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a c k n o w l e d g m e n t s in writing this history of the American red cross, i sought to produce an independent work of scholarship, one that is free from any outside influence or agenda. The task proved more monumental than i could have imagined. i did not take any money or direction from the red cross or any other organization with a vested interest in the topic, but i would not have completed the book without encouragement and support from friends, colleagues, and family, as well as people i will never know. First, i want to thank the anonymous workers that Google and other organizations hire to scan whole public-domain books to be placed online. The availability of so much digital material in a searchable format seems poised to revolutionize historical research. moreover, Google Books and similar websites offer an example of privately funded organizations acting in the public good—a theme of this work. i owe a huge debt of gratitude also to archivists and librarians at government and nonprofit archives, who made this work possible. At the national Archives and records Administration in college Park, maryland, archivists organized thousands of boxes of American red cross material and provided a well-organized finding aid. Tab Lewis, in particular, helped guide me to some material that i might not have found elsewhere. At the Library of congress, photo archivist Jan Grenci helped me navigate through the unprocessed collection of American red cross photographs and dug up pictures that i would never have found myself. The archivist at the American red cross, susan robbins Watson, not only provided boxes of red cross reports and helped me with permissions for photographs, but, in keeping with the organization’s volunteer spirit, provided jumper cables when i accidentally left my car’s lights on and drained my car battery. To maintain the morale necessary to complete a book, i relied on my own far-flung network of volunteer supporters. They provided many services similar to those of an early- twentieth-century red cross chapter: canteen service (ample refreshments when needed), camp service (allowing me to crash on their couches and futons during research trips), and home service (counsel, advice, and support). Finally, they helped to nurse my project from infancy through adulthood. during its infancy and childhood (as a dissertation), i would have gotten nowhere without david rosner, Amy Fairchild, ron Bayer, James colgrove, Gerry oppenheimer, and nitanya nedd at the center for history and ethics of the columbia University mailman school of Public health. my dissertation writing group at columbia’s Graduate school of Arts 290 Acknowledgments and sciences also helped push the project forward. i would like to thank Alex cummings , Joshua Wolff, Ansley erickson, Tim White, eric Wakin, Pavel schlossberg, Pilar Zazueta, and Adina Popescou for reading early drafts of my chapters. during the dissertation phase, my new York friends, including mimi rupp, nancy cotter, megan Wolff, sean murray, dana march, and numerous classmates and friends in the columbia community provided relief, encouragement, and welcome distractions. in Washington, i received inestimable personal support and sage advice from saundra maley, maria mitchell, sandy schmidt, rita Kranidis, and Julie myers. i am also grateful to Ambassador Arthur hartman and donna hartman for choosing me as their house-sitter while i was doing the archival research. more recently, the members of my book club in maryland deserve thanks for giving me a free pass and not expecting me to have read any of the books we discussed and for agreeing to take a crack at the manuscript themselves. martina Barash provided very helpful copyediting and lawyerly questions that helped me clarify sections of the early chapters. The manuscript spent its adolescence in richmond, Virginia, where my colleagues at Virginia commonwealth University, Karen rader and John Powers, created a homelike atmosphere in the science Technology and society program and unwavering support for my scholarship. Wanda clary also provided moral support and laughter during this time. my students in the “disasters in social context” class at the L. douglas Wilder school of Government and Public Affairs also helped shape my understanding of the wider history of disaster relief. sometimes, you really learn a topic only by teaching it. during the 2010–11 academic year, i was granted generous leave to accept a stetten Fellowship at the national institutes of health. Although the fellowship focused on another project, i benefited greatly from participation in the community of...

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