Among the first American nurses to provide anesthetics was Catherine S. Lawrence during the American Civil War. It was during the Second Battle of Bull Run in 1863 that she administered chloroform to wounded soldiers who needed emergency operations in the battlefield. Nevertheless, it still took several years for nurses to step forward and formally answer the call to provide anesthesia. Reasons for this delay included lack of training, the non-emergency nature of civilian surgical practice after the war was over, and the paucity of role models and sponsors. However, the wartime concept of nurses providing anesthesia care gradually took root as surgeons trained and encouraged nurses to take on this important role.