海角论坛

At a public symposium hosted by the National Park Service (NPS) at Glen Echo Park last month, 11 Georgetown University 海角论坛 of Arts & Sciences students shared original historic research on Clara Barton, a Civil War medical care provider and pioneer of emergency medicine who founded the American Red Cross, as part of a seminar led by history professor .

The event highlighted the results of a semester-long research partnership between Georgetown and the and featured four panels of student researchers whose work will support public interpretation of Barton鈥檚 life and legacy. 

Kevin Patti, a park ranger and site manager for the Clara Barton National Historic Site, told the crowd gathered at the symposium that Barton鈥檚 story remains urgent and relevant.

鈥淐lara Barton died 113 years ago, and yet we still have a great deal we can learn from her life and her service,鈥� he said. 

He praised the Georgetown students, who also served as volunteer researchers with the NPS, for producing work that will strengthen interpretation at the site as it prepares for .

鈥淭he work they have done in a Clara Barton-focused class this semester will be used by the National Park Service to educate people and connect people to the Clara Barton National Historic Site 鈥� online, on social media and in other ways at the site,鈥� Patti said.

A Mutually Beneficially Collaboration

Manning, a Civil War historian and professor in the Department of History at the 海角论坛 of Arts & Sciences, designed and taught the history seminar, Hands on DC History: Researching Clara Barton for the NPS.

She explained that the collaboration emerged when she learned that NPS staff wished they had the time and resources to look more closely into specific questions about Barton, who Manning describes in her course syllabus as 鈥渙ne of the most significant Americans in the 19th century.鈥�

Barton鈥檚 home and the national headquarters of the American Red Cross are both located in the DC area, and students spent the fall reading Barton鈥檚 diaries, deciphering 19th-century handwriting together, visiting local historical sites and collaboratively analyzing and discussing archival discoveries. 

鈥淓very single one of them has learned something new,鈥� Manning said. 鈥淎nd now that knowledge is being used by the Park Service.鈥�

A Humanitarian and Reformer 

The first panel examined how Barton鈥檚 upbringing, values and early professional experiences shaped her later humanitarian work, offering new perspectives that will inform how the National Park Service interprets Barton鈥檚 life for the public.

Carleigh Heckel (C鈥�27) found that Barton鈥檚 views differed from evangelicals inspired by the Second Great Awakening. She held equally deeply felt moral views, but they sprang from Universalism, not evangelicalism. Barton was raised in a Universalist household, Heckel explained, but 鈥渕ost of the evidence we have shows she isn鈥檛 especially religious鈥� in the way that mainstream evangelicals were. 

Fallon Wolfley (C鈥�28) explored Barton鈥檚 poetry and how it helped her forge meaningful relationships during the Civil War. Barton exchanged poems with soldiers and reformers, using poetry to connect with others during the Civil War, and later, to illuminate her own experience. 

鈥淚s Barton necessarily a good poet? 鈥� I鈥檓 not convinced,鈥� Wolfley said. 鈥淏ut what鈥檚 more important is the story her poetry tells about emotions, connection and grief.鈥�

Dahlia Lozier (C鈥�28) focused on Barton鈥檚 short but revealing tenure as superintendent of the . 

Lozier argued that Barton鈥檚 emphasis on kindness, dignity and politeness subtly challenged prevailing reform models that sought to reshape incarcerated women according to rigid ideals of domestic femininity. Barton鈥檚 approach, Lozier suggested, foreshadowed later critiques of punitive reform systems.

A Public Health Pioneer

Barton was a public health pioneer who helped shape early approaches to mental health, emergency response and first aid education by extending care beyond hospitals and military settings to ordinary civilians.

Lily Marino (C鈥�28) examined Barton鈥檚 lifelong struggles with melancholy through a modern psychological lens while emphasizing that any diagnosis would be speculative. By tracing patterns in Barton鈥檚 diaries, Marino argued that recognizing these episodes 鈥減uts in relief how much harder she had to push to do the spectacular things she did.鈥�

Olivia Matlaga (C鈥�28) highlighted Barton鈥檚 establishment of the in her early 80s. Matlaga鈥檚 project, Barton in a Box, creates an educational kit accompanied by online instructions and informational pamphlets linking early first-aid tools with modern ones. 

Barton鈥檚 efforts, Matlaga explained, 鈥渟pread the ability to render aid to the hands of ordinary people 鈥� without waiting for the approval of larger institutions.鈥�

Caroline Thomas (C鈥�27) traced Barton鈥檚 evolution as an emergency-response leader, from delivering supplies after the to improvising battlefield care during the Civil War. Thomas argued that Barton鈥檚 work anticipated the development of disaster and emergency medicine long before the field was formally recognized.

Responding to Natural Disasters

Barton shaped the way that people responded to major natural disasters by systematizing relief efforts, preparing in advance for emergencies and developing recovery models that were later applied across the country.

Sophia Grossman (C鈥�27) analyzed the , shifting attention from heroic relief narratives to the social dynamics of recovery. Grossman showed how class shaped access to housing and resources during reconstruction, revealing how post-disaster recovery could reinforce existing inequalities.

Sylvia Jordan, a second-year Ph.D. in history candidate, focused her research on the and found it was 鈥渢he organization鈥檚 fifth largest domestic relief campaign鈥� during Barton鈥檚 tenure and foundational for later responses in Johnstown, and Galveston, Texas.聽

The Mount Vernon project, Jordan said, shows that 鈥渨e cannot base everything we know about the early American Red Cross off just three major disasters.鈥� 

Patti also singled out Jordan鈥檚 work, noting that it highlights 鈥渁n aspect of Miss Barton鈥檚 work that has not been highlighted as it will be now because of Sylvia鈥檚 work.鈥�

A Women鈥檚 Rights Advocate

Barton鈥檚 legacy includes expanding opportunities for women in public leadership and humanitarian work. 

Marie Kim (C鈥�27) analyzed how Barton strategically navigated 19th-century gender norms, using domestic spaces and the performance of proper womanhood to gain authority in male-dominated political and humanitarian spheres.

Maggie Stephens (C鈥�28) studied Barton鈥檚 participation in international Red Cross conferences spanning the late 19th century. Barton fiercely defended the integrity of the Red Cross symbol and used conference speeches to highlight American relief innovations. Media coverage praised her as a female delegate operating on equal footing with international leaders.

Emma Vonder Haar (C鈥�28) mapped how Barton is commemorated across the United States and abroad 鈥� from schools and roads to a Public memory, she argued, reveals what communities choose to value. 

鈥淲hat do you see of yourself in Clara Barton鈥檚 triumphs, tragedies, or ordinary moments?鈥� she asked.

Patti closed the event by thanking the students for 鈥渢he wonderful program,鈥� adding, 鈥淚 know that your work will serve the park very well in the future.鈥