Lizzie Borden was the Massachusetts woman accused of killing her father, Andrew Borden, and stepmother, Abby Borden, with a hatchet in 1892. She was tried for the murders and acquitted in 1893. No one was ever convicted of the killings, leaving the case officially unresolved.
More than 130 years later, Lizzie Borden remains one of America’s best-known unsolved murder cases. The story has generated books, films, television productions and endless theories about what happened inside the Borden home in Fall River, Massachusetts. New interest in 2026 has also followed Netflix’s Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story, which dramatizes the case while taking considerable liberties with the historical record.
Who Was Lizzie Borden?
Lizzie Andrew Borden was born in Fall River, Massachusetts, in 1860. She was 32 when her father and stepmother were killed on August 4, 1892.
She lived with Andrew and Abby Borden, her older sister Emma and the family’s maid, Bridget Sullivan. The Borden household was financially comfortable, although Andrew was known locally as a wealthy and notably frugal businessman.
Lizzie became the central suspect after the murders. She was arrested on August 11, 1892, exactly one week after the killings.
What Happened to Andrew and Abby Borden?
Andrew and Abby Borden were killed inside their Fall River home on August 4, 1892.
Andrew was found dead on a sofa in the downstairs sitting room. Abby was discovered upstairs in a guest bedroom. Both had suffered multiple blows from a hatchet or similar weapon.
The circumstances immediately attracted national attention. There was no obvious forced entry, and Lizzie was in the house when the murders happened. Bridget Sullivan, the family’s maid, was also there earlier that morning.
The investigation quickly turned toward the people inside the house rather than an unknown intruder.
Did Lizzie Borden Kill Her Father and Stepmother?
It has never been established as a fact that Lizzie Borden killed Andrew and Abby Borden. She was accused, prosecuted and acquitted.
There were circumstances that prosecutors used against her. Her statements about the morning of the murders contained inconsistencies, investigators questioned the destruction of a dress and authorities believed she had attempted to purchase the poison prussic acid shortly before the killings. Much of the prosecution’s case, however, was circumstantial.
There were also major limitations by modern standards to the investigation. Modern forensic techniques, which are often used as standard nowadays, were either not available or not used in this case. The prosecutor was unable to have direct physical evidence to prove that Lizzie had murdered the two people.
This difference still is key in the case: Lizzie Borden was accused of killing her father and stepmother, but was never found guilty of the murders in a court of law.
Why Was Lizzie Borden Acquitted?
Lizzie Borden was found not guilty because the prosecutor did not establish ‘beyond a reasonable doubt that the circumstantial evidence established her guilt’
Her trial began in June 1893 in New Bedford, Massachusetts. Some potentially damaging evidence was excluded. Her earlier statements to authorities were ruled inadmissible because they had been taken without legal counsel, while testimony concerning an alleged attempt to purchase poison was also blocked.
The jury deliberated for roughly 90 minutes before finding Lizzie not guilty on June 20, 1893.
The verdict ended the criminal case against her. It did not end public suspicion.
What Evidence Was Used Against Lizzie Borden?
The case against Lizzie rested largely on circumstances rather than a single piece of conclusive evidence.
Among the details examined by investigators and prosecutors were:
- Her presence in the house when the murders occurred.
- Contradictory statements given during the investigation.
- Her alleged attempt to obtain prussic acid.
- A dress she said had been stained while doing household work and that was later burned.
- The absence of an identified killer other than the people already in the house.
- Tensions within the Borden family that investigators considered potentially relevant.
None of these points, individually or collectively, persuaded the jury to convict her. The Fall River Historical Society continues to describe the case as an unsolved mystery and maintains an extensive Borden collection for researchers.
What Happened to Lizzie Borden After the Trial?
Lizzie returned to Fall River after her acquittal, but her life never returned to normal.
