On this Date in Minnesota History: July 19

July 19, 1911 – Following a post mortem and coroner’s inquest today, Miss Florentina Wichowski, 23, was placed under arrest in Cass Lake, Minn., for infanticide. She was charged with having concealed her dead baby in a shoe box under her bed for three days after its birth, during which she continued her duties as laundress at the Tedford Hotel.

The body of the three-days-old infant was found on the ground by girls employed at the hotel beneath the room occupied by Miss Wichowski.

The physicians who assisted the coroner in reviewing this case decided that the child had lived about 20 minutes after its birth.

A coroner’s jury was summoned and after hearing the evidence in the case, the jury concluded this afternoon that the death of the child was due to negligence.

Miss Wichowski admits to the birth of the child, which she said took place last Friday night (July 14). She explained that the father of the baby had “skipped out to Europe.” She insists that the infant was born dead and that as she did not wish anyone to know of her trouble, that she had placed it in a shoe box, and kept it there until early Monday morning (July 17) when she threw it from her window on the second story of the hotel building, where it was later found by other employees of the place.

The young woman, who is Polish, is bitter against the man in this case and insists that he, not she, should be made to go to jail.

The Bemidji Daily Pioneer; “Hides Child in Box; Now Under Arrest. Young Woman at Cass Lake Taken Into Custody Following Discovery of Infant’s Body. Tried to Keep It Secret. Finally Threw Baby From Window, After Having Concealed it for Three Days. Coroner’s Inquest is Held. Dr. Dumas and Other Physicians Decide Infant Was Alive When Born Friday.”; July 19, 1911; p. 1.

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