that peculiar version of General Wilson's order-that they should work six days in the week hard and half a day a Sunday?

Answer. Yes, sir ; that was the difficulty. She was one who, from her face, would never have rebelled against labor that she could have done ; of that I am satisfied.

Answer. I referred them to Colonel Griffin, then in charge at Andersonville. The colonel put Cater to work at his trade as a blacksmith, and gave them a house to live in. I would have taken them away with me if I could ; but it was impossible, and I left them there working for Colonel Griffin, he at his trade and she as a waiting girl.

Question. From your intercourse with the people there did you learn that treatment similar to that was of frequent occurrence among the slaveholders?

Answer. I should judge that it was not an uncommon thing. That was all that I observed myself. How far they would be inclined to exaggerate I cannot say. They might magnify their wrongs ; but they told me a great deal of them. I believed what I saw. I knew what I saw.

Answer. I left on the 25th of August, I think, and came back to Washington through Chattanooga and the west.

Question. What did you discover to be the feeling among the whites in Georgia, where you visited, toward the government of the United States and toward the loyal people of the United States?

Answer. I should suppose that in no instance was I able to get at their real feelings. They would be less likely to show their real feelings to me than to almost any other person. That was shortly after the arrest of Wirz, and the impression was general when I went there that I went to make observations with reference to further arrests. The women, supposing that I, a woman, had come to look after the women in particular, commenced to call upon me the first day of my arrival. I speak of the white women who had lived in the neighborhood during the time of its occupation as a prison. They appeared to associate together in threes or fours, and came to call upon me very neighborly, very bland, all taking the utmost pains to assure me that they had no part nor lot in the treatment of our prisoners, but throwing it back upon Winder, who was dead and in his grave. They all appeared willing enough to save Wirz. They, of course, would all have done better, and they did not think that Captain Wirz was bad at heart, but that he was ordered to do all those things by Winder. They wanted to screen Wirz, because if they could get the matter to stop inside of him, that was the last would be heard of it-there was no going over that ; but if it went over him, there was no knowing how far it would go. So they screened everybody but Winder, and themselves they made immaculate. They were all willing to admit the greatest atrocities had been committed on the prisoners, and that they had been shocked at the sight. They were ready to admit everything that we had ever thought of. They did not think, however, that Mr. Davis knew anything about it ; but you would have supposed, to have heard them talk, that old General Winder was answerable for every crime and inhumanity ever committed in the confederacy ; and he, fortunately, was dead, and no harm could be done to him. They centred everything there. There was every reason why none of them should tell me the truth, and there was strong personal reason why they should falsify to me, and I took it so. They were, as I saw, "making friends of the mammon of unrighteousness." I read at once what their standing was, and what their fears were. So I have no idea that I got any truthful expressions from white people there.

Question. Of course you found it difficult to discover any trace of the barbarities practiced there?

Answer. Of course there were no prisoners there then : but the appearance of the whole ground was sufficient evidence, considering the number of prisoners who had been there. All spoke of inhumanity. It was impossible that that number of men could be kept within the enclosure without the most intense suffering.

Answer. Yes, sir. It is a stockade formed of pine trees twenty feet long, and from a foot to a foot and a half through, set five or six feet in the ground, close together, and pointed at the top.

Answer. From twenty-five to twenty-seven acres, more or less. It had been much less at one time. It was originally only eleven acres. They had got some thirty thousand men within that eleven acres. But they found it impossible, as prisoners were constantly sent there, to keep them in that space, and the stockade was increased to the size that they called twenty-seven acres. I had it measured while I was there, and I made it some twenty-five or twenty-six acres.

Answer. A slow, small, sluggish stream runs through nearly the centre of it. The ground was unbroken woods when they commenced to enclose it. Two round hills are close together, and between them runs a little brook formed of springs, for the whole land there is springy, and wherever two hills meet anywhere in that country a brook runs between them. A little stream like that ran between these two hills. As I saw it in the summer, one could have almost walked through it with common high shoes without wetting the feet. Still with a rain it rose very rapidly. This stream ran through from west to east, and at the head of it, just outside the stockade, they placed the cook-house and bake-house for the prisoners, for the guards, and for all. Every impurity from both these houses that was thrown out washed directly into the stream and went immediately into the stockade, and that was all the water the prisoners had to use. I saw grease and refuse matter still adhering to the roots of the coarse grass which grew upon the banks, which had run down and lodged there at the time. This was some months after, and I can judge from that what it must have been.

