"REVOLUTIONARY RELIC USED AS
RED CROSS HEADQUARTERS"
Throughout 1917, the women of the Trenton chapter of the Red Cross worked at the Old Barracks, eventually taking over the entire building by 1918. Volunteers cut and sewed operating garments, knitted socks and sweaters, and made wound dressings and bandages. The Trenton Evening Times, a popular city newspaper, often published details about Red Cross meetings and events.
The unique and patriotic accommodations of the Trenton chapter during the war garnered notice from the National Red Cross organization. In January 1918, the organization’s internal publication The News Letter published this piece discussing the use of the Barracks as a Red Cross site.
Excitingly, a record of exactly how the building was used by the Red Cross exists. In 1926, the American Red Cross held their Regional Conference at the Old Barracks. The pamphlet made for the conference included a detailed description of how the Trenton Red Cross used each room of the Barracks.
In the photos below, the information from the pamphlet has been matched to photographs of the corresponding rooms in the Barracks as they were decorated when used by the patriotic organizations.
The Trenton Red Cross’ tenure at the Old Barracks proved a successful undertaking, thanks to their many volunteers and supporters—the Old Barracks Association and its members chief among them.