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Sarah Ann Heald

Age: 17

Sex: female

Date: 9 Jan 1904

Place: Barrow

Sarah Ann Heald was found dead in a reservoir.

She went missing after going out on an errand at 10.30pm on 9 January 1904. Her body was found three weeks later in the hot water reservoir belonging to the Steel Company at Barrow on 1 February 1904.

At her inquest a man that had been keeping company with her had given evidence so unsatisfactory that the coroner adjourned the inquiry to enable a post mortem to be carried out. It was later found that there was no suspicion on him and the Coroner expressed his dissatisfaction that he had not told his evidence in a straight forward manner and that he had been guilty of giving great falsehoods in his initial evidence.

Earlier around 12.30pm on Saturday 9 January 1904 a woman who had lived on Strawberry Terrace in Barrow said that Sarah Heald had been round to see her because she had caught her clothes on fire. The woman said that Sarah Heald had been crying and that she had offered her some of her clothes but that she had not taken them.

The father had not at first mentioned that Sarah Heald had been on fire at the inquest but after the woman's statement the father was recalled and he said that Sarah Heald had never mentioned to him that she had been on fire. He also said that she had other clothes and that when he had last seen her, he was going in as she was going out, and he did not notice what she was wearing.

The doctor said that there were no marks of external violence and all her organs were healthy and that she was a virgin. He said that her throat was free from obstruction and that her stomach contained five large raisins. He also noted that there was no evidence of burning.

The Coroner's jury returned a verdict of found drowned.

She had lived in Parker Street in Barrow.


*map pointers are rough estimates based on known location details as per Place field above.

see www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk

see Manchester Courier and Lancashire General Advertiser - Saturday 06 February 1904

see Sheffield Daily Telegraph - Friday 05 February 1904

see Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer - Tuesday 02 February 1904

see Yorkshire Evening Post - Saturday 16 January 1904

see Lancashire Evening Post - Friday 05 February 1904