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Secondary sourceBook1915

The Life of Clara Barton

Percy H. Epler · 1915

The first full biography of Clara Barton, written in 1915 by Percy H. Epler using her diaries and letters.

This 1915 biography, drawing on Barton's own diaries and letters, remains a key source for her life story.

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Dark navy blue cloth book cover with a faint, mottled, slightly lighter textured pattern and no visible title or text. The surface has a woven fabric texture.
Percy H. Epler, The Life of Clara Barton, 1915. Macmillan.

About this source

What it is

This is The Life of Clara Barton, a biography written by Percy H. Epler and published in 1915 by Macmillan. Epler had access to Barton's own diaries and letters, and the book preserves many of her words and the testimony of people who knew her. Copies are held by the Internet Archive and the Library of Congress.

Why it matters

As the first full biography of Barton, written with direct access to her private papers, it is an important secondary source that shaped how later generations understood her life, from her childhood in Massachusetts through her Civil War nursing and founding of the Red Cross.

Look closer

  • Why might a biography based on diaries and letters be more detailed than an encyclopedia entry?
  • How might Epler's choices about what to quote have shaped the picture we get of Barton?
  • What does the opening story about her birth and family history suggest about how she wanted to be remembered?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Clara Barton on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Black-and-white studio portrait of an older woman with dark hair pinned up in curls, wearing a dark dress with an ornate white lace collar and a dark brooch at the neck. She faces left with a slight closed-mouth smile. Copyright stamp reads 1904, J. E. Purdy, Boston.Photograph

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Black-and-white head-and-shoulders portrait of an older woman with dark hair pulled back, wearing a high lace collar, a dark pendant brooch at the throat, and a dark dress, facing the camera against a dark background. Copyright text in the lower left corner reads 1904, J. Eyre Purdy, Boston.Photograph

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