Question. Was the ground along the immediate banks of that stream muddy and loose, or hard?

Answer. It is the red clay which is so changeable in its nature. It was very hard in dry weather, almost as a rock, but still the least rain softened it ; it became soft, slippery, deep, and washed and gullied to almost any depth.

Question. What contrivances had there been for the protection of the prisoners from the rain, the sun, and the storms?

Answer. There were a few sheds, with simply a covering over the tops, but no sides, on the top of either hill ; but I have been told by prisoners that at first there were none of them, and that the last five sheds (five on one end and five on the other) were only erected a few weeks before the stockade was abandoned. I may almost say that there was no protection. Some of the men had blankets and some of them had the little shelter tent. They put these together as well as they could and gathered under them ; there was no other protection.

Question. Were there no other means of procuring water for the prisoners except from those springs?

Answer. Yes, sir ; Sweet Water creek, which is fifteen feet wide and three feet deep, runs within pistol shot of what was the old hospital.

Answer. The old hospital was just outside of the enclosure, at the south end of the stockade.

Question. Did you understand whether the prisoners were or were not allowed to procure fresh water from Sweet Water creek?

Question. Why did not their keepers allow them to procure fresh water on Sweet Water creek?

Answer. That is a matter about which I am not informed. I can only speak of the probabilities. It is probable that the old hospital may have had such an arrangement ; but the prisoners within the stockade, I should think, could not have.

Question. Were the prisoners in any way, either by themselves or keepers, supplied with water from Sweet Water creek, or from any other source?

Answer. That is a question that I cannot answer, and must not attempt ; but I can send you to a person who does know, who was a prisoner all the time, and who can answer the question.

Answer. There was one grave marked, one spot of earth against which there was a board which showed that a man was buried there. That was all that I saw.

Answer. They were buried from three to four hundred yards from the stockade, in a piece of ground which had formerly been an old church-yard in olden times ; that is the present cemetery.

Answer. We could not see, as no trench was opened while we were there ; but I suppose they were sufficiently deep for the comfort and safety of the persons who were about there, for there were three thousand rebel guards. I presume the bodies were buried sufficiently deep for practical purposes.

Question. Can you state, from credible information, what was probably the number of prisoners who died there and were buried?

Answer. There are 12,920, as near as I can estimate it, whose graves were marked in some way, and we know of no others ; we have no trace of any more ; they lack a few of 13,000, and we have no knowledge of there being any more there.

Question. Was the monster Winder there during the whole time until the stockade was taken possession of by the Union troops?

Answer. I cannot say at what time he left ; they pointed out quarters to me which they said had been his residence.

Answer. Only such as died of small-pox. Half a mile from there they had a small-pox hospital and burying-ground.

Answer. There was a numbered board placed at the heads of the men as they lay in the trenches.

Answer. Yes, sir ; the trench was dug continuously, and as the men were carried out from the hospital a paper was pinned on the breast of each, specifying his name, company, and regiment. Space was only allowed for the body, the arms being laid over it. As the body was laid in, the paper was taken off and placed in the hands of a man whose business it was to receive it and keep it carefully, putting it in its regular order after the one that came before, never changing its position, and so on till all were laid in for the day and covered up. Then he went with the papers to the young man who kept the death register and laid them down, face downwards, in which order they were registered in the book and numbered. Then the board was numbered corresponding with those numbers, and they were placed in regular order in the cemetery.

Question. So that the identification would depend upon the accuracy of the correspondence between the number given to the clerk and the number on the board at the head of the dead body?

Answer. Oh, yes, sir ; there would be liabilities to mistakes. Still the matter was in the hands of our own men. The dead were all buried by our own men, and they have assured me that they always took the utmost pains to be correct. It was the young man who kept the register from whom I gathered this information. He assured me that he believed the utmost pains were always taken, and that, so far as he was concerned, he knew that he had been free from mistakes. He had been faithful, and he believed that the others had been so, for it had always in their minds to keep the thing correct. The dead had been their own comrades.

Question. So far you have been able to collect information, and so far as you believe, what is the state of feeling on the part of secessionists in Georgia towards the government of the United States.

Questions. Would they, or would they not, if they had the power, reduce them again to slavery?

Answer. That I cannot say ; but I should not want to take the chances of being a slave there, were it in their power.

Question. How did you find the feeling of the blacks towards the government of the United States, and towards the loyal people?

Answer. The very best of feeling-friendly, full of confidence in the United States government, loving the northern people.

Question. Did you meet with any blacks during your journey who were friendly to the rebel cause?

