Clara Barton Home - Glen Echo

Clara Barton's home is on Oxford Road in Glen Echo, Maryland.  The founder of the American Red Cross lived the last 15 years of he life here.  She was born on December 25, 1891 in Oxford, Massachusetts and spent her early years as a teacher before finding her way to Washington D.C, where she was living at the outbreak of the Civil War.  She was instrumental in collecting and distributing medical supplies to the soldiers and became known as The Angel of the Battlefield.  After the war she lectured about her experiences, then travelled to Europe, where she was first introduced the the Red Cross in Geneva, Switzerland.  Back in the states she was appointed President of the American Red Cross in 1881 and held the position until 1904.  Construction began on her Glen Echo home in 1891 and Barton eventually moved in permanently in 1897, making this the official Red Cross Headquarters.  She died here on April 12, 1912.  Her former home was dedicated a National Historic Landmark in 1965 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966.  In 1975 the National Park Service opened the site as a museum and the home became the first National Historic Site dedicated to a woman.

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