She and Emma eventually purchased a large house called Maplecroft, where the sisters lived together. Lizzie remained in Fall River and largely withdrew from public discussion of the murders. The community’s suspicion followed her despite the not-guilty verdict.
The sisters later became estranged. Emma moved away from Fall River in 1905 after their relationship deteriorated. They never reconciled.
Lizzie died on June 1, 1927, at the age of 66. Emma died only nine days later.
Where Did Lizzie Borden Live After the Murders?
Lizzie lived at Maplecroft with Emma after the trial.
The house became associated with the sisters’ post-trial life, while the original Borden home became the more famous tourist site connected to the murders.
The property where Andrew and Abby were killed is now known as the Lizzie Borden House. It operates as a museum and bed-and-breakfast and has become a destination for people interested in the case.
What Happened to the Lizzie Borden House?
The original Borden home at 230 Second Street in Fall River has gone through several owners since the murders. It eventually became a bed-and-breakfast in 1996 and began offering public tours in 2004.
Its modern reputation is closely tied to paranormal stories and ghost-tour culture. Those stories are part of the property’s tourism history, not evidence about who committed the 1892 murders.
What Did Lizzie Borden Do After Being Acquitted?
Lizzie did not return to ordinary anonymity after her acquittal. She remained a local celebrity and a source of suspicion for the rest of her life.
She also cultivated interests beyond the murder case, becoming active in social and cultural activities in Fall River. Her friendship with actress Nance O’Neil eventually came under scrutiny and was part of the conflict that ultimately erupted between Lizzie and her sister, Emma.
Lizzie continued to live in Massachusetts until her death in 1927.
What Is the Lizzie Borden Nursery Rhyme?
The famous rhyme beginning “Lizzie Borden took an axe” became one of the most recognizable pieces of folklore associated with the case.
It is important to separate the rhyme from the historical record. The poem was written after the murders and embellished the number of blows inflicted on Andrew and Abby. The National Women’s History Museum notes that the rhyme does not accurately reproduce the historical details.
The rhyme helped turn a real criminal case into a piece of American folklore.
Is Netflix’s Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story Historically Accurate?
No. The Netflix series uses the real Lizzie Borden case as its foundation but invents or changes several events and relationships for dramatic purposes.
Recently, fact checking this mentioned tv movie, Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story, (2004) revealed many fictional parts like Lizzie and Bridget Sullivan having a romantic relationship, the murder of Bertha Manchester and fictitious links between Lizzie Borden and serial killer Aileen Wuornos.
Bridget Sullivan’s real history is particularly important because recent dramatizations give her a much more fictionalized role. Historical records show that Sullivan was the Borden family’s live-in maid and a key witness at Lizzie’s trial; she did not have the romantic relationship with Lizzie portrayed in the series.
For anyone watching the Netflix series for the first time, the murder, arrest and trial are historical; many of the surrounding personal relationships and additional crimes are dramatized.
Why is Lizzie Borden Still Famous?
Lizzie Borden’s story has lasted because the central question was never conclusively answered.
She was accused of a sensational double murder, received an unusually prominent trial, was acquitted and then lived for decades while the public continued to wonder whether the jury had made the right decision.
The case also arrived at a time when newspapers could turn a criminal trial into a national spectacle. The Library of Congress preserves hundreds of historical newspaper materials connected with the arrest and trial, showing how intensely the case was covered in 1892 and 1893.
Today, the case sits somewhere between criminal history and American folklore.
What is the Biggest Unanswered Question in the Lizzie Borden Case?
The biggest unanswered question is who actually killed Andrew and Abby Borden.
Lizzie’s acquittal means there was no criminal conviction for the murders. No alternative suspect was ultimately convicted either, so the case remains unresolved.
That is also why modern retellings should be read carefully. A television series can offer a theory, a historian can argue for one interpretation and true-crime audiences can develop their own theories, but none changes the historical verdict.
Lizzie Borden was accused. She was tried. She was acquitted. The murders remain officially unsolved.