Answer. I cannot say that I did meet one ; I heard no black person express himself or herself in that way.

Question. Did they seem to understand what was the object of the war, or what was to be its final result as to them?

Answer. They began to comprehend it. I think they understood it. I think, so far as their intelligence will permit, they understand it as clearly to-day as we do ; they now grasp it distinctly.

Question. Have you any reason to suppose that there were secret associations among the negroes during the war, or before the war, by which intelligence was communicated from one locality to another?

Answer. If I may believe what they say, it was so ; I have been repeatedly told so. They have, in their crude way, attempted to describe to me their evening meetings, as they stole away from one plantation to another, previous to the war and during the war.

Question. You have had a good deal of intercourse with the blacks ; what is your idea about their capacity to acquire knowledge? Do they possess a capacity equal to that of the whites, generally speaking?

Answer. In their present condition they can hardly be compared with the whites ; still, to a certain extent they learn as easily, as readily. I do not think that their reasoning powers have been educated up to a standard that enables them to grasp subjects which whites can grasp, but their imitation leads them to acquire many things as readily as white people do.

Question. What can you say in regard to their general truthfulness? How, in that respect, do they compare with white people in a similar condition of life, if it were possible to suppose such a similarity?

Answer. Their very condition has taught them that ; the condition of slavery teaches false hood. But there is a principal of religious character in their nature which holds them above white people of as low a grade. They are more religious, but the nature of their condition has not made them more moral.

Answer. To a certain extent I think they are ; but not more so, probably, than white people under similar circumstances - if it were possible to imagine them. But that I mean that I do not think they are untruthful because they were created negroes, but from the condition and station in which they have been placed. Naturally, I think the negro not less moral, not less religious, not less truthful than any other race, only as his condition has made him so.

The following was transcribed from The Red Cross of the Geneva Convention. What It Is written and published by Clara Barton in 1878:

Having had the honor conferred upon me of appointment by the Central Commission holding the Geneva Convention to present that treaty to this Government, and to take in charge the formation of a National organization according to the plan pursued by the committees working under the treaty, it seems to me but proper, that while I ask the Government to sign it, the people and their representatives should be made acquainted with its origin, designs, methods of work, &c. To this end I have prepared the following statement, and present it to my countrymen and women, hoping they will be led to indorse and sustain a benevolence so grand in its character, and already almost universal in its recognition and adoption by the civilized world. CLARA BARTON,

A confederation of Relief Societies in different countries, acting under the Geneva Convention, carries on its work under the sign of the Red Cross. The aim of these societies is to ameliorate the condition of wounded soldiers in the armies in campaign on land or sea, and to furnish relief in cases of great national calamity.

The societies had their rise in the conviction of certain philanthropic men, that the official sanitary service in wars is usually insufficient, and that the charity of the people, which at such times exhibits itself munificently, should be organized for the best possible utilization. An International Public Conference was called at Geneva, Switzerland, in 1863, which, though it had not an official character, brought together representatives from a number of governments. At this conference a treaty was drawn up, afterwards remodeled and improved, which twenty-five governments have signed.

The treaty provides for the neutrality of all sanitary supplies, ambulances, surgeons, nurses, attendants, and the sick or wounded men, and their safe conduct, when they bear the sign of the organization, viz: the Red Cross.

Although the convention which originated the organization was necessarily international, the Relief Societies themselves are entirely national and independent; each one governing itself and making its own laws, according to the genius of its nationality and needs.

The sign of the Red Cross was adopted because it was necessary for recognizance and safety, and for carrying out the general provisions of the treaty, that a uniform badge should be agreed upon. The Red Cross was chosen out of compliment to the Swiss Republic, where the first convention was held, and in which the Central Commission has its headquarters. The Swiss colors being a white cross on a red ground, the badge chosen was these colors reversed.

There are no "members of the Red Cross," but only members of societies whose sign it is. There is no " Order of the Red Cross ." The Relief Societies use, each according to its convenience, whatever methods seem best suited to prepare in times of peace for the necessities of sanitary service in times of war. They gather and store gifts of money and supplies; arrange hospitals, ambulances, methods of transportation of wounded men, bureaus of information, correspondence, &c. All that the most ingenious philanthropy could devise and execute, has been attempted in this direction.

In the Franco-Prussian war this was abundantly tested. That Prussia acknowledged its beneficence, is proven by the fact that the Emperor affixed the Red Cross to the Iron Cross of Merit.

