Nurses were not used much in the start of the war, and they were more than likely camp followers: wives, daughters or mothers of soldiers who followed the army seeking food and protection. Nurses did a lot of the custodial work, feeding, and bathing patients, emptying bed pans, cleaning the hospital and cooking sometimes.
Seamstresses, cooks and maids were the most common roles during the war for women. This is also the first time women did these jobs in the military. These too were camp