Died in jail or a lockup
Charles Williams
Charles Williams died in the fire that destroyed the Douglas County jail at Roseburg, Oregon, on the morning of November 4, 1881. A dispatch from Portland, printed in the Helena Weekly Herald, said he was lost in the fire. A later brief in The Redwood Gazette also reported that he died in the flames, but its account of how the fire began differs from the Portland dispatch.
Cause of death, as reported: Cause not yet determined. A news dispatch from Portland says Williams was lost in the fire and may have tried to burn his way out, and a brief newspaper report says he set the building on fire hoping to escape.
Reported by: news dispatch from Portland (reporters); brief newspaper report.