A Chimney Sweep’s Fatal Fall—and the Hidden Injury That Killed Him
Joseph Bauer fell from Judge Henry’s roof while sweeping a chimney. He seemed merely bruised—until a ruptured liver killed him days later, prompting a rare post-mortem watched by Olympia’s doctors.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Joseph Bouer, the chimney sweep who fell from the roof of Judge Henry’s house on Saturday afternoon, died at St. Peter’s hospital last evening. The ladder on which he was standing slipped, and he fell a distance of 25 feet. He was taken to St. Peter’s hospital, but was apparently uninjured beyond the bruising of his arm. On Saturday night he got up and walked about his room. On Sunday he was somewhat weaker, but rested well on Monday. Tuesday at about 5 o’clock his condition became more serious, and he died a few hours after. This morning a post mortem examination was held by Dr. Jento, assisted by Drs. Corey, Ingham and Watt—Drs. Wyman, Webb and Giles being present. It was found that the right lobe of the liver was ruptured two-thirds, causing a hemorrhage and death. The case was a rare one and was watched with much interest by the medical fraternity.
Mr. Bauer left property to the value of about $2,000, all of which he left to his mother. The funeral will occur tomorrow at 8 o’clock. Interment in the Catholic cemetery.
“He was taken to St. Peter’s hospital, but was apparently uninjured beyond the bruising of his arm... It was found that the right lobe of the liver was ruptured two-thirds, causing a hemorrhage and death.”
A fall from a ladder remains one of the most ordinary and lethal workplace accidents; the delayed diagnosis here is a reminder of how little doctors could see inside the body in 1891. The story also shows a worker’s small estate going to his mother, a human detail behind the era’s dangerous trades.
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