Skoplje was a center of trade, government, and primary rail connection between northern Serbia (now under Austrian Control) and Greece made it a prime location for amassed invading armies. (Map by author)
Relief workers in Skoplje immediately understood the precariousness of their situation. Skoplje was a strategically important city on the main rail line between Salonika, Greece and Nish, Serbia, and served as a political and military center after the fall of Belgrade to the Austria-Hungarian army. For the Bulgarian army, taking Skoplje would be a significant blow to the Allied effort in Serbia. Understanding the severity of the situation, Lady Paget traveled to Salonika to inform the allies of the need for military aid in Serbia. Some American Red Cross workers, fearing for their safety, fled Serbia.
Members of the American Red Cross Sanitation Commission the decision to stay or leave was on an individual basis. Throughout September and October, Osborn said goodbye to a number of his colleagues, as many who were traveling with women chose to leave Serbia as the situation declined. Stanley Osborn and his colleague, Charles Fox, were already working closely with Lady Paget’s Relief Fund in Skoplje. Her unit, inclusive of Osborn and Fox, made the decision to stay together.
Doctors Beyond Borders: Serbian Relief in 1915 
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