Hollywood actress dies in freak accident while filming in San Antonio back in 1923

SAN ANTONIO - A freak accident on a movie set in San Antonio took the life of an aspiring young actress back in 1923.

Martha Mansfield had starred with the greats of the silent film era, including John Barrymore in “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” Bela Lugosi in “Silent Command,” and Rudolph Valentino in “His Wonderful Chance.”

In 1923, Mansfield was given the lead in the Civil War era-set silent film, “The Warrens of Virginia.”

There were hopes that the big budget movie would propel Mansfield into the next level of Hollywood stars back in the day.

The film told the story of a Southern woman who falls in love with a Union solider during the Civil War. The film was shot in San Antonio with Brackenridge Park being used as the battlefield at Appomattox.

On November 29, 1923, Mansfield had just filmed her scenes and was sitting in a car when, according to the New York Times, a smoker's match ignited her Civil War costume of billowing hoopskirts and flimsy ruffles. Leading man Wilfred Lytell threw his overcoat on her and her chauffeur suffered burns to his hands while trying to remove her burning clothing.

She was rushed to the hospital where she died on Nov. 30, 1923. She was just 24 years old.

According to the book "Dangerous Curves atop Hollywood Heels: The Lives, Careers, and Misfortunes of 14 Hard-Luck Girls of the Silent Screen" by Michael Ankerich, it was never determined who threw the match that ignited Mansfield's clothing. Some witnesses said they saw a match enter through the window of the car Mansfield was sitting in.