“Lizzie Borden took an axe and gave her mother forty whacks. When she saw what she had done she gave her father Forty-one.”
Most of us remember sing this when we were young. It had that nice scary rhyme to something so terrible. Well, if you are ever in Fall River, MA, stop by the house for an enlightening tour and the true story. So as not to give too much away I am going to give you 5 things you may not have known:
- The rhyme is actually not a rhyme it is a doggerel. The author is unknown and it was created at the time of the murders to sell newspapers.
- She was acquitted in 1893. She continued to live in Fall River until her death in 1927.
- Did you know her favorite uncle was visiting at the time of the murders? His name was John V. Morse.
- The day of the murder most of the police were at an annual picnic across the bay in Warwick, RI. It took them an hour to get back after they were notified.
- It wasn’t an axe; it was a hatch.
We did the daylight house tour. There is also a night time tour. Both tours are approximately 90 minutes long. I would recommend that you add the basement tour. It has its own strange happenings. And oh yes, you can book a room and stay the night; even the room where her stepmother was killed. If you love the macabre like I do, here is the website.