Although the societies are not international, there is a tacit compact between them, arising from their common origin, identity of aim and mutual relation to the treaty. This compact embraces four principals, viz: centralization, preparation, impartiality, and "solidarity."

1st- C ENTRALIZATION. The efficiency of relief in time of war depends on unity of direction, therefore in every country the Relief Societies have a common central head to which they send their supplies, and which communicates for them with the seat of war or with the surgical military authorities, and it is through this central commission they have governmental recognition.

2d- P REPARATION. It is understood that societies working under the Red Cross shall occupy themselves with preparatory work in times of peace. This gives them a permanence they could not otherwise have.

3d- I MPARTIALITY. The societies of belligerent nations cannot always carry aid to their wounded countrymen who are captured by the enemy; this is counterbalanced by the regulation that the aid of the Red Cross societies shall be extended alike to friend and foe.

4th-" S OLIDARITY". This provides that the societies of nations not engaged in war may afford aid to the sick and wounded of belligerent nations without affecting any principle of non-interference their governments may be pledged to. This must be done through the Central Commission, and not through either of the belligerent parties-this insures impartiality of relief.

That these principles are practical, has been thoroughly tested during the fifteen years the Red Cross has existed.

The "Convention" of Geneva does not exist as a society , but is simply a treaty under which all the relief societies of the Red Cross are enabled to carry on their work effectually. In time of war, the members and agents of the societies who go to the seat of war are obliged to have their badges vized by the Central Commission, and by one of the belligerents- this is in order to prevent fraud. Thus the societies and the treaty complement each other. The societies find and execute the relief, the treaty affords them the immunities which enable them to execute.

Articles of the Convention for the amelioration of the condition of the wounded in armies in the field. Signed at Geneva on the 22 d of August, 1864.

A RTICLE I . Ambulances and military hospitals shall be acknowledged to be neutral; and, as such, shall be protected and respected by belligerents so long as any sick or wounded may be therein. Such neutrality shall cease if the ambulances or hospitals shall be held by a military force.

A RT. II . Persons employed in hospitals and ambulances, comprising the staff for superintendence, medical service, administration, transport of wounded, as well as chaplains, shall participate in the benefit of neutrality while so employed, and so long as there remain any wounded to bring in or to succor.

A RT. III . The persons designated in the preceding article may, even after occupation by the enemy, continue to fulfill their duties in the hospital or ambulance which they serve, or may withdraw to join the corps to which they belong. Under such circumstances, when these persons shall cease from these functions, they shall be delivered by the occupying army to the outposts of the enemy. They shall have the special right of sending a representative to the headquarters of their respective armies.

A RT. IV . As the equipment of military hospitals remains subject to the laws of war, persons attached to such hospitals cannot, in withdrawing, carry away articles which are not their private property. Under the same circumstances an ambulance shall, on the contrary, retain its equipment.

A RT. V . Inhabitants of the country who may bring help to the wounded shall be respected and remain free. The generals of the belligerent powers shall make it their care to inform the inhabitants of this appeal addressed to their humanity, and of the neutrality which will be the consequence of it. Any wounded man entertained and taken care of in a house shall be considered as a protection thereto. Any inhabitant who shall have entertained wounded men in his house shall be exempted from the quartering of troops, as well as from the contributions of war which may be imposed.

A RT. VI . Wounded or sick soldiers, whatever their nationality, shall be cared for. Commanders-in-chief shall have the power to deliver immediately to the outposts of the enemy soldiers who have been wounded in an engagement, when circumstances permit this to be done, with the consent of both parties. Those who are recognized as incapable of serving, after they are healed, shall be sent back to their country. The others may also be sent back on condition of not again bearing arms during the continuance of the war. Evacuations, together with the persons under whose direction they take place, shall be protected by an absolute neutrality.

A RT. VII . A distinctive and uniform flag shall be adopted for hospitals, ambulances and evacuated places. It must on every occasion, be accompanied by the National flag. An arm-badge shall also be allowed for individuals neutralized, but the delivery of it shall be left to military authority. The flag and arm-badge shall bear a red cross on a white ground.

A RT. VIII . It is the duty of the conquering army to supervise, as far as circumstances permit, the soldiers who have fallen on the field of battle, to preserve them from pillage and bad treatment, and to bury the dead in conformity with strict sanitary rules. The contracting powers will take care that in time of war every soldier is furnished with a compulsory and uniform token, appropriate for establishing his identity. This token shall indicate his name, place of birth, as well as the army corps, regiment and company to which he belongs. In case of death, this document shall be withdrawn before his burial and remitted to the civil or military authorities of the place of enlistment or home. Lists of dead, wounded, sick and prisoners shall be communicated, as far as possible, immediately after an action, to the commander of the opposing army by diplomatic or military means.

