Clara Barton, a True American Hero

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Clara Barton, a True American Hero Clarissa Harlowe Barton was born in North Oxford, Massachusetts on Christmas day 1821. Clarissa, also known as Clara, had four siblings; Dorothy, Stephen, David, and Sally. When Clara was young, David acquired devastating injuries from falling off of a barn roof. She “gave up school and nursed him back to health.” Even at a young age, Clara showed how noble and kind-hearted she was by giving up her education to help bring her brother back to a healthy condition. It took two years for Clara to help her brother, David recover. During that time she learned how to “handle slimy leeches…. dress blisters and ugly sores.” After her brothers’ recovery, Clara regarded herself as useless and so she felt the need to help more people. She then looked for work and went to nurture poor, sick children during a smallpox epidemic. “She liked work where she could help others.” When the Civil War broke out, Clara played a major role in “organizing facilities to recover soldiers’ lost baggage and in securing medicine and supplies for men wounded in the first battle of Bull Run. Soon after Clara was given permission to go through the battlefield and to distribute supplies, search for the missing and nurse the wounded.” She continued to show her courage. Clara Barton then traveled with the Union army for the remainder of the war. As she traveled with the Union army Clara would “prepare food for the men, using jelly jars and wine bottles as dishes. At times she gave her own sandwiches to starving soldiers.” No matter how hard the situation she was in, she still was selfless and noble. By the end of the war, Clara was known as the “Angel of the Battlefield”, for her willingness to be of help to all of the people around her and her incessant demonstration of her nursing abilities. After the war was over, Clara became ill and got advice from her

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