Clara Barton founded the American Red Cross in Washington D.C., on May 21, 1881. Barton founded the organization after going to Europe in 1869 and working with the International Red Cross. The first chapters in the United States opened in upstate New York. Five people, including John D. Rockefeller, and the federal government donated money for the construction of a headquarters in D.C. One of the first efforts of the ARC was the Great Fire of 1881. This fire, which lasted from September 4-6, occurred in the thumb region of Michigan. The “Thumb Fire” left over 5,000 people homeless. The Red Cross then dealt with the Johnstown Flood, on May 31, 1889. This disaster killed over 2,200 people and injured thousands more. The flooding of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, is still one of the worst disasters to occur in the United States.