Age: 0
Sex: male
Date: 24 May 1917
Place: Cliff Wood, Creeksea
The body of a new-born child was found dead in a ditch.
The body was naked and a pale blue linen overall and white pinafore were found nearby but they had no name or form of identification on them.
The body was found by a woman who was out collecting firewood when she saw the overall lying at the side of the ditch.
An examination of the child found that all the organs were healthy, it had had a separate existence and there were no marks of violence and so it was thought that the child had died from exposure.
A woman said that previously she remembered that on 10 May 1917 she was having dinner when a young woman aged 20-30 came to her door and asked her for a drink of water. She said that the woman appeared to have been in a hurry and looked worried and ill. She also said that she noticed what condition the woman was in. She said that after she drank the water the woman went off towards the cliffs. She said that she had been wearing a fawn coat over a white blouse and a black serge skirt, and a black hat trimmed with black ribbon. She also said that her hair was ginger and that she appeared to be well-to-do. However, she said that the woman was a total stranger to her.
see www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk
see Chelmsford Chronicle - Friday 25 May 1917