Lizzie Borden took an axe
And gave her mother forty whacks.
When she saw what she had done,
She gave her father forty-one.
Lizzie Borden’s tale is one of family, wealth, and murder. There’s actually many contradictions in this one, but let’s start from the beginning…
Background:
Lizzie was born in 1860 in Fall River, Massachusetts. She lived with her father, Andrew, and her stepmother, Abby. There was also her sister, Emma, and the live-in maid, Bridget.
In researching the background of this family, you quickly learn the family was wealthy. They also had a religious upbringing.
Mr. Borden seemed to wear many hats. He worked in the manufacturing and selling of furniture and, interesting enough, caskets. He was a property developer, director of textile mills, and president of a bank. All of which, I would imagine, greatly contributed to the wealth of the Borden family.
The infamous murders happened in 1892, so this puts Lizzie in her early 30s. At this time, there was quite a bit of tension in the Borden household. As is often the case, Lizzie did not get along with her stepmother. As a matter of fact, she usually referred to her as Mrs. Borden. There were also issues between Lizzie and her father. For example, one story involved pigeons. One of those contradicting tales, we’re not sure how true it was, but it goes on to say… Lizzie had built a home for some pigeons in the family barn, and Andrew ended up killing them because they were attracting the neighborhood children.
Another story of tension, which is more believable, revolves around the multiple Borden real estate properties. Andrew gifted some of those properties to Abby’s family. This upset his daughters greatly and caused many arguments.
The Day of Murders:
August 4, 1892
Abby was the first victim. She was found in the upstairs guestroom after Mr. Borden was discovered. Based on the evidence, she was struck with a hatchet or axe while facing her attacker. She fell to the floor, face down, and was hit 17 or 18 additional times. (Personal opinion: This violent of a crime with that many hits, says it was personal. It wasn’t random or a surprise encounter.) This occurred between 9 & 10:30 am.
During this time, Andrew was on his morning walk. Apparently, this was normal routine. When he returned at 10:30 am, he struggled coming in the door, claiming it was jammed, and Bridget had to let him in.
Another contradiction happened at this time. Lizzie said she helped her father to the couch where he would take a nap. She even took his boots off for him. If you look at the crime scene photos, Andrew was wearing his boots when his body was found.
As for Andrew’s murder, evidence shows he was, in fact, sleeping when it happened. The first strike to his face was enough to kill him, but the murderer continued with 10 more hits. His time of death shows 11 am, only 30 minutes after he returned home.
Lizzie was the one to find his body and Abby was found shortly after.
The Investigation:
Lizzie was in the barn. Emma was in Fairhaven. Bridget was on the third floor. John Morse was visiting his niece.
We can’t say for certain how many of these alibis were verified.
The police did a poor job of investigating immediately following the murders. They barely scanned the house over, only making note of possible weapons being in the basement. They didn’t even take those in for examining. They didn’t search for bloodstains. It wasn’t until two days later that they returned to the house to search more thoroughly. By this time, though, evidence could have easily been destroyed.
Facts Against Lizzie:
- Police were stationed outside the Borden home after the murders. One reported seeing Lizzie go in and out of the cellar multiple times and doing something in front of the sink.
- A friend saw Lizzie tearing up a dress because, per Lizzie, it was covered in paint.
- She contradicted herself on several things. In one report, she claimed to have heard noises during the time her father was being murdered. At another time, she said she heard nothing out of the ordinary.
In Lizzie’s Defense:
- When all of this was happening, she was administered morphine to calm her nerves. This easily could have interfered with her testimony.
- Multiple sources confirmed her alibi of being in the barn when her father was killed.
- The district attorney seemed to be more aggressive than the norm. I recently read thru the transcripts from the inquest/trial and would agree to this statement. At times, it was as if he were badgering Lizzie, repeatedly asking the same questions especially if he didn’t seem to approve of her response. Some of the questions and wording confused me.
- Lizzie had previously expressed concerns to a friend about the well-being of her family. Her claims? Threats were made against her father. The house had been burglarized, and strangers had been seen around their house.
Other information that may or may not be important:
- Members of the Borden family had been violently ill. It was severe enough for there to be a fear of poisoning. The local doctor thought otherwise after finding out the family had consumed old fish for dinner.
- John Morse, who was an uncle (brother to the first Borden wife), was considered a suspect at one point. He was visiting the family to discuss business and financial matters, which would have also been the motive. One report states his visit was actually a surprise, as often was the case.
- When Andrew first arrived home from his walk, he asked where Abby was. Lizzie told him that she had received a message about visiting a sick friend. No further details could ever be found about this. Rewards were even offered to no avail.
After the Arrest & Acquittal:
Due to the lack of proper evidence, as well as so much being hearsay, Lizzie was acquitted of the murders in June of 1893.
People were outraged when they heard that Lizzie was accused of a double murder, even more so that it was her family. Newspaper articles frequently argued against the allegations. This even stirred up discussions on equal rights, but also how delicate and frail a woman like Lizzie was.
Author’s Opinion:
I failed to find anything on this, but I feel it’s important to say. The morning of the murders, when Andrew was unable to come in the front door on his own, Bridget testified of hearing Lizzie laughing from above, stating it was impossible to be on the second floor and not see Abby’s body. Yet, after her murder and before Andrew’s, Bridget had gone up to the third floor, which means she, too, passed by Abby.
It strikes me as odd that the police failed to do a proper investigation. With Andrew Borden being a wealthy businessman, you would think more attention would have been given.
We must keep in mind that this occurred during the late 1800’s, so there certainly were limitations in what could be done for the investigation.
There were too many people trying to call the shots in this case. The speculations were all over the place. There were rumors that Lizzie was being abused by her father. It was also thought that Lizzie and Bridget were having an affair.
Sources:
lizzie-borden.com
americanheritage.com
famous-trials.com
wikipedia.com
Lore & Curiosities 