When her attempts to damp down this fire failed, she ran to douse herself in a nearby pond. But by the time Miss Nangle reached the water her clothing was fully ablaze, the flames reaching “an alarming height”. Severely burned, Miss Nangle was carried back to Uttoxeter and given medical assistance, though she was “without hope of recovery”. She lingered in agony for five weeks before dying on June 2nd.
According to Miss Nangle herself, the fire was ignited by a small spying-glass she was carrying in her pocket:
“It was a very hot day and it is supposed the reflection of the sun upon the glass set some part of her clothes on fire… She persisted to the last that the fire began in her pocket where the spying-glass was… Her death could not otherwise be accounted for, no lightning having been observed that day.”
Source: The Monthly Mirror, vol. 7, 1779. Content on this page is © Alpha History 2019-23. Content may not be republished without our express permission. For more information please refer to our Terms of Use or contact Alpha History.