It was a time of brutal conflict, and countless innocent lives hung in the balance. Near East Relief would have to work quickly to save thousands of orphans — and it did.

How did a massive Ottoman army barracks become a home to 9,000 refugees fleeing military violence?

By 1921, the Queen of Cities was inundated with refugees from Anatolia, the Caucasus, and Russia. Thousands of lives hung in the balance. What could Near East Relief do?

The golden city on the Bosphorus had it all: wealth, beauty, diversity . . . and a burgeoning refugee crisis.