Existing comment:
"It was a kind of a tent life, but she was happy in it."
-- Frances Vassall, close friend of Clara Barton
Even in the turbulent war years, Clara Barton strove to make her quarters as attractive and functional as possible. Evidence of her activities can be seen in the large room created by removing dividing walls to accommodate battlefield supplies; the mail slot cut into the office door to accommodate the volumes of correspondence for the Missing Soldiers Office; and the number 9 painted on the door, corresponding to the sign directing visitors up the steep stairs to the third story. The white striped wallpaper still hanging in her small personal chamber and the trove of colorful paper remnants found in the attic tell of her love of pattern and skill at creating "home" wherever she went. |