![Black and white depiction of Florence Nightingale treating soldiers during the Crimean War](https://onlinenursing.twu.edu/sites/default/files/field/image/mu-significant-events-in-nursing-feature-1200x615-compressed.jpg)
Infographic: Significant Events in Nursing History
Stretching back nearly 170 years, the history of nursing is a rich and fascinating one. See our infographic below for a timeline of significant events in nursing history.
![Texas Woman's University presents 'Significant Events in Nursing History.'](/sites/default/files/images/01-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1954, Florence Nightingale begins the practice of modern nursing, convincing the Western world of the value of educated nurses.](/sites/default/files/images/02-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1863, Mary Ann Bickerdyke cares for 2,000 troops on her own after the Battle of Lookout Mountain in Tennessee.](/sites/default/files/images/03-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1865, During Civil War, Capt. Sally Tompkins and Phoebe Levy Pember increase respect for nurses among Americans.](/sites/default/files/images/04-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1863, The Bellevue Hospital School of Nursing is founded in NYC, becoming the first school of nursing established on the principles of Florence Nightingale.](/sites/default/files/images/05-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1865, The American Red Cross is founded by Clara Barton, becoming its first President.](/sites/default/files/images/06-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1909, The University of Minnesota School of Nursing bestows first bachelor’s degree in nursing, setting a new standard in training and education](/sites/default/files/images/07-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1918, During a flu pandemic in Texas, an African American nurse, Viola Pettus, heroically saves countless lives.](/sites/default/files/images/08-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1923, The Frontier Nursing Service is founded by Mary Breckenridge. Under her guidance, nurses travel via horseback to deliver care.](/sites/default/files/images/09-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1939-45, During WWII, over 59,000 women serve as nurses in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps, and over 11,000 in the U.S. Navy Nurse Corps.](/sites/default/files/images/10-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1950, Texas Woman’s University opens the state’s first nationally, accredited nursing program.](/sites/default/files/images/11-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1953, Dorothy Sutherland of the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare attempts to declare a ‘Nurse Day.’ President Eisenhower declines the proclamation.](/sites/default/files/images/12-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1954, Texas Woman’s University’s nursing program begins in Dallas, at Parkland Hospital.](/sites/default/files/images/13-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1955, Elizabeth Lipford Kent becomes first African American in the US to earn a Ph.D. in Nursing.](/sites/default/files/images/14-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1960, Over 170 college nursing programs are opened across the country.](/sites/default/files/images/15-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1974, Florence Wald, Dean of Yale Nursing School, establishes Connecticut Hospice and launches a hospice movement in the US.](/sites/default/files/images/16-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1980, Master’s-level nursing degrees become a standard requirement for advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) certification](/sites/default/files/images/17-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![1982, The American Nurses Association (ANA) formally recognizes May 6th as ‘National Nurses Day.’](/sites/default/files/images/18-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![2004, The American Association of Colleges and Nursing (AACN) recommends APRNs continue education and earn a Dr of Nursing Practice degree.](/sites/default/files/images/19-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![2020, The World Health Organization (WHO) designates 2020 as the “Year of the Nurse and Midwife.” Today, 871 U.S. schools offer nursing education.](/sites/default/files/images/20-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![Texas Woman’s University’s top-ranked Family Nursing Practitioner (FNP) program is available online! Join TWU’s innovative culture for nursing professionals.](/sites/default/files/images/21-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
![If you would like to learn more about this infographic, or TWU’s Family Nursing Practitioner (FNP) program, email admissions@onlinenursing.twu.edu.](/sites/default/files/images/22-TWU-Nursing-History.jpg)
Stretching back nearly 170 years, the history of nursing is a rich and fascinating one. See our infographic below for a timeline of significant events in nursing history.
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