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Today is the birthday of Lizzie Andrew Borden, born on July 19, 1860, who was accused of murdering her mother and father with an axe on August 4, 1892, in Fall River, Massachusetts.
I first learned about Lizzie Borden in the late fifties when I discovered this vinyl LP recording of the music from the ballet (link below) by American choreographer Agnes de Mille. Upon researching the Borden history I became fascinated with the story.
Borden's trial took place in New Bedford starting on June 5, 1893. Prosecuting attorneys were Hosea M. Knowlton and future United States Supreme Court Justice William H. Moody; defending were Andrew V. Jennings, Melvin O. Adams, and former Massachusetts governor George D. Robinson. Five days before the trial's commencement, on June 1, another axe murder occurred in Fall River. This time the victim was Bertha Manchester, who was found hacked to death in her kitchen. The similarities between the Manchester and Bordens' murders were striking and noted by jurors. However, Jose Correa de Mello, a Portuguese immigrant, was later convicted of Manchester's murder in 1894, and was determined not to have been in the vicinity of Fall River at the time of the Borden murders.
Newspapers all over the country carried sensationalized, sometimes completely fabricated, stories. When she came to trial the following June, the nation was mesmerized by the spectacle of a Sunday-School-teaching maiden lady charged with committing such gruesome crimes.
But the prosecution's case was badly flawed, and after a two-week trial, the jury found Lizzie Borden not guilty on June 20, 1893.
Following her release from jail, where she was held during the trial, Borden chose to remain a resident of Fall River despite facing ostracism from the other residents. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts elected not to charge anyone else with the murder of Andrew and Abby Borden.
Lizzie Andrew Borden - January 1, 1889
photographer unknown
Borden's trial took place in New Bedford starting on June 5, 1893. Prosecuting attorneys were Hosea M. Knowlton and future United States Supreme Court Justice William H. Moody; defending were Andrew V. Jennings, Melvin O. Adams, and former Massachusetts governor George D. Robinson. Five days before the trial's commencement, on June 1, another axe murder occurred in Fall River. This time the victim was Bertha Manchester, who was found hacked to death in her kitchen. The similarities between the Manchester and Bordens' murders were striking and noted by jurors. However, Jose Correa de Mello, a Portuguese immigrant, was later convicted of Manchester's murder in 1894, and was determined not to have been in the vicinity of Fall River at the time of the Borden murders.
Borden House
date & photographer unknown
Newspapers all over the country carried sensationalized, sometimes completely fabricated, stories. When she came to trial the following June, the nation was mesmerized by the spectacle of a Sunday-School-teaching maiden lady charged with committing such gruesome crimes.
But the prosecution's case was badly flawed, and after a two-week trial, the jury found Lizzie Borden not guilty on June 20, 1893.
Following her release from jail, where she was held during the trial, Borden chose to remain a resident of Fall River despite facing ostracism from the other residents. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts elected not to charge anyone else with the murder of Andrew and Abby Borden.
Andrew and Abby
Borden
date & photographer unknown
Lizzie Borden spent the remainder of her life in Fall River before dying of pneumonia on June 1, 1927, when she was 66 years old.
Borden and her association with the murders has remained a topic in American popular culture mythology into the 21st century, and she has been depicted in various films, theatrical productions, literary works, and folk rhymes; A nursery rhyme that circulated was: "Lizzie Borden took an ax and gave her mother 40 whacks. And when she saw what she had done, she gave her father 41." She is still very well known in Fall River and the surrounding area to this day.
Morton Gould wrote the music (link below) for a ballet on the subject of Lizzie Borden, Fall River Legend, which was premiered by Ballet Theatre at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York on April 22, 1948. He later abridged the music into a suite which is the more commonly performed version. There are very bad videos of the ballet on YouTube (link below).
The ballet begins and ends at the gallows. Almost all of the ballet takes place in the Accused's mind while she reflects on her past and, unusual for a ballet, the Speaker for the Jury has spoken lines. The suite omits this monologue. After the opening gallows scene a beautiful, carousel waltz lulls the listener into the false promise of a lovely beautiful story. The ballet ignores the fact that Borden was acquitted and has her facing the gallows at the end.
