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Why Florence Nightingale Used to Carry an Owl in Her Pocket
The mother of modern nursing carried something surprising on her person at times during her standout career in medicine
Florence Nightingale, revered as the face of modern nursing, is celebrated for her innovative and pioneering work in healthcare. Her empathy and forward thinking is what helped make her so effective at her profession, but it also often veered into her private life. It’s the main reason she spent years carrying an owl around in her pocket, to the astonishment of many she came in contact with.
Nightingale (1820–1910) was born into a wealthy British family in Florence, Italy. She felt the call to serve others from a young age, despite her parents’ initial objections to making a career out of selfless care as a nurse. Training in Germany, she took her first position in a London hospital for gentlewomen in 1853.
She rose to international prominence during the Crimean War (1853–1856), leading a team of nurses to care for wounded British soldiers in Scutari, Turkey. Taking appalling sanitary conditions head one, she implemented stricter hygiene protocols (especially hand-washing), improved ventilation, and worked to provide access to water and food. These measures dramatically reduced mortality rates and…
