Lewiston Morning Tribune, Wednesday, February 8, 1928

"Burns in Home"

Wm Farnam, Aged Man, Dies When Cabin Burns. Think Lamp Set Fire

Authorities Decide Against Inquest Over Remains of Victim Who Met Fearful Death Alone.

    Fire, presumably caused by the turning over of a kerosene lamp or perhaps through a straw mattress being ignited by ashes falling from his pipe, brought death to William Farnam, 72, and completely destroyed his one-room home at 617 Snake River Avenue at 8:30 last night.

    Mr. Farnam, judging from the condition of the room when the firemen entered, was lying on a double couch of rough construction, stated his brother, T.L. Farnam, who was absent at the time of the tragedy.

    Only a few minutes before the fire broke out, Alex LaPlante, a neighbor, had called at the Farnam place and found the occupant sitting down. At that time, apparently Mr. Farnam was having trouble with the lamp. Within 20 minutes after Mr. LaPlante left the cabin and returned to his home, his wife discovered the Farnam home to be enveloped in flames. An alarm was sounded, and the department responded promptly but the inflammable nature of the building and its contents caused it to resemble a tinder box within a few minutes after the fire started.

    A search of the premises revealed the body of the aged man in a reclining position on his bed, burned to a crisp.

    Mr. Farnam until recently had been a resident of the county home, returning to be with his brother about 10 days ago. He had resided in Lewiston for almost 30 years and most of that time was employed at odd jobs.

    The police, sheriff, Coroner Brower and Prosecuting Attorney Fred J. Babcock were on the scene early. The authorities decided no inquest was necessary, it being clearly a case of purely accidental death.

    Aside from his brother residing in Lewiston, Mr. Farnam is survived by two other brothers, one, C.L. residing at Lone Jack, Idaho, and the other, T.F. Farnam, residing near Palouse, Wash. Arrangements for the funeral have not been completed. The remains are at the Brower-Wann parlors.

Lewiston Morning Tribune, Saturday, February 11, 1928

    Remains to Palouse - the remains of the late William Farnum (sic), who lost his life in a fire on Snake River Avenue this week, were sent yesterday noon from the Brower-Wann chapel to Palouse, where the funeral and burial will be held this morning. Two brothers of the deceased reside at Palouse and the family has a burial plot in the Palouse cemetery.