14 November 1908 – Irene Annie Clark

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From the Wiltshire Times on Saturday the 14th of November 1908

On Saturday an inquest was held, before the Coroner (Mr. A. L. Forrester) and a jury, touching the death of Irene Annie Clark, aged one year and ten months, who died in the Cottage Hospital the same morning.

A cozy interior photograph taken inside The Whole Hog in Malmesbury. The focal point is a brick fireplace with a small black cast-iron stove inside it. Above the stove, a plaque with the word "JUBILEE" is embedded in the brickwork. In front of the fireplace, there are two round wooden tables surrounded by a few wooden stools with various designs. To the left, an open door provides a glimpse of the outside. The walls are paneled with wood, and there are framed pictures and notices hanging on them, contributing to the warm and inviting atmosphere of the pub.
Looking at the fireplace in the bar of The Whole Hog, in Malmesbury. Monday 26 August 2024.

From the evidence of Ada Mary Clark (mother of the child) and Annie Woodman (a sister-in-law of Mrs. Clark), it appears that about 9.30 a.m. on Friday, the mother went into the garden to hang out some clothes, leaving the child combing her hair in front of the kitchen fire, which had an iron guard attached. Another daughter, aged three years, was also in the kitchen. Directly afterwards the screams of both children were heard, and Mrs. Clark and Mrs. Woodman both rushed in and found the deceased standing on the rug all in flames. They rolled the child in the rug and put out the flames.

Dr. R. C. Pitt, who examined the child, ordered her removal to the hospital. She died in the hospital the next morning from shock and the injuries she received. The verdict was, “Death from shock, following fire burns, accidentally caused”

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