Well, I don't believe we have any criminals in our family, at least not any that I ever heard about, (excluding all pranksters, of which there are many) so I paid The Library of Congress a visit to unearth at the very least, a man wearing a hat. Or, not. Nothing worth discussing there either. Stumped. So, I pondered through my lost thoughts of what criminal is still at large, (even though perhaps dead for years) but a real life criminal that got away with it?
So why not bring delightful murderess, Lizzie Andrew Borden to my criminal post?
As the poem goes, Elizabeth Borden took an axe and gave her mother forty whacks, and when the job was nicely done she gave her father forty-one. Lizzie's unsolved case is known as, Cause celebre but surely someone (the murderer) knew the whole truth.
Some folks said, "She did it!"
While others said, "No, she didn't."
But she had to have done it.
Or not?
As her story goes, she was tried and acquitted in the 1892 axe murders of her father and her stepmother in Fall River, Massachusetts.
All these years, and theory after theory it's still a mystery.
I won't bore you with the old Lizzie Bordon poem, or this really excellent song form, but if you haven't read or heard it yet, you can check out these links.
The link for the music video has actual photos, and other humorous clips but is definitely worth viewing if you haven't ever seen them before.
The Jury for Lizzie Borden. In my opinion, they certainly aren't a group of men that I'd imagine would acquit her.
Last year marked the 120th anniversary of her trial, so all the players are gone.
The Providence Journal, Enduring Mystery The Life and Trials of Lizzie Borden, here.
Court room scene of the Lizzie Bordon trial.
Does anyone feel the desire to get a bit closer to the actual crime scene? Well, if you are adventurous enough, and enjoy spending a wakeful night of sleep, you can check into the Lizzie Borden Bed and Breakfast Museum.
So, what are your thoughts on Lizzie Borden?
Did she do it?
16 comments:
I haven't thought about Lizzie Borden for a very long time. I remember Elizabeth Montgomery played her in a movie once. Couldn't make a guess if she did it or not. I am curious how she lived out the rest of her life though now that her name has come up again.
It's not something I really like to think about it but you'd have to be really really cross wouldn't you to hit someone 40 times with an axe. I'd be exhausted too. Her parents must have really upset her.
Like the picture of the group of men.
Greetings,
Filip
Excellent subject for this week!
A jury acquitted her so there must have been a reason they did so. One would have to read through a record of the entire trial to know why, I suppose. Like any famous 'unsolved' murder, there are always those who feel the accused did it, & those who don't. As for me, I figure if they did do it & got away with it (for now), they won't get away with it when they meet their Maker one day. And then there'll be hell to pay! :))
Maybe the jury of the day couldn't conceive of a woman being that evil or that strong or that whatever.
That photo of the jury was very interesting. They don't look as though they would have sympathy for her. A few years ago there was an interesting British TV series which went back over the evidence from old trials to see if they thought the verdict was right or wrong. This would be a good one for them to have investigated.
I hope she didn't get away with murder!
The Wikipedia entry says that the jury voted to acquit Borden after only 90 minutes. They must have decided that there was insufficient proof of guilt, but that couldn't stop the public from making a judgement against her based on the sensational reports. The sad part is that the horror of the crime continues just through the power of a children's rhyme.
The Borden murders is one of those mysteries that will never be solved to everyone's satisfaction. Unless we invent a time machine and go back to witness the event. :) Good choice for this week's theme.
I don't know, Lizzie was quite an attractive young woman and could well have beguiled those gentlemen of the jury into believing she was innocent. Loved the video clip!
I remember reading this story years ago and I’m afraid the rhyme is what comes to mind first too! I’ve never seen a photo of the jury before though - enough to have anyone quaking I’d imagine.
That's a bit of a coincidence, staying in the museum to Lizzy Borden, when I ate where Ned Kelly met his end!
That's a bit of a coincidence, staying in the museum to Lizzy Borden, when I ate where Ned Kelly met his end!
I remember reading that she was forced to eat bad mutton every night for dinner. I might feel murderous after a week or two myself.
I think it will be quite a while before I plan a vacation and stay at the Lizzie Borden Bed & Breakfast! Good solution to an ambiguous prompt.
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