Newspaper Clipping of the Day

Via Newspapers.com

It’s time for another peep at that ever-popular Fortean category, Mystery Fires!  The “London Daily Mail,” February 5, 1921:

A remarkable series of fires, described in the official report as "of doubtful origin," caused the London Fire Brigade to pay four separate visits yesterday morning to Upper Frognal Lodge, Hampstead. A few minutes after 2 a.m. firemen were called to the lodge, where they extinguished with buckets of water a small fire in the front room on the second floor. At about 3.45 a.m. the brigade were again summoned and overcame a small outbreak in the back room on the second floor.

At about 5.30 a further alarm was given, and when the firemen arrived small fires were in progress in the front room on the first floor and the front room on the second floor. As in the two previous cases, buckets of water were used to extinguish the outbreak. Again, at 9.30, the brigade were called to Frognal Lodge, where three separate fires in the front and back rooms on the second floor had to be extinguished. 

The house is a large one occupied by Lieutenant-Colonel R.S. Webber. With the first call there were two separate fires, one causing damage to an armchair and the other to a sofa and four chairs. The second outbreak was in a cupboard in the bathroom on the second floor; in the third case a cupboard in the front room on the first floor and window curtains in the front room on the second floor were dealt with.

A brief sequel appeared in the “Daily Telegraph” four days later:

More mysterious fires occurred yesterday morning at 67 Frognal, Hampstead, the residence of Lieut. Colonel R.S. Webber. 

On the arrival of the fire brigade outbreaks were discovered in a cupboard in the bath-room on the first floor, a cupboard in the bathroom on the second floor, a bedroom front of the first floor, and another front room on the first floor There were, according to the fire brigade report, four separate fires. No appliances were used, the flames being quickly subdued. The cause is given as “doubtful." On Friday last, the fire brigade was called four times to the same house where ten separate “seats” of fire were discovered. The cause then was ascribed as “doubtful.”

I did not find any more reports of fires, “doubtful” or otherwise, at the home, which must have come as a great relief to both Lt. Webber and the overworked Hampstead fire brigade.