The contents of this article, so far as they are applicable to the marine, and capable of execution, shall be observed by victorious naval forces.

Transcribed from an original document in the Clara Barton National Historic Site museum collection by Volunteer James Finta.

The following was transcribed from: Report. Seventh International Conference of the Red Cross Held At St. Petersburg, Russia, May 16 - 29, June 4 - 22, 1902, written and published by Clara Barton in 1902:

The conference which called together this body of eminent philanthropists and statesmen from the various civilized countries of the world, is the seventh which has taken place since the formation of the organization, and was held in St. Petersburg, Russia, the 16-29 of May to June 4-22, inclusive, 1902, for the purpose of deliberating upon the various methods of organized aid as outlined by the convention of Geneva, to be given both in military and civil life, as in cases of war and public calamity, which are before the reflecting, humanitarian, and progressive world to-day.

The delegates assembled represented the countries of Germany, Baden, Prussia, Wurtemberg, Austria, Hungary, Belgium, Bulgaria, Congo Free States, Denmark, Spain, France, Great Britain, Greece, Italy, Japan, Montenegro, Netherlands, Portugal, Roumania, Servia, Siam, Sweden and Norway, Switzerland, Uruguay, the United States of America, and last, though by no means least, Russia, the magnificence of whose entertainments of her guests was equalled, if not surpassed by the warm-hearted friendliness which accompanied and graced every act of courtesy so profusely bestowed.

I cannot refrain from expressing, in personal terms, what I am sure are the sentiments of every delegate who had the honor of having been appointed by you; their appreciation of the cordial reception given them on every hand, the honor specially conferred upon them, not alone by the committee but by the state, whose every princely hand, from those who modestly served to the Czar who commanded, was held out in royal welcome.

The conference was held under the high patronage of Her Majesty, the Empress Dowager Marie Feodorovna, the Patroness of the Red Cross in Russia.

All invitations were extended by her, courtesies shown through her, and entertainments given under her patronage.

It was through this august direction that the members of the conference were invited to a familiar reunion at the Hall of the Assembly of Nobles, on the 15-28 of May for the social acquaintance and better preparation for the work before them, and from the same hospitable source all were invited to a dinner given in their honor at the Palace de la Tauride on the following evening, May 16-29, and again on the 17-30 an excursion to the islands of the river and a visit and entertainment at the Palace Yeleguine.

On May 18-31 a visit to her own residentiary palace, where each of the nearly a hundred delegates were not only personally and cordially received by Her Majesty, but made to partake of a most royal lunch, and, as if this were not enough of courtesy direct, on one of the first days of June we were taken a charming drive of several miles to the Palace de Tzaiskae Selo, the country residence of the royal family, where we were received by their majesties, the Czar and Czarina, in a manner so cordial, social, and altogether friendly as to banish from our minds the thought of royalty, and the repast which followed served to heighten, if possible, the sense of friendly ease pervading the entire assemblage.

Both the Emperor and Empress eagerly encouraged conversation with the delegates on all subjects of national or social importance which could interest.

On the part of the committee was a state dinner at the Hotel de Ville on the evening of June 2d, and various entertainments of social and national interest, closing with a visit to Moscow of three days' duration, with transportation free and carriages always at our service.

The entertainment at Moscow was in keeping with that of St. Petersburg, including the cordial and elegant reception by the Grand Duke Sergius, Governor-General of Moscow, the uncle of the Emperor, and the Grand Duchess Elizabeth, sister of the Empress, and granddaughter of Queen Victoria.

It must not be inferred that these entertainments, many and grand as they were, in any way detracted from the official duties for which the conference had been called; the facts were quite the contrary. They served to heighten social intercourse and quicken activities. The full and prompt attendance upon each sitting and the spirited nature of the discussions evinced an interest in the world-wide questions they had met to consider, most significant for the future.

The conference was opened for the welcome of delegates and order of business on the 29th day of May in the presence of the Empress Marie Feodorovna, its Royal Patroness, better known to our people as the Empress Dagmar, sister of the Queen of England, mother of the Czar, and Patroness of the Red Cross of Russia.

Addresses of welcome were made by the Secretary of State, Minister of Justice, M. Mouravieff, by M. de Kenesebeck, Chamberlain of the Emperor and Empress of Germany, and president of the German Red Cross, and by other officers of the governments of Germany and Russia.

