Curling irons have long been a staple of beauty routines, but in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, they sometimes played roles far beyond hair styling. From shocking injuries to surprising heroics, these six newspaper reports reveal the unpredictable — and occasionally dangerous — side of this everyday tool.
1. A Fiery Fall: The Corset Catastrophe
One of the most commonly reported mishaps involving curling irons involved dropping one down and into one’s clothing. For example, in 1900, it was reported that a young woman was at home, curling her hair in preparation for church when she dropped her curling iron. It fell inside her gown and she immediately began twisting, jumping, and screaming as the hot iron burned her torso.
A newspaper article on the event tells us that “the house was filled with the odor of baked backbone and tenderloin. Her parents came rushing into the room and found her… and thought her crazy.”
The young woman was eventually able to explain, through the searing pain, what the problem was, and “her mother ripped her corset with a butcher knife and the curling iron dropped out smelling like hog killing time and fried cracklings.”
Source: The daily chieftain. (Vinita, Ind. Ter. [Okla.]), 31 Jan. 1900.
2. The Eyeball Incident
Accidentally burning an eyeball with a curling iron is the stuff of nightmares, and yet this is exactly what happened to a woman in 1915. According to newspaper reports, Mrs. McKinney was severely injured when her curling iron slipped out of her hand and fell against her left eyeball. Her eyeball was badly burned and she suffered a lot of pain as a result of the injury.
Source: Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]), 05 May 1915.
3. Pierced Her Brain
But worse than burning an eyeball is trying to figure out how a woman fell hard enough to have a curling iron pierce her brain. Reported in 1922, the article states:
“While curling her hair…, Mary A. Jessich, 26, a school teacher, fell to the floor and was instantly killed when the curling iron pierced her brain. The young woman is believed to have been seized with a dizzy spell, to which she was subject, and had been away from school because of illness… When her mother heard the thud of her body, she ran into the room and found her daughter dead.”
Source: The evening world. (New York, N.Y.), 16 Nov. 1922.
4. Staring Down the End of a Curling Iron
On the flip side of curling irons causing injury are all the published stories of people being saved by curling irons.
In 1908, Mrs. Slavin was awakened by the noise of two men who were rummaging through the room next to her own. Almost immediately she grabbed her curling iron, went to the other room and pointed the iron at them, threatening to shoot. Wanting nothing to do with a gun, the men backed up and leaped out of the window.
Source: The Lake County times. (Hammond, Ind.), 18 Aug. 1908.
5. Stop Or I’ll Shoot
A similar occurrence happened in 1911 when Mrs. Walter, asleep in the rear room of her husband’s jewelry store, woke up when she heard a window being raised. She quickly grabbed a curling iron on her dresser, pointed it at the man at the window, and shouted, “Crawl back or I’ll shoot!” The man took one look at the weapon, dropped back out of the window, and fled the scene.
Source: Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. (Newark, N.J.), 17 Nov. 1911.
6. Chicken Bone
Finally, there is a newspaper report published in 1893 about the use of a curling iron as a medical instrument.
The article tells us, “[T]he gentlemen went fishing, and their success was abundant, for they carried back to the little cottage dozens of excellent fish. In the morning the breakfast was made very inviting by the serving up of a fine mess of the fish caught the night before. [O]ne of the young ladies in the party had the misfortune, while eating her breakfast, to get a small fish bone in her throat. It did not strangle her, but gave her considerable discomfort, and every effort to dislodge it failed. Fears were entertained that unless the bone was taken out it would cause inflammation, and so the sufferer was taken in a rowboat and a visit made to a neighboring island in search of assistance. The bone could be seen just back of the tonsils, but how to get at it was the question. In the search for aid a dentist was found, but he had no instruments with which to perform the operation. [Finally], a visit was made to a rather pretentious cottage on one of the islands where some wealthy people were staying, and though they searched they could find nothing among their household utensils that could be used for the purpose of fishing for the bone. ‘Why wouldn’t a curling iron do?’ suddenly asked one of the young ladies, with a flash of inspiration in her eyes… A curling iron was procured, and though a little nervousness was exhibited on the part of the operator – the sufferer’s brother – he soon succeeded in catching the bone between the jaws of the instrument and drawing it out.”
Source: Arizona republican. (Phoenix, Ariz.), 29 Nov. 1893.
Who knew such an innocent-looking tool could leave such a trail of burns, fatal injuries, and bold acts of bravery?
