Crinoline Fires & the Mysterious Deaths of Oscar Wilde’s Half-Sisters....

Let our sponsor BetterHelp connect you to a therapist who can support you - all from the comfort of your own home. Visit and enjoy a special discount on your first month! Ok, so this started out as just a rabbit hole for me, and then, in typical fashion, it’s spiraled out of control and became a video. So please enjoy this ridiculous deep dive into the history myth of crinoline fires, and the really sad story of how Oscar Wilde’s half-sisters (Mary & Emily) died from a tragic fire accident at a Halloween Party in 1871... Sources: McMahon, Theo. “The Tragic Deaths in 1871 in County Monaghan of Emily and Mary Wilde-Half-Sisters of Oscar Wilde.” Clogher Record 18, no. 1 (2003): 129–45. I haven’t read this book, so I can’t vouch for it, but it looks interesting: The Irish Coroner: Death, murder and politics in Co. Monaghan, 1846-78 by Michelle McGoff-McCann (affiliate) Histo