The occasion was one of great solemnity and dignity, being formally closed at 4 P.M. by the permission and retirement of Her Majesty, the Empress.

On the day following, May 17-30, during two very lengthy sittings, many important questions were discussed, commencing with the best manner of applying the fund left at her death by the Empress Augusta of Germany (known as the "Augusta Fund"), for the benefit of the Red Cross.

The conference arose reverently at the mention of her name, and the remarks which followed were a union of grateful eloquence for the past and wise consideration for the future.

Following this was the reading of reports, and the introduction of questions touching the use of the Red Cross flag, both on land and sea, the care to be extended to prisoners of war, the relations between the work of the Red Cross, and the propositions of the convention of La Hague, the methods of which, as well as the objects, being mainly identical.

At the next sitting were most interesting reports and suggestions by Sir John Furley upon the actual official situation of the Red Cross in England, and listened to with the most intense interest, as well as the learned treatise of Dr. Pannwitz of Germany upon the work of the Red Cross in time of peace; but it is reserved for the subject of the general and personal misuse and abuse of the insignia and name of the Red Cross to call out the full spirit of a Red Cross Conference. Pages would fail to convey an adequate idea of the protests, the arguments, the efforts, the hopes, the failures in the past, the national and international significance so earnestly and so highly portrayed upon the introduction of this subject.

Twelve years of untiring effort in the same cause had taught at least some of your delegates how wearying and discouraging these efforts have been, and how to sympathize with them.

The sittings of June 3d opened with a telegram from Prince Okihita, the honorary president of Japan, an organization numbering over half a million.

Then followed most interesting reports, and acceptance of the international gift of 100,000 roubles, presented to the Red Cross by Empress Marie Feodorovna, who, by this gracious act, is following the benign example of Empress Augusta of Germany, in placing funds at the disposition of the Red Cross internationally.

The application of the Red Cross to the saving of life at sea was a subject brought up by Uruguay.

Dr. Pannwitz of Germany submitted valuable information concerning anti-tuberculosis in all countries.

From the Congo Free States came a wise, and withal morally brave suggestion, but which met hearty approval, viz: That naval ambulances for relief in war at sea, luxurious and expensive, were less useful than boats less pretentious, less strong and massive which could, upon occasion, be transferred in case of naval evacuation.

Belgium recommended very warmly the spreading of a clear knowledge of the Red Cross and the text of the convention of Geneva among the soldiers, and the resolution of M. Renault, that oral instruction upon its work and its nature be given among the armies was unanimously adopted. Speaking to this question Baron de Kenesebeck, president of the German Red Cross, with a wisdom born of long experience, suggested the utility of finding some means of spreading a knowledge of the Red Cross among all classes of the populations, rather than educate a part, and to this end he asked the opinion of the members, if it would not be better to make the Red Cross useful to all the people in time of peace, thus winning their affection and help for it, and for themselves, rather than create prejudice by preparations for activity upon the battlefield.

This idea was so warmly seconded as to result in a resolution to that effect. Russia hastened to add her concurrence, and, as this has been the mainspring of all American work for the Red Cross from its inception, it is needless to add that your delegates did not fail to make their concurrence understood.

The fourth of June brought the close of the conference. The work had been completed the day before; it only remained now for the honorable president of the conference, Lieut.General de Richter to give a short résumé of the subjects and their authors which had been of paramount interest, and how they had been disposed of.

The first to be named was the interesting report of Admiral Van Reypen upon the medical work of the navy in the late war and the quick transformation of the "Solace" into a floating hospital, an example which has been followed later by Germany, France and Russia.

M. le Dr. Pannwitz of Germany, who so ably portrayed the work of that country in time of peace.

Le Commander Postemski of the Italian delegation, who had made a word picture of the ravages of malaria, and proposed a means of combating it, thus making it possible to transform the lands, now the sources of mortal disease, into fields of healthful cultivation.

Of Le Dr. Kuettner, for his very instructive report of a highly scientific nature touching the variations of climate in extreme latitudes, enabling operations to be carried on in all.

Of M. Le Dr. Romeyn of the army of the Netherlands, for his valuable observations upon the department of the Red Cross in Pretoria.

And last of all was made modest mention of the great and well-known activity of the Red Cross of Russia in the extreme Orient and in recent public calamities.

Then followed the parting speeches, doing honor to all, forgetting none, in words of touching eloquence that left few dry eyes in the silent hall.

