Clara Barton: Civil War Nurse

by Nancy Whitelaw

Traces the life of the Civil War nurse who cared for wounded soldiers and earned the title, "Angel of the Battlefield"

Genres: History, Biography

128 pages, Library Binding

First published November 1, 1997

Reviews

[Dina Toum-Benchekroun · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clara Barton, Civil War Nurse


Nancy Whitelaw





Review Written by: DINA TOUM-BENCHEKROUN





**A compelling and inspirational biography that will give one the urge to expand one's knowledge about Clara Barton and plant the seed of wanting to become a nurse to help the critically injured soldiers during the civil war...**







Clara Barton or as people know of her today, “Angel of the Battlefield,” marked a great legacy in American history and her compassion for others profoundly effected the readers as they read and acknowledged her various and diverse achievements. This enriching and didactic biography is profiled with abundant educational information that serves to fully describe Clara Barton’s career, lifestyle, and impact on the American history. It takes place on July 1862, and “the Civil War had raged for over a year. Casualties on both sides numbered in the thousands. Confederates in the South were fighting to break away from the United States of America and form their own country. Northern troops were fighting to keep the Union together.” (Whitelaw, 5) During this time, Clara had the audacity to walk up to Colonel Daniel Rucker and tell him that she “wants to go to the front” (Whitelaw, 6) and help soldiers that were severely injured and in critical conditions. Despite the widespread notion that women don’t belong on the battlefield, Clara Barton ended up working as a nurse for the soldiers. Before this, Clara was a teacher, yet this was not her passion, she was told by a phrenologist that by the studies of her contours, he predicts that she would be suitable to be a magnificent teacher. He said, “’She will never assert herself for herself … throw responsibility upon her. She has all the qualities of a teacher.’” (Whitelaw, 19) Henceforth, at the age of seventeen, Clara Barton became a teacher. With every word read and knowledge procured, one can effortlessly notice by the description of her career as a teacher, Clara did not enjoy for she felt that she was meant to work as a nurse. Subsequently, she did everything but the impossible to strive and help the northern soldiers that were trying to unify their country. When a soldier would get hurt she used all her supplies to help him and reduce the excruciating pain. When the war terminated, this valorous young lady instituted an office to look for soldiers that went missing during the civil war. Furthermore, Clara Barton created the first chapter of the American Red Cross in the year of 1881 and this then extended her service and that of others to victims of natural disasters. This extraordinary biography covers every aspect of Clara Barton’s life in in-depth information, from her first years in North Oxford, to her last days as a leader of the American Red Cross. Ergo, one can infer that today the American Red Cross may stand as a symbol to represent Clara Barton’s dedication and attentiveness for others.









After reading this book, one can easily classify it as a biography due to its rich information and personal facts on Clara Barton. Despite the fact that this book is from the “Historical American Biographies”, before reading this tittle, one can notice that by the cover of the book, there is a picture that depicts Clara Barton. In addition, from the use of context clues, one can understand that this book is a biography because it uses dates to support events that occurred in history and it comprises of several significant people that influenced history. Therefore, this book is certainly a biography because it talks about a specific person, describes her life, and gives the audience an insight on her impact in history. Clara Barton, is definitely a lady that would be suitably described as a hero for her various accomplishments and significance in previous history. She would be profiled as a hero for her actions that helped several people and for the dedication she demonstrated from a seventeen year-old girl to being the leader of the American Red Cross. Her life was fully devoted to helping others in need and for that her name is cherished in modern day and preserved as a symbol of generosity and dedication. This individual has left a profound effect on the people she helped and the people that learned about her after she died in 1912. During her lifetime she made a difference and showed to the rest of the world that women could work in several different jobs. She also sent the message that if one doesn’t find passion in their job, they should never give up on their dreams and keep fighting for what they desire. Furthermore, one can effortlessly notice that Clara Barton is very famous today due to her marvelous reputation and achievements. Hence, many people know of her as “ Angel of the Battlefield” because her compassion marked a great legacy in history and her dedication as a nurse was very significant.










