On December 11, from 1400-1600Z, the Atlanta Radio Club and the Atlanta Chapter of American Red Cross will be commemorating the 200th Anniversary of the birth of Clara Barton, founder of the Red Cross. Look for us around 14.250 MHz (20m), 7.250 MHz (40m), 3.925 MHz ( 75m) +/-. Check the spotting networks if you don’t see us there. A special commemorative bi-fold QSL card offered. Just email you’re your request to [email protected].
The reason for the special event is simple. Most of us are familiar with the Red Cross, but how the American Red Cross got started involves the story of a very remarkable woman. In 1861, Clarissa (Clara) Harlowe Barton was working in the Washington D.C. patent office, one of very few women working in the ranks of the federal government. In April, the Civil War broke out and a train headed from Baltimore to Washington was attacked by Confederate sympathizers. When the train arrived in Washington, Clara was moved by the sight of the injured soldiers and began to care for them. Over the following weeks, other trains began to arrive with wounded soldiers. Clara realized they desperately needed care, but facilities and supplies were sorely lacking. She began to organize a response, and soon had set up locations to care for the soldiers and had amassed three warehouses of medical supplies. Not content to care for the soldiers in the relative safety of Washington, though, Clara moved toward the battlefield, setting up a field hospital near the Battle of Cedar Mountain, which is where she got the nickname, “the angel of the battlefield.” She continued to move to the action, rendering aid to the wounded wherever she could. In 1863, she moved to the battles in South Carolina, and was in the area of the assault on Battery Wagner, made famous in the movie Glory. After the war, she worked with one of the prisoners of war at Andersonville, compiling a list of all of the 13,000 Union soldiers who died in that camp and assuring that each of their graves was properly marked.
In 1868, Clara traveled to Europe where she met with representatives of the International Red Cross, who inspired and encouraged her to form the American Red Cross. She formed the Red Cross here shortly after her return, and then served as the President of the Red Cross until 1904, when she retired at the age of 82. In 1912, at the age of ninety, Clara Barton died at her home in Glen Echo, Maryland.
The Atlanta Radio Club is proud to sponsor a special event station commemorating the 200th anniversary of the birth of Clara Barton, and to honor the American Red Cross that she founded and served. Her legacy has led to humanitarian services the likes of which the world has rarely seen, and she stands as a model to this day of tireless, selfless service to others.
In 1868, Clara traveled to Europe where she met with representatives of the International Red Cross, who inspired and encouraged her to form the American Red Cross. She formed the Red Cross here shortly after her return, and then served as the President of the Red Cross until 1904, when she retired at the age of 82. In 1912, at the age of ninety, Clara Barton died at her home in Glen Echo, Maryland.
The Atlanta Radio Club is proud to sponsor a special event station commemorating the 200th anniversary of the birth of Clara Barton, and to honor the American Red Cross that she founded and served. Her legacy has led to humanitarian services the likes of which the world has rarely seen, and she stands as a model to this day of tireless, selfless service to others.