Founder of the American Red Cross

(Edited from several different websites - listed below - for the sake of continuity.)

Born on December 25, 1821 in Oxford, Mass., the youngest of 5 children in a middle-class family, Clara Barton started teaching at the age of 15. After she was invited to teach in a private school in Bordentown, New Jersey, Barton recognized the community's need for free education, and despite opposition, set up one of the first free public schools in the state.