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Clarissa "Clara" Harlowe Barton (December 25, 1821 – April 12, 1912) was a pioneering nurse who founded the American Red Cross. She worked as a hospital nurse in the American Civil War, and as a teacher and patent clerk. Barton is noteworthy for doing humanitarian work at a time when relatively few women worked outside the home. She had a relationship with John J. Elwell, but never married. ==Early life== Clara Barton was born Clarissa Harlowe Barton on December 25, 1821 in North Oxford, Massachusetts. Barton's father was Captain Stephen Barton, a member of the local militia and a selectman. Barton's mother was Sarah Stone Barton. When she was three years old, Clara was sent to school with her brother Stephen, where she excelled in reading and spelling. At school, she became close friends with Nancy Fitts; this is the only known friend Clara Barton had as a child due to her extreme timidity.〔Barton, Clara. The Story of My Childhood New York: Arno Press Inc, (1980)〕 Her parents tried to help cure her of this shyness by sending her to Col. Stones High School, but their strategy turned out to be a disaster.〔Pryor, Elizabeth Brown. Clara Barton: Professional Angel Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, (1987)〕 Clara became more timid and depressed and would not eat. She was removed from the school and brought back home to regain her health. Upon her return, her family relocated in order to help a family member: a paternal cousin of Clara's had died and left his wife with four children and a farm. The house that the Barton family was to live in needed to be painted and repaired.〔 Clara was persistent in offering her assistance, for which the painter was very grateful. After the work was done, Clara was at a loss because she had nothing else to help with, in order to not feel like a burden to her family.〔 She began to play with her male cousins, and to their surprise, she was good at keeping up with such activities as horseback riding. It was not until after she had injured herself that Clara's mother began to question her playing with the boys. Clara's mother wanted her to acquire more feminine skills. She invited one of Clara's female cousins over to help develop her femininity. From her cousin, she gained proper social skills as well. She was just ten when she assigned herself the task of nursing her brother David back to health after he fell from the roof of a barn and received a severe injury.〔 She learned how to distribute the prescribed medication to her brother, as well as how to place leeches on his body to bleed him (a standard treatment at this time.) She continued to care for David long after doctors had given up, and he made a full recovery.〔 To assist Clara with overcoming her shyness, her parents persuaded her to become a schoolteacher.〔Pryor, Elizabeth Brown. Barton, Clara. (American National Biography, (2000) )〕 She achieved her first teacher’s certificate in 1839, when only seventeen years old. This profession interested Barton greatly and helped motivate her; she ended up conducting an effective redistricting campaign that allowed the children of workers to receive an education. Successful projects such as this gave Clara the confidence needed when she demanded equal pay for teaching. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Clara Barton」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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