Did Lizzie Borden Really Kill Her Parents? The Answer Is Very Complicated

One of the most famous true crime cases in history dates back to the late 1800s, when 32-year-old Lizzie Borden was accused of murdering her father and stepmother with a hatchet in their Fall River, Massachusetts home. After claiming to have discovered the dead bodies one August morning, many questions were raised, most importantly who could’ve committed such a heinous crime. Because of her strange attitude and contradictory statements, Borden soon became the prime suspect. But did she really do it?

No one but Borden herself knew the answer. But it might not be as black and white of an explanation as you’d expect. Since the 1892 murders, the Borden case has lived on in infamy, the story regaining popularity through TV, movies, and that persistent nursery rhyme. Though, as with any story that’s been retold throughout history, the details aren’t always truthful. Here’s what really happened—and why we still don’t know if Borden was a murderer.

The Crime

On the morning of August 4, 1892, the Borden house was occupied by Lizzie, her father Andrew Borden, her stepmother Abby Durfee Gray, and their live-in maid, Bridget Sullivan. Lizzie’s sister Emma had been out of town, visiting family friends in Fairhaven, Massachusetts. What started as an ordinary day—Lizzie and Abby doing their chores, Andrew taking a nap—soon turned to horror, when Lizzie allegedly found her father dead, hit multiple times in the head with a sharp object. Calling for help, Bridget joined her before they discovered Abby’s dead body upstairs, with even more damage.

It was confirmed that Abby was killed first, struck by a hatchet 19 times, and about 90 minutes later, Andrew was killed from 10 or 11 blows to the face.

Considering the rare extremity of violence for the time, plus Andrew Borden’s status as one of the wealthiest men in town, the murders caused a great stir. And without an obvious suspect or motive, the investigation was far from open-and-shut. Because of the class system of the time and ethnic biases towards Portuguese and Irish immigrants in town, it was speculated that an immigrant could have committed the crime. The investigators even went as far as to arrest three Portuguese men, but they ended up having strong alibis.

Other potential suspects included Lizzie’s uncle John Morse, as well as Bridget Sullivan and Emma Borden.

Lizzie’s behavior during the inquest hearing raised eyebrows. Contradicting herself and answering questions with round-about non-answers, investigators couldn’t figure out her story—or whether or not she was telling the truth. (It was later revealed she had been prescribed morphine after the murders and was likely under the influence at the time of the interrogation). The inquest, along with circumstantial evidence, ultimately led to her arrest for the murders on August 11, 1892.

The Trial and Verdict

The circumstantial evidence against Lizzie was enough to arrest her, but the trial was unable to legally prove she committed the murders. People pointed to the alleged strained relationship between Lizzie and her stepmother, and a potential motive being her inheritance. A witness came forward to claim that Lizzie attempted to buy prussic acid, a fast-acting poison, the day before the murders. And to make matters worse, it was discovered that Lizzie had burned a dress days after the murders, which she explained was ruined with paint.

But while there was reason to believe Lizzie could’ve done it, there was not enough physical evidence to say without a doubt that she did. The biggest reason for this was that the murder weapon was never found.

The trial began nearly a year after the murders on June 5, 1893, and on June 20, Lizzie was acquitted.

A similar murder was committed just days before the trial began, when 22-year-old Bertha Manchester was axed to death in Falls River. A Portuguese immigrant was charged. Though there’s no physical evidence linking him to the Borden murders, it’d be difficult not to make the connection. Many have speculated that the jury on Lizzie’s case could have been influenced by the other murder when deliberating.

The Public’s Perception of Lizzie Borden

Another big part of Lizzie’s case was the picture the media painted. Though there wasn’t social media or live news broadcasts back in the late 1800s, newspapers were full of tabloid journalism—even if the term had not originated yet. Given how high-profile the trial was, every bit of it made headlines, with some publications much more sensational than others. And as author Sarah Miller points out in her book The Borden Murders: Lizzie Borden and the Trial of the Century, stories were published without proper confirmation or source verification, leading to false narratives about Lizzie.

Sensational headlines and speculative reporting made it easy for the general public to pick sides.

From The Boston Globe’s August 18, 1892 story titled “New Light,” reporting “envy of the step mother” and “anger at the father so intense as to make Lizzie insane” as potential motives, to their October 10, 1892 article “Lizzie Borden’s Secret,” the media had no issue exploiting the case.

On the other hand, it’s important to note that other newspapers did report on the case in a favorable light for Lizzie. Women’s groups supported her during the trial, as did her family and friends. But that didn’t eliminate those against her.

The public’s negative perception of Lizzie followed her for the rest of her life. Although she was acquitted, people never stopped believing she killed her father and stepmother. Between the “Lizzie Borden took an axe” skipping rope rhyme, continued media coverage, and the fact that she and her sister Emma inherited a large sum of money from their father, the general public painted her a villain. She was no longer welcome in Fall River, however, she lived there for the rest of her life, buying a home with her sister dubbed Maplecroft.

Eventually, Lizzie and Emma had a falling out, but Lizzie continued socializing, going out to the theater, making new friends, and trying to live a normal life as best as possible. On June 1, 1927, she died of pneumonia at the age of 66 in Fall River.

Given the brutality of the Borden Murders, the complexity of the case, and the rarity of a high class woman as the accused, the legend of Lizzie Borden endures. And with acclaimed actresses such as Elizabeth Montgomery, Christina Ricci, and Chloë Sevigny portraying the real-life figure for TV and film, she’s hardly ever left the cultural zeitgeist.

You can catch the latest portrayal of Lizzie Borden’s case in Netflix’s Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story, streaming all episodes on Thursday, September 17.