There was an opera (link below) devoted to the event written in 1965 by Jack Beeson entitled, Lizzie Borden ~ a Family Portrait in three acts which was premiered on March 25, 1965, by the New York City Opera and conducted by Anton Coppola.
The story of Lizzie Borden has also been depicted in many films: The Legend of Lizzie Borden in 1975, with Elizabeth Montgomery and Fritz Weaver (link below) . . .
. . . in 2018, Lizzy with Chloë Sevigny and Lizzy with Cindy Baer in 2019. It has even been on TV, Lizzie Borden Took an Ax, which premiered on Lifetime on January 25, 2014, and starred Christina Ricci; It was so successful it was followed by a miniseries, The Lizzie Borden Chronicles, which aired from April to May 2015.
In 2019 Lizzie ~ The Musical was launched; the music (four women fronting a six-piece rock band, what else?) was written by Steven Cheslik-deMeyer and Alan Stevens Hewitt, book by Tim Maner (link below).
There are interesting observations about the murders on TV Trope, eg., the accused's problems stem in part from years of deep erotic and emotional frustration; and there are some pretty gruesome images, BE WARNED, on All That's Interesting (links to both below).
The Borden house has become a bed & breakfast with all the Borden artifacts. There are images of them on the Sarah Wesley Lemire site (link below).
All That's Interesting ~ The True Story of Lizzie Borden And The Murders
Den of Geek ~ The Real Lizzie Borden
Documentary:
CBS ~ 48 Hours: The captivating cold case of Lizzie Borden
Lizzy 2018 Interview
PBS News Hour ~ The fascination with accused ax murderer Lizzie Borden
Movies/Music
The Legend of Lizzie Borden (1975) (complete movie) (1 hr., 36 mins.)
Lizzie (Official Trailer) (2018)
Morton Gould wrote the music (link below) for a ballet on the subject of Lizzie Borden, Fall River Legend, which was premiered by Ballet Theatre at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York on April 22, 1948. He later abridged the music into a suite which is the more commonly performed version. There are very bad videos of the ballet on YouTube (link below).
The ballet begins and ends at the gallows. Almost all of the ballet takes place in the Accused's mind while she reflects on her past and, unusual for a ballet, the Speaker for the Jury has spoken lines. The suite omits this monologue. After the opening gallows scene a beautiful, carousel waltz lulls the listener into the false promise of a lovely beautiful story. The ballet ignores the fact that Borden was acquitted and has her facing the gallows at the end.
Lizzie Borden, Boston Ballet - 1972
There was an opera (link below) devoted to the event written in 1965 by Jack Beeson entitled, Lizzie Borden ~ a Family Portrait in three acts which was premiered on March 25, 1965, by the New York City Opera and conducted by Anton Coppola.
The story of Lizzie Borden has also been depicted in many films: The Legend of Lizzie Borden in 1975, with Elizabeth Montgomery and Fritz Weaver (link below) . . .
. . . in 2018, Lizzy with Chloë Sevigny and Lizzy with Cindy Baer in 2019. It has even been on TV, Lizzie Borden Took an Ax, which premiered on Lifetime on January 25, 2014, and starred Christina Ricci; It was so successful it was followed by a miniseries, The Lizzie Borden Chronicles, which aired from April to May 2015.
In 2019 Lizzie ~ The Musical was launched; the music (four women fronting a six-piece rock band, what else?) was written by Steven Cheslik-deMeyer and Alan Stevens Hewitt, book by Tim Maner (link below).
There are interesting observations about the murders on TV Trope, eg., the accused's problems stem in part from years of deep erotic and emotional frustration; and there are some pretty gruesome images, BE WARNED, on All That's Interesting (links to both below).
The Borden house has become a bed & breakfast with all the Borden artifacts. There are images of them on the Sarah Wesley Lemire site (link below).
Borden house bed & breakfast
date & photographer unknown
Tracklist:
Side 1:
A - Morton Gould, Fall River Legend - 20:30
Side 2:
B - Leonard Bernstein, Facsimile - 18:39
Credits:
Artwork – Gunall*
Conductor – Joseph Levine
Orchestra – Ballet Theatre Orchestra
Written-By – Leonard Bernstein (tracks: B), Morton Gould (tracks: A)
Notes:
This is the premier performance on "Long Play" for both pieces.
