Military nurses arrived in Europe before the American Expeditionary Forces. At the outset of WWI, 403 women were on active duty in the Army Nurse Corps, founded in 1901. The first Army nurses sailed for Europe in April 1917 before American troops were there and established six base hospitals with the British Expeditionary Forces. In October 1917, they began serving with the American Expeditionary Forces. By the end of the war 21,480 nurses had enlisted and over 10,000 had served overseas. Three were awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, 23 received the Distinguished Service Medal, several were wounded, and more than 200 died while serving. The gas mask is a mask used to protect the wearer from inhaling airborne pollutants and toxic gases. The mask forms a sealed cover over the nose and mouth, but may also cover the eyes and other vulnerable soft tissues of the face. Some gas masks are also respirators, though the word gas mask is often used to refer to military equipment.
