 On July 9 , 1861 , a hot day , Fanny was putting locks of her children 's hair into an envelope and attempting to seal it with hot sealing wax while Longfellow took a nap . Her dress suddenly caught fire , though it is unclear exactly how ; it may have been burning wax or a lighted candle that fell on her dress . Longfellow , awakened from his nap , rushed to help her and threw a rug over her , though it was too small . He stifled the flames with his body as best he could , but she was already badly burned . Over a half a century later , Longfellow 's youngest daughter Annie explained the story differently , claiming that there had been no candle or wax but that the fire had started from a self @-@ lighting match that had fallen on the floor . In both versions of the story , however , Fanny was taken to her room to recover and a doctor was called . She was in and out of consciousness throughout the night and was administered ether . The next morning , July 10 , 1861 , she died shortly after 10 o 'clock after requesting a cup of coffee . Longfellow , in trying to save her , had burned himself badly enough for him to be unable to attend her funeral . His facial injuries led him to stop shaving , thereafter wearing the beard which became his trademark . 
