Today, Washington, D.C. is full of well-known museums and history-on-foot walking tours that attract thousands of visitors every year. But sometimes it's the lesser known museums--the hidden gems we often tend to overlook--that offer the most incredible insight, not to mention the most jaw-dropping authenticity. Indeed, my fellow history buffs, the Clara Barton Missing Soldiers Office on 7th Street is one of those priceless gems. For today's blog post, I'd like to share with you what I saw during my visit to this historic site. So come along, let's go inside....
Clara Barton's original "Missing Soldiers Office" sign on display. Clara Barton operated her Missing Soldiers Office from the 7th Street boardinghouse where she lived in Washington, D.C. Her Missing Soldiers Office was active from the time the American Civil War ended in 1865 until the end of 1868, helping families all across the country locate the whereabouts (and learn the fate) of their missing loved ones who had served in the war. In all, Clara Barton received over 63,000 letters asking for her help. Through her tireless work and dedication, she personally wrote an estimated 41,000 letters to grieving families--and located an astonishing 22,000 missing soldiers.
Thirty-nine years old when the Civil War broke out, Clara had already enjoyed an impressive career, both as a school teacher in her native Massachusetts, as well as working as a clerk at the United States Patent Office in Washington, D.C. At the Patent Office, Clara was one of the first women to work for the federal government and was (for a time) paid the same salary as her male co-workers.
Despite her admirable career, however, there was one thing Clara Barton enjoyed doing the most--helping others. As the bloody American Civil War swept across the country, Clara traveled to the battlefields, delivering supplies and providing critical medical attention to injured and dying soldiers. "When I reached home and looked in the mirror, my face was still the color of gunpowder, a deep blue," Clara recalled following the Battle of Antietam. "Oh yes, I went to the front."
These original socks were later discovered in the attic of Clara Barton's Missing Soldiers Office. They serve as a chilling reminder of the bloodshed and suffering that Clara Barton witnessed during the American Civil War, which claimed more than 750,000 lives in just 4 years.
After the fighting was over and the Civil War drew to a close, Clara Barton returned to her boardinghouse in Washington, D.C. where she began her Missing Soldiers Office. Here, I climbed the original steps of Clara's boardinghouse. The railing is also authentic, and the wallpaper was recreated to appear exactly as it did when Clara lived here.
The highlight of the tour--Clara's original office. The door is also original and still marked with Clara's authentic room number 9.
A closer look at the door also reveals the original mail slot through which Clara Barton received her thousands of letters. Many people who asked for Clara's help in locating their loved ones offered to pay her for her work--but Clara always refused. She never once accepted money from families searching for loved ones and even denied donations. Instead, Clara relied on her personal money until 1866, when Congress awarded her $15,000 as appreciation for her work.
After her incredible work at her Missing Soldiers Office came to an end in 1868, a weary Clara Barton traveled to Europe where she became active with the International Red Cross, which inspired Clara to establish the American Red Cross upon returning home to the United States. Clara Barton served as the president of her American Red Cross until she retired in 1904. Today, the Red Cross continues the work that Clara Barton devoted her life to achieving.
So you're probably wondering what ever happened to Clara's Missing Soldiers Office? Well, its historical significance remained unknown to the American public for decades, and the building was actually scheduled for demolition in 1996 when an inspector noticed a mysterious envelope sticking out between the slats of the ceiling on the third floor. Sure enough, a closer inspection of the letter and the building's attic (which still housed many of Clara Barton's personal belongings) revealed that this old building was, in fact, a priceless piece of history. Needless to say, demolition was canceled. Instead, the building opened for tours in 2015, and is now a historic landmark.
So the next time you're in DC, I highly recommend stopping by for a visit. History is everywhere, my friends, sometimes we just have to look.