“Clara Barton, Civil War Nurse” written by the cultivated and dexterous author Nancy Whitelaw is a riveting and well-documented biography that will certainly illuminate one’s knowledge with various information about a dedicated and extraordinary women that has left a profound legacy in in American history. This compelling book would highly be fond of readers who attentively deliberate the history behind every significant person in history with major achievements and impacts on modern life. This book includes several historical facts and also leans into political matters. Thus, it is safe to contend that this book will be targeted mainly to open-minded people and to the slightest critical and censorious eyes. Also I strongly recommend this book to non-judgmental people since there are some topics that might put the reader in an uncomfortable state or even awaken intense feelings of dissent or assent. It goes in depth with facts about Clara Barton’s career from beginning as a seventeen young girl as a teacher to the leader of the American Red Cross. Furthermore, I would passionately endorse this enriched and well-written book to high school students that have a sophisticated level of vocabulary words and have some prior knowledge about historical people that played a major role in shaping the American history today. Moreover, I would also suggest this book for students who have an innovative level of comprehension and reading skills, since the person reading this book will require thinking critically and comprehending the content in a sophisticated manner. This is because the subject matter comprises of some historical events, such as the civil war, that may be confusing for some students to understand. Likewise, I would eagerly propose this book to people that find major interest in history and people in the past that play a huge role in our present. Hence, I intensely advocate this enthralling book to credentialed readers that will devote their time to untangle their everlasting curiosity about Clara Barton and unravel the different achievements she accomplished that marked history.

[Dakota Vaughn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clara Barton has long been one of my historical role models, but recently I’ve been even more interested in learning about her. This book is an excellent overview of her achievements and an accessible introduction to parts of her personal life and motivations. It does a good job of highlighting the amazing things she accomplished for our country and the world while also being honest about her shortcomings. The reading level is perfect for a wide range of ages. I definitely learned things about my girl C.B. that I hadn’t known before. A great place to start in your research of this American Heroine!

Fun fact: There has never been a feature length biopic produced about the life of Clara Barton!!! Can you believe that? There are of course plenty of documentaries and nonfiction videos, and there’s a short, silent film (released in 1939), and another short film from 1940. But nobody’s done an in depth dramatization of her story! BRB, gotta go start on my screenplay…

[Hyun Young Jeong · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Although she died in 1912, people all over the world still read about her dedication and work, and they know that Clara Barton earned that title” (Whitelaw, 10) The impressive book Clara Barton, Civil War nurse by Nancy Whitelaw is about the life of a great civil war nurse. Clara Barton was on December 25, 1821. She was the youngest of 5 children. Her father serves as a town official, captain of the militia, and a member of the Massachusetts legislature. Her parents went to a phrenologist, an individual who studies the contours of a person’s head. The phrenologist said she would be a good teacher, and Clara decided to become a teacher. She passed the teacher’s exam, and started teaching children. When Clara was working as a teacher, the nation had a big political conflict with the south and the north. The northerners hated slavery, and the southerners agreed on slavery. After 10 years of being a teacher, Clara decided to become a nurse. In 1860~61, southern states seceded from the union and made the Confederate States of America (CSA). After republican Lincoln was elected for president, the Civil War started. Fort Sumner was the first place to have a battle. As a nurse, Clara helped the volunteers of the north, and made a lot of fundraisers to get supplies for the militaries and hospitals. Later, in the civil war, she wanted to help soldiers in the battlefield, not in the hospital. She talked to Colonel Daniel Rucker, and Daniel agreed Clara to go in the battlefield. Later, she got an idea to find the missing persons by the civil war. President Lincoln agreed, and she went on her way to find people missing. She found out many people using newspaper, organizations, etc. After the civil war, she went to Europe and found out about the Red Cross. She made the Red Cross in America, and helped many homeless people, poor people, and other people in situations that were bad. After participating in the Red Cross, she became president of National First Aid Association of America in 1905. Thus, the wonderful book about Clara Barton led me to three questions about her.