Gold and green label. LP housed inside company dust sleeve.
Side 1:
A - Morton Gould, Fall River Legend - 20:30
Side 2:
B - Leonard Bernstein, Facsimile - 18:39
Credits:
Artwork – Gunall*
Conductor – Joseph Levine
Orchestra – Ballet Theatre Orchestra
Written-By – Leonard Bernstein (tracks: B), Morton Gould (tracks: A)
Notes:
This is the premier performance on "Long Play" for both pieces.
Gold and green label. LP housed inside company dust sleeve.
Viewfinder links:
Net links:
All That's Interesting ~ The True Story of Lizzie Borden And The Murders
Den of Geek ~ The Real Lizzie Borden
Drama On Line ~ Fall River Legend
Factinate ~ 45 Dreadful Facts About Lizzie Borden and the Fall River Tragedy
Fall River Historical Society ~ Lizzie Borden Collections
The Herald News ~ TV series uncovers new suspect in Borden murders
HIstory ~ Lizzie Borden took an axe…
Jstore Daily ~ Why We’re So Obsessed With Lizzie Borden’s 40 Whacks
KQED ~ The Legend Of Lizzie Borden: Gruesome Truth or Fantastic Fiction?
Sarah Wesley Lemire ~ The Curious Continue To Flock To Fall River
Mass Moments ~ Lizzie Borden's Father & Stepmother Murdered
Factinate ~ 45 Dreadful Facts About Lizzie Borden and the Fall River Tragedy
Fall River Historical Society ~ Lizzie Borden Collections
The Herald News ~ TV series uncovers new suspect in Borden murders
HIstory ~ Lizzie Borden took an axe…
Jstore Daily ~ Why We’re So Obsessed With Lizzie Borden’s 40 Whacks
KQED ~ The Legend Of Lizzie Borden: Gruesome Truth or Fantastic Fiction?
Sarah Wesley Lemire ~ The Curious Continue To Flock To Fall River
Mass Moments ~ Lizzie Borden's Father & Stepmother Murdered
The New Yorker ~ Legends of Lizzie
Pointe Magazine ~ ABT’s Sallie Wilson in Fall River Legend
Psychology Today ~ The Enduring, Ghoulish Legend of Lizzie Borden
Psychology Today ~ The Enduring, Ghoulish Legend of Lizzie Borden
Rolling Stone ~ Why a 19th-Century Axe Murder Still Fascinates Us
Straz Center ~ Lizzie Borden Took an Acts
TV Tropes ~ Fall River Legend
Straz Center ~ Lizzie Borden Took an Acts
TV Tropes ~ Fall River Legend
YouTube links:
Documentary:
CBS ~ 48 Hours: The captivating cold case of Lizzie Borden
Lizzy 2018 Interview
PBS News Hour ~ The fascination with accused ax murderer Lizzie Borden
Movies/Music
The Legend of Lizzie Borden (1975) (complete movie) (1 hr., 36 mins.)
Lizzie (Official Trailer) (2018)
Lizzie Borden ~ A Family Portrait in Three Acts opera (1965)
Lizzie ~ The Musical (promo)
Lizzie ~ The Musical (promo Phoenix)
Lizzie ~ The Musical (misc. links)
Lizzie ~ The Musical (promo)
Lizzie ~ The Musical (promo Phoenix)
Lizzie ~ The Musical (misc. links)
Morton Gould ~ Fall River Legend (Ballet Suite) (20 mins., 35 secs.)
Morton Gould ~ Fall River Legend, Pt. 1 (live ) (13 mins., 12 secs.)
Morton Gould ~ Fall River Legend, Pt. 2 (live ) (11 mins.)
Morton Gould ~ Fall River Legend, Pt. 3 (live ) (5 mins., 32 secs.)
Morton Gould ~ Fall River Legend, Pt. 1 (live ) (13 mins., 12 secs.)
Morton Gould ~ Fall River Legend, Pt. 2 (live ) (11 mins.)
Morton Gould ~ Fall River Legend, Pt. 3 (live ) (5 mins., 32 secs.)
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