Annae Barney Gorman

1862 – 1938

Annae Barney Gorman was a civic and business leader who founded the Barney Community Center. Mrs. Gorman volunteered at Walter Reed Army Hospital during World War I, instructing wounded veterans in new skills that could be used to help them find jobs when they were released. After the war, she returned to Dayton and began to teach children with physical disabilities some of the  same skills she had taught soldiers. The Barney Community Center provided health services, free clinics, occupational therapy, classes in first aid, cooking, and current events, and a lunch program. She was at the Center every week and hundreds of children who had received help knew her by sight. Eventually “Barney’s” evolved into  Dayton Children’s Hospital. Ms. Gorman was also a founding member of the Dayton Woman’s Club and was active in both the Dayton Garden Club and Dayton Art Institute. Her personal dedication to helping children in need made her a beloved member of the community  and helped create an institute with the same essential humanitarian mission