But when the last words fell from the lips of M. le General Lanty of France, "Oui, Mesdames et Messieurs du Comite Central Russe, c'est avec le coeur que vous nous avez reçus, c'est avec le coeur que nous vous disons; Merci,"* there was no longer silence, a hundred voices joined in the response, and twice that number of hands clasped each other in the loving good-will of the nations of the earth.

Since the autumn of 1897, when the American Red Cross had the honor of meeting with this honorable council, there have taken place in the United States of America, besides one event of international importance, three or four of minor character, more especially pertaining to the Red Cross in its national capacity.

In the spring of 1898, at the request of President McKinley, the Red Cross under charge of its President undertook the relief of the reconcentrados in the Spanish Island of Cuba, which island was in a state of insurrection against the government of Spain. The gathering of the country people into the towns, in order to cut off their aid to the insurgent soldiers in the mountains, whom the Spanish armies could not reach, had become a war measure which produced great suffering and loss of life, especially as the means of subsistence on the island grew less and starvation became imminent.

This condition of things gave great concern to our people, and painfully so to our great tender-hearted President McKinley; and at length, at his request, a committee of relief was formed in New York under the management of Mr. Stephen E. Barton as chairman, by which committee, supplies were shipped to Cuba. These supplies were received in Cuba by the President of the American National Red Cross, who had gone there for that purpose and were, by herself and her assistants, distributed among the hospitals and towns where the reconcentrados were gathered. The suffering was very naturally terrible and the death rate appalling.

There were a few months of this quiet relief over the island, but finally, in the month of April, war was declared between our nation and Spain, which is known as the "Spanish-American War."

This was the first time in the history of the American Red Cross that any touch of war in our own country had called for its labors; its work, during the fifteen years of its existence, having been entirely confined to scenes of national disaster in civil life. It is needless to say that we were not in that state of preparation which would have been desirable. Still the Red Cross became the rallying cry for all war relief throughout the United States. Auxiliaries were formed in every state from which relief went out to every conceivable want that a needy soldier could be supposed to have.

It is safe to say that notwithstanding all the efforts which had been made to spread a knowledge of the organization over the country, to fully one-half of the people of the United States the idea for the first time came home to them, that the Red Cross had its foundation in war, and simply meant war-relief. To their lasting credit, however, be it said that once in possession of the idea, they acted upon it with an avidity equaled only by their liberality and faithfulness. The thousands from the coffers of the millionaire lay side by side with the hard-earned pennies of the washer-woman, and the cheers of the multitude were divided between the broad national emblem and the little red cross that floated modestly by its side.

Our records show an aggregate of scores of principal auxiliary societies, with hundreds of lesser bodies reporting to them in the eastern parts of the country, as in New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Washington and Chicago; while on the Pacific coast California and its kindred states formed a section of their own, but working in harmonious conjunction with, and under the direction of, the central body at New York and Washington. The financial statement of California alone at the close of the year 1901 shows the receipt and the employment of over $80,000. This record stands to the credit of the women of California. It seems scarcely credible that the western coast of our country is, geographically, almost as near to the seats of government of some of the countries represented in this assemblage as to our own. San Francisco reaches her neighbor Tokio almost as readily as Washington, and yet it was through this distant door that the American armies marched for the Philippines and China. It was through this hospitable door that they returned and are returning, wayworn, weary, broken in health and spirit to the homes they left and the land they tried to serve. To the grand women of California, that golden coast, are due the thanks of the whole American nation. The broad banner of the Red Cross has covered their every act of devotion, charity, unity and love. One faithful woman, as chairman and director, Mrs. W. B. Harrington, has held the control of this vast work and should be with us here to-day to make her own matchless report.

Ladies of the highest social position went voluntarily into the hospitals and to the fields as nurses, and many a soldier in the miry fever swamps caught hold once more of the life fast ebbing out, blessing the tender nursing of the jewelled hands that never before knew either hardship or labor.

It remains for me, however, to bear my personal testimony to the unfailing faith with which our sister nation, Spain, through all these trying days, sustained her fealty to her vows, and to the treaty; nay more, the generous courtesy at all times manifested, together with every offer of protection from the commanding general and still more and higher, in the very heat of the contest, with the wounded and the prisoners of both armies on either hand, there came to the President of the American Red Cross the Royal Decoration of Spain, the gift of Her Majesty the Queen, in these darkest days, a token held with pride which no words can speak. Can more be said than to express the hope that the relations so amicably commenced may continue unbroken until a whole world at peace shall no more need the Red Cross nor its treaties for protection.

