Missing in Action

We are continuing to review the layouts for the 2021 Washington, DC convention. My next stop on my travels was a visit to the Clara Barton Missing Soldiers office. In 1865, Clara was appointed by the government to coordinate the efforts of locating prisoners of war, recovering wounded, identifying the dead, and matching them with the families who were searching. For over three years, she occupied rooms on the third floor of this building, using them as a storeroom, office, and lodging. After she left this location, most of her supplies were still stored here. Nothing was moved through the early 1900s. In 1911, the building's owners were worried about mandated updates due to safety concerns (if you haven't read about the Shirtwaist Factory fire in New York, I encourage you to learn more about it). Their solution was to board over the entire set of stairs and rooms on the third floor. For 85 years, no one knew there was anything more than the first and second floors. In the 1990s, the building was slated for demolition. One of the workers felt a "tap" on his shoulder and when he turned around, an envelope was poking from the ceiling. This led to an exploration and the rediscovery of these rooms. Deterioration had occurred, so they spent several years restoring the space to its original appearance as it was when Clara Barton used it. It is now a museum, and definitely worth a visit!

This layout is one of the Paper Loft layouts I made at a class in Lancaster. The large, folder-shaped mat was initially intended to serve as the base for a mini album. I don't usually need that, so I used the base as a mat (there's a peek-a-boo pocket on top, so it could be a mini album). I added the wood-toned journal box and then used a similar paper to mat the vertical photos on the right. The title area is one of the Civil War trading cards. I mounted it with photo corners so I can look at both sides.

Here's a look at the upstairs rooms. They arranged the furniture much as Barton would have used it in the late 1800s.

This layout should look familiar. I posted it as a bonus post on June 14th. You can read about the layout creation here.