If you grew up in New England, you’ve probably heard the sing-song rhyme:
Lizzie Borden took an axe
And gave her mother forty whacks.
When she saw what she had done,
She gave her father forty-one.
Catchy, sure—but also way off. The truth? It’s messier, darker, and still has Fall River, Massachusetts buzzing more than 130 years later.
A Sweltering Summer Morning
August 4, 1892, started hot and sticky. Bridget Sullivan, the Bordens’ maid, wasn’t feeling great, but Lizzie’s stepmother, Abby, sent her out to clean windows anyway. Inside, Lizzie said she was in the dining room ironing handkerchiefs.
By late morning, both Andrew Borden and his wife Abby were dead. Abby was found upstairs in the guest room, brutally struck multiple times. A little later, Andrew was discovered downstairs on the living room sofa, attacked while he napped.
All Eyes on Lizzie
At 32, Lizzie became the obvious suspect. The house was locked tight, there were no signs of forced entry, and she’d been home the whole time. Then there were the odd details—a burned dress (she said it had paint on it) and the fact that she stood to inherit a lot of money from her father’s estate. The supposed murder weapon was a hatchet head found in the cellar; whether it was actually used is still debated.
The Trial Everyone Talked About
Her 1893 trial was a media circus. No women on the jury back then—just twelve men listening to weeks of testimony. The supposed murder weapon, a hatchet, was never proven to be hers. No blood-stained clothes. No eyewitnesses. After only 90 minutes, the jury came back with a “not guilty.”
Life Afterward
Lizzie stayed in Fall River, moving into a grand home called Maplecroft with her sister Emma. But the town never forgave her. Neighbors avoided her, newspapers ridiculed her, and kids would chant that nursery rhyme when she walked by. She died in 1927, at 66, still claiming she was innocent.
The House That Won’t Stay Quiet
The old Borden house still stands—and now it’s a bed-and-breakfast. You can even stay in the rooms where the murders happened. Guests talk about hearing footsteps in the hallway, whispers in the dark, bursts of giggling from upstairs, and even the sound of children playing in the attic. Some say they’ve caught a groan or a woman’s voice, maybe Abby herself. Ghosts or not, there’s something about that place that can send a shiver down your spine the moment you walk in.
The Haunted Nook 