Clara Barton: Angel Of The Battlefield

Clara Barton: “Angel of the Battlefield”

Clara Barton, the founder of the American Red Cross, lived a life of service to others. Clara Barton was born on December 25, 1821, in eastern Massachusetts. Her full name was Clarissa Harlowe Barton, but as a child she liked to be called Clara. Clara was the youngest of five children, and her parents were Sarah and Captain Stephen Barton. Her brothers names were Stephen and David Barton, and her sisters were named Dorothy and Sally. All of her siblings took a special interest in Clara. They each taught her something that she would later use in life. Clara was a very smart girl at a young age. She started to learn her alphabet at age two, and was reading by age three. When she started school, she sat with the older children because she was on their academic level, but she was lonely for friends her own age. Clara’s favorite subject in school was geography. This love for …show more content…
She began teaching when she was seventeen years old. She taught school from 1839-1854. Helping those children when she was teaching helped improved her shyness. Clara was an excellent teacher and had the respect of her students. In 1854, Clara became the first female clerk in the United States Patent Office in Washington, D.C. She worked in the United States Patent Office until the outbreak of the Civil War. During the years of the Civil War, 1861-1865, Clara found herself serving the needs of wounded soldiers as a nurse on the battlefield. Because she was accustomed to reading maps through her studies in geography, she was not afraid of getting lost while searching for wounded soldiers. She cared for the Confederate and Union soldiers equally, showing love and mercy to them all. It was during this time that she earned the name “Angel of the Battlefield.” Although Clara was still shy, she had the courage to speak out for others. She gave speeches to raise money to provide supplies for the wounded

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Clara Barton: The Angel Of The Battlefield