While reading this book, I had some questions in my head. First, what were the person’s achievements? The answer of my question was well explained in my book. Clara Barton’s achievements were mainly two. Helping the soldiers in the battlefields during the civil war, and made the Red Cross in America. She is better known for helping soldiers in the battlefields, because it was a dangerous work to do. My second question was what were the causes and effects of the causes? The conflict was the Civil War in the book. The causes were the North and South’s different opinions about slavery, and books like Uncle Tom’s Cabin. The effects were the nation was split into half, and many people died during the war. My third question was what beliefs influenced the person? How did their belief change the world? Clara Barton had a belief that she should fight for what she thought was right. “She fought for what she thought was right, and she challenged other Americans to do the same.” (Whitelaw, 111)Her belief led her to thinking of going into the battle fields during the civil war, and she successfully saved many soldiers. Thus, during the civil war, Clara Barton saved a lot of soldiers.

I would recommend this book to a lot of people. First, I would recommend to 6th grade because this book is about civil war, and students learn about the civil war in 6th grade. Second, I would recommend this book to people who likes history and want to earn about many individuals. Also, I would like people that want to be a nurse or doctor to read this book. This book is easy and not thick, so I would also recommend this book to 5th graders that want to challenge themselves. Thus, people who like history would like this book

[Marianne Wonnacott · Rating 5 out of 5]

This 128 page juvenile biography took me back to my childhood with fond memories of my discovery of the biography section in my elementary school library. I read dozens, but the one about Clara Barton left the deepest impression. Because of that book and her inspirational life, the seeds of wanting to become a nurse were planted in my mind and heart.

Clara Barton was a driven woman who was only happy when she was working for a cause and with a purpose. She faced many struggles and challenges throughout her life, and rose above them to accomplish great things.

She had the ability to think big and was way ahead of her time. She was very compassionate and worked her entire life to help relieve suffering all over the world in war time as well as with natural disasters and epidemics. She fought long and hard to found the American Red Cross.

I am interested to read a more in-depth biography of Clara. I am inspired to do more and teach my family to do more to relieve the suffering of others.

[Shannon Wick]

Clara Barton: Civil War Nurse by Nancy Whitelaw is a powerful biography of Civil War nurse, Clara Barton known to her patients and volunteers as "Angel of the Battlefield". This remarkable story takes the reader step by step through Clara's life beginning with her love for learning, transitioning into her passion for teaching and ultimately placing her on the front lines of the American Civil War. This text is cited at a 7.5 reading level. This well-organized text keeps the reader moving along the sequence of Clara's life using using personal quotes to create a powerful sense of voice throughout the entire text. This book would be used in the classroom when students are learning about the American Civil War as well as important historical figures.

[Noah D'Aliesio · Rating 5 out of 5]

My book review is on the book, Clara Barton Civil War Nurse by Nancy Whitelaw. The genre of this book is biography. The book setting is in a lot of places, but one place is North Oxford, Massachusetts. The main characters in this book are Clara Barton, her siblings, and many other people. In this book, Clara Barton does great things. She starts The Red Cross in America. Clarissa Harlowe Barton was born on December 25, 1821, and died on April 12, 1912. This book is past, because it had to do with the 1800's. I rated this book five out of five stars because it had several interesting facts and information, that I didn't know about Clara Barton. This book was very good.

[Reese George · Rating 5 out of 5]

Do you know who Clara Barton is? If not she is a famous war nurse. She was a nurse in the civil war. the main character of the book is Clara her self and Nancy Whitelaw wrote Clara Barton a non-fiction story I would rate this book five stars because it was really good and I like these kids of books.

[Madhu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very informational.

[Eve Stockton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tells of the life story of Clara Barton with an emphasis on the planting of the Red Cross. The end of the book recaps her constant struggles in bringing forth change.

[Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good, man if she could see what has become of her American chapter of the Red Cross!