Walter GREEN

Grave # 130- 22nd grave in 3rd Row


Trapped in Auto, Burns to Death’; Mysterious Case

Itinerate Painter of Aberdeen is Found Dead When Fire Department Arrives

Inquest Is Tomorrow

Wife Hysterical and Unable t Give Details of Tragedy On East Tenth Street

Trapped in his little “home on wheels” on which he and his wife were traveling about the country, Walter A. Green, an itinerate painter, lately of Aberdeen, was found burned to death this morning at 7:45 when firemen arrived on the scene at 1000 East Tenth street and burst in the door to the little home which had been erected on an automobile chassis.

His wife, hysterical, is being taken care of by the Family Welfare association, the car and its contents are in the hands of he sheriff and an inquest has been arranged for tomorrow at 9 o’clock – this in brief is the development of the case so far – but there is an air of mystery surrounding the fire and the death of Green.

Face Several Problems

A number of questions face the authorities in charge of the case. Where was the woman when the fire that killed her husband occurred? How did she get out of the car when it was necessary to move the body to open the door when the coroner arrived? How did the fire start? Why was the injury confined to the man and how did the woman escape without apparent injury? What prevented the husband from getting out when the wife was apparently able to do so without much trouble?

Bits of information let fall by the woman this morning showed that the man was her husband and that his name was Walter A. Green. She stated that they had been married about three years and that he had come to South Dakota from Michigan some three years ago. The woman gave her name as Ruby Green and stated that she had relations living in Lemmon. The couple has been in Sioux Falls for about a week while the man was picking corn for a farmer living about 12 miles from the city. According to the wife, Mr. Green was a painter by trade and had lived in Aberdeen for the past few weeks.

Mrs. Green is apparently nearly 30 years old while her husband was probably some five years older than his wife. Mr. Green had a sister living in Canada and a brother in the navy. Where his parents are is not known by the wife.

No signs of Violence

An examination of the body this morning failed to show any signs of violence and any cause for the death other than the possible breath of the fire.

Hearing a noise on the front porch of her home at 1000 East Tenth St., Mrs. Alfred Lund found a hysterical woman lying near the front door crying that her husband had been burned to death. It took some little while to understand from the woman’s’ disconnected talking just what had happened. The story was pieced out and an alarm sent to the fire department. Mrs. Lund and her daughter went to the assistance of the man but from all appearances her was dead when they arrived. The coroner was called and the body removed.

Woman Hysterical

Little could be learned from the woman as she was in a highly excited and nervous state. Her story gives but little light on the occurrence. She was awakened by something this morning and found the little enclosure full of choaking smoke. Just where her husband was she was not able to tell more than that she shook him and found him dead. She then sought h assistance of the neighbors.

Just how the woman got out of the room is not clear. The back door opens in and when the coroner arrived the man’s body was out of the bed and lying in such a way that is had to be moved before the door could be opened. The bedding was only slightly burned but the man’s clothing was destroyed. The man’s body was badly burned about the chest and back. How the woman escaped without apparent injury and where the fire originated is not clear to those investigating the case. It was believed at first that an explosion of the oil stove used for cooking was the cause but this stove was later found folded up along the wall.

Glass in Door Broken

The glass in the back door had been broken from the inside and large cuts on the arms and hand of the man would point to the fact that he had attempted to escape form the car. The door was held shut with and ordinary catch such as is used on screen doors but for some reason the man did not open it. Considerable force was used to tear the curtains covering the window and to tear the screen over the outside.

Argus-Leader (Sioux Falls, Minnehaha, South Dakota, United States of America) · 26 Oct 1923, Fri · Page 1

Walter Green
Walter Green of Aberdeen, who was burned to death in his motor touring bouse on the East Side last Friday morning, was buried Wednesday afternoon in an East Side Cemetery. Funeral services were held at 2:30 o’clock at the Burtch Funeral Home and were in charge of Rev. W.M. Allen, of the East Side Methodist church.

Mrs. Green, his wife, is still at McKennan hospital, but will soon be able to go to her parents at Lemmon.

Argus-Leader (Sioux Falls, Minnehaha, South Dakota, United States of America) · 1 Nov 1923, Thu · Page 14

(Transcribed by dell Dec. 6m 2023)

Contributed on 12/2/23 by 9katz
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Record #: 275650

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