Barton founded the American Red Cross in 1881. Although Henry Dunant had suggested in 1864 that Red Cross societies provide disaster relief as well as wartime services, Barton became the strongest advocate for the development of the Red Cross as a disaster relief organization in the years that followed. During the Third International Red Cross Conference in Geneva in 1884, the American Red Cross proposed an amendment to the Geneva Treaty calling for expansion of Red Cross relief to include victims of natural disasters. This resolution became known as the “American Amendment” to the Geneva Treaty of 1864.

Digital facsimile of the 1899 printing from the Hathi Trust at this link.

Also published with a different title: The Red Cross: A history of this remarkable international movement in the interest of humanity. Washington, DC: American National Red Cross, 1898.