The first president of the Ladies Association was Mrs. Henry (Eunice) Cook. She was born in Danvers as Eunice Winchester (1795-1872). In 1816, she married Henry Cook (1793-1875). Though he had once been involved in the export of soap, by the time of his death, his occupation was listed as that of a gentleman.

A great number of the letters sent to the Ladies Association were addressed to Mrs. Henry (Eunice) Cook. The letters she received describe the casualties who poured into Washington D.C. and the efforts of those working with the wounded. Many of the letters came from Almira L. Fales (d.1868) and her husband, Joseph. Almira Fales was one of the first women to actively provide aid to the wounded in Washington, D.C. The Fales’s letters present a vivid account of the conditions they encountered among the wounded.  In her Feb. 7, 1863 letter to Eunice Cook, Almira Fales promised to reserve some butter for Fitch Poole’s son, Horace. The July 22, 1863 letter to Eunice Cook expresses the Fales’s gratitude for the sympathy extended upon the death of their son at the Battle of Chancellorsville. In response to Eunice Cook’s request, Almira Fales included her photograph in the letter. It has been removed for storage in Photograph Box 2.  

Other letters to Eunice Cook came from the Executive Committee of the United States Sanitary Commission. One, dated July 9, 1864, from Gideon Bantz described the Battle of Monocacy which took place outside of Frederick City, Maryland.