It has been my good fortune to have associated officially with me, at this conference, the medical directors of both the navy and the army of the United States at the field of Cuba, in the persons of Admiral Van Reypen, Medical Director of the Navy through the entire Spanish-American War, and Dr. Nicholas Senn, Medical Director at the field on the island of Cuba during the same campaign. With coadjutors so able, as eye-witnesses and participants, no more words of mine are needed to represent our first war under the Red Cross relief. May I, however, bespeak from the conference a few minutes audience for these eminent representatives, so well armed with all needed facts.

WHEREAS Miss Clara Barton has, during the late war of the rebellion, expended from her own resources large sums of money in endeavoring to discover missing soldiers of the armies of the United States, and in communicating intelligence to their relatives; Therefore--

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the sum of fifteen thousand dollars be, and the same is hereby, appropriated, out of any moneys in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, to reimburse Miss Clara Barton for the amount so expended by her, and to aid in the further prosecution of the search for missing soldiers; and the printing necessary in the furtherance of the said object shall hereafter be done by the public printer.

This 1866 Public Resolution is transcribed from the Thirty-ninth Congress, Sess. I, Res. 11. Statutes at Large, Treaties, and Proclamations, of the United States of America, Vol. XIV, George P. Sanger, ed. (Boston: Little, Brown, and Company, 1868)

The following was transcribed from A Story of the Red Cross , Galveston chapter, pages 194 - 196, written and published by Clara Barton in 1904.

“Immediately closing our relief rooms in Galveston I had all Red Cross supplies shipped to Houston, and relief for the mainland opened there. These were farming districts, and I directed intelligent inquiry to be made as to what was most needed by the devastated farm lands and their owners. All was swept away--- sometimes as far as forty miles back into the level country; often the soil itself was washed away, the home and all smaller animals destroyed, and no feed for the larger ones to subsist on. The poor farmers walked their desolated fields and wrung their hands.

It proved that this was the strawberry section of Southern Texas, and these were the strawberry growers that supplied the early berries to our Northern market. For miles not a plant was left and no means to replant. This was reported to me on the first day’s investigation, and also that if plants could be obtained and set within two weeks a half crop could be grown this year and the industry restored. That seemed a better occupation for these poor fellows than walking the ground and wringing their hands. The messenger was sent back at daybreak to ascertain how many plants would be needed to replant these lands, where they were accustomed to procure them, and what varieties were best adapted to their use.

That night brought again the messenger to say that a million and a half of plants would reset the lands and that their supply came from the nurseries in North Carolina, Illinois, Arkansas, and Louisiana. Directions were sent back to Mr. Ward to order the plants to be there in two weeks. This was done. Only thirty-eight thousand plants were injured in transit, and those were generously resupplied by the shippers. Within the two weeks this million and a half of strawberry plants were set. It was estimated that fully a third of a crop was realized that year, and it is safe to predict that one-half the readers of this little sketch will partake of the fruits of these Red Cross relief strawberry fields this very springtime.

Other needs to a large amount were supplied by Mr. Ward, and we left no idle, wringing hands on the mainlands of Texas.”

National Park Rangers at Clara Barton National Historic Site are now offering free virtual programs to groups of 10 or more. Please contact Park Ranger Kevin Patti at kevin_patti@nps.gov or 301-320-1410 to book a program.

Join us as we commemorate the life and work of Clara Barton, heroine of the Civil War and founder of the American Red Cross. Clara Barton broke through the barriers that so often confined women of the nineteenth century to the domestic sphere and had a long career of public service that touched people all over the world. She was an advocate for the expansion of rights for African Americans and women, a pioneer of public education, and the inventor of the first aid kit. She was also one of the first women to work for the federal government. This illustrated talk by a park ranger at Clara Barton National Historic Site in Glen Echo, Md will use photographs from Clara Barton’s life and times to describe her service and the struggles she overcame along the way.

Are you looking for "primary source" documents or photographs of Clara Barton? We have some resources in this web site which you may find helpful.

We have transcriptions of some primary source materials, use this link to reach the table of contents.

You may also download and print a 25 page document containing the photographs and the stories behind her receiveing international medals and awards. (pdf format-approx. 4 mb file)

Clara Barton NHS - Historic Furnishings Report - pdf file link; full publication of over 500 pages. ( 4.28 mb) file)

The Historic Furnishing Plan was developed by the National Park Service/Harpers Ferry Center in 1983. It serves as the guiding document for the restoration and furnishings of the rooms at Clara Barton National Historic Site.