What was it like to be an early Nightingale probationer as St. Thomas' hospital in the 1870's? While much has been written about the administration of the Nightingale Training school, this author wanted to examine the actual experience of the probationers themselves - how did it differ from that of the modern nurse? The author used the ward diaries of three sets of probationers, from 1870 — 1890, together with the lecture notes of Mr Croft, the senior surgeon at St. Thomas' who delivered weekly lectures from 1872 onwards, to investigate the hospital routine of these women.