American Red Cross (ARC) arrives in Johnstown, Clara Barton National Historic Park, 1889.

On May 31, 1889, just upstream from Johnstown, PA, the South Fork Dam failed and unleashed a 30-ft high wall of 20-million tons of water that devastated the town. Over 2,000 people died and thousands were left homeless. Barton arrived 5-days later on June 5 with the American Red Cross (ARC) to direct relief operations. She would later describe her experiences, "I cannot lose the memory of that first walk on the first day... the wading in mud, climbing over [debris]... the getting around bodies of dead animals and often people were being borne away. The smoldering fires and drizzling rain." After four months at the site, the disaster relief operation became the most celebrated effort in the early history of the American Red Cross.