The American Red Cross: Caroline Henry
Rogers, Edward A. “Doc,” “American Red Cross volunteers of 1917-1918 preparing surgical dressings,” Digital Public Library of America, https://dp.la/item/99245ff725ef7cd4613141131c09be2b.
My first primary source that I will use is a picture from 1918 that shows female American Red Cross volunteers making surgical dressings for the influenza pandemic. This source is useful because it shows that the Red Cross has revised the terrible regulations of the past that threatened many lives. The Red Cross saved thousands of lives during the Civil War by forcing officials to take notice that basic necessities were not a “privilege” and that lives could be saved by improving hygiene and taking action to bring people the help that they need. I will use this source to show how the Red Cross had given women the chance to enter the workforce when it was still a time for women to primarily be confined to the role of housewife, also this source shows how the Red Cross has helped improve regulations and save lives.
“The Women Who Went to the Field.” American Battlefield Trust, 11 May 2017, https://www.battlefields.org/learn/primary-sources/women-who-went-field.
My second primary source is a poem by Clara Barton the founder of the Red Cross. This poem begins ironically with Baton suggesting that women were not fit to be near a battlefield, but ends by listing every reason that they were needed and all the good they accomplished. This source is useful because it shows a first hand account of Batons thinking process of why she started to Red Cross, also the fact that such a strong women existed at this time, when women were considered to be the submissive sex.
Morrow, Laura. “Clara’s Heart.” Policy Review 75 (1996): 64. Web.
The first secondary source that will be included is called Clara’s Heart, it begins by giving a brief introduction into Clara Barton as a person, and eventually divulges into how she got involved with the war and how this led to the American Red Cross and all of its successes. This is a useful source because it gives an array of details about the person who began the whole organization and how it came to be step by step. This source will be used to set the stage of what it is like to not only be a woman during the time of the Civil War, but also how such a large organization that is still a major presence today started.
University of Texas Health Science Center. “Clara Barton and The Red Cross: A History of This Remarkable International Movement in the Interest of Humanity.” UT Health Science Center Library RSS, http://library.uthscsa.edu/2014/09/clara-barton-and-the-red-cross-a-history-of-this-remarkable-international-movement-in-the-interest-of-humanity/.
Another secondary source that will be included is Clara Barton and the Red Cross. This article more focuses on Clara as a person and not just her accomplishments in war. It tells of her home life and the events in her childhood that led to her being the person that she becomes. This source is useful because it gives the audience a further understanding of Clara and why she did the things that she did. This article will humanize Clara to the audience so she will be more relatable as a person and not just the figurehead of an amazing movement.
Gracie Wallace
Burial of the Civil War Dead
“Death and Dying.” Encyclopedia of Death and Dying,
www.deathreference.com/Ce-Da/Civil-War-U-S.html.
My first secondary source is an excerpt from The Encyclopedia of Death and Dying. It describes periodically how death affected the remaining American Soldiers on the field, the presence of death, disposing of the dead, making sense of death, and finally ending with the advances in weaponry. I like this source because it not only provides insight into what was happening in each stage of the fighters passing but also describes the burial process in depth. This particular source is relevant to my subtopic because the burial of the civil war dead is not only mentioned but is told through each particular stage.
“Death & Burial: Guideposts to Gettysburg’s Dead.” American Battlefield Trust, 3 July 2018,
www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/death-burial-guideposts-gettysburgs-dead.
My first primary source is a “Then vs. Now” photo of death and burial during the civil war compared to what that particular land looks like now. Photos are a good primary source because they bring a form of nostalgia when looking at how times were and how everything changed. Photos contain powerful content that can teach us more than we can read about. After looking at the photo, you raise your own questions and it leaves you wondering what goes on after the photo. This photo is a good source and pertains to my subtopic because it showcases what looks like a body buried or in the process of being buried during the civil war, and the “now” photo shows how different the environment is.
“Civil War Casualties.” American Battlefield Trust, 23 Apr. 2019,
www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/civil-war-casualties.
My second primary source is a set of statistics of Civil War casualties. The first set of statistics, a bar graph, shows the numbers of American military losses in war. The Civil War, with 620,000 losses, is the highest on the bar graph. This information provides us with some insight of just how many lives were lost fighting in battle and lives counted for. The Civil War Battle Caustilities stats are ridiculously high.
New military technology combined with old-fashioned doctrines produces a scale of battle casualties unprecedented in American history. Along with those stats, the source goes into detail between deaths in the North and the South (Union and Confederate). Then it takes the information a step further to decipher between combat and diseased deaths. This source is relevant to my topic because it provides me with an approximate number of deceased which in turn shows how many bodies had to be buried.
Institute, Author Civil War. “Burying the Dead.” The Gettysburg Compiler, 28 June 2017,
gettysburgcompiler.org/2012/08/02/burying-the-dead-by-allie-ward-54463/.
My second secondary source is an article about what happened after the war was finished, and it was finally time to take care of the fallen soldiers. Bodies were left to die and found in every corner of every field and under every tree. Burial parties were sent out to take care of, and bury the bodies where they lay. It describes how the at-the-time quick burials were inhumane but necessary to those whose bodies were too damaged or severed to be displayed in a proper burial. It also has a quote describing how the bodies looked due to intense fighting. I think this source is valuable because it not only pertains to my topic, but it goes further in describing the emotions of the people who actually had to take care of the fallen, and what a hardship it was.
Anesthesia During the civil War: Ian Meese
Annotated Bibliography
Office of Medical History, history.amedd.army.mil/booksdocs/civil/gillett2/amedd_1818-1865_chpt13.html.
The first secondary source to be included is an article from the Army Medical Corps Office of Medical History. In the article it discusses what was the most common type of anesthesia was. The article also discusses the type of equipment that is required and how to use the different types of anesthesia. This source will be used to talk about the different anesthesia and what was required to use the different types of anesthesia. This source will be used to elaborate on the common types of anesthesia used on the battlefield hospitals.
“Anesthesia in the Civil War.” National Museum of Civil War Medicine, 3 May 2019, www.civilwarmed.org/anesthesia/.
The second secondary source is the National Museum of Civil War Medicine. In the article on anesthesia it will set the scene for the discoveries of the most commonly used anesthesia. The article also explains how the anesthetics were used and gives us a picture primary source with patients being anesthetized. This source is going to be used to provide a better understanding of the most commonly used anesthetics.
Archer, WH The history of general anesthesia (Part 1). Published in the Hartford (Conn.) Courant, Dec. 9, 1846.. J Am Dent Soc Anesthesiol. (1960). https://anesthesiology.pubs.asahq.org/article.aspx?articleid=1918086. 7 12–4
The first primary source is the testimony of Daniel T. Curtis. This primary source describes one of the first demonstrations of Nitrous Oxide. The primary source describes the demonstration and describes what the effects of the Nitrous Oxide were. The source will also show what life was like in the medical field that was not helping with the wounded soldiers. The source will be used to describe the discovery of the anesthetic during the civil war. This source will also bring a first hand testimony of the demonstration of nitrous oxide.
Advertisement by Horace Wells in the Daily Evening Transcript, Boston, January 21, 1845. Image courtesy: The American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Massachusetts. https://anesthesiology.pubs.asahq.org/article.aspx?articleid=1918086
The second primary source is a newspaper ad for the Nitrous Oxide. This ad describes the use of Nitrous Oxide. The ad is also advertising for the participants in the trial phase of the Nitrous Oxide. This Source will be used to describe the time period in which nitrous oxide was discovered.