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Lizzie Borden’s story didn’t end when the verdict was read. Join us as we uncover what really happened after her infamous trial, from lingering suspicion and sensational rumors to her wealthy but isolated later years. We’re separating fact from folklore and digging into the misconceptions that still haunt one of history’s most notorious names.
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00:00Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're looking at what really happened to Lizzie Borden after her infamous trial.
00:05She wanted to make a clean break and become a new person.
00:09So she changed her name, although not officially.
00:11She had a little calling card made up, and it just said Elizabeth Andrew Borden.
00:15Many misconceptions still surround Lizzie Borden.
00:18Being the subject of countless true crime stories, not to mention a certain playground rhyme,
00:23most people jumped to the conclusion that she was guilty of murdering her father, Andrew Borden,
00:28and stepmother, Abby Durfee Gray.
00:30Ms. Borden, I'm sorry to inform you that you're under arrest.
00:34We can give you a moment to gather your things, but you'll need to come with us.
00:38Oh, that's okay. I'm already packed.
00:41In reality, the all-male jury acquitted Borden, who lived the rest of her life as a free woman.
00:46That doesn't necessarily mean the jury got it right.
00:49We find the defendant.
01:06Not guilty.
01:07While innocent in the eyes of the law, the court of public opinion has largely attributed Borden's acquittal
01:12to a mishandled investigation, and the mindset in 1893 that a woman couldn't be responsible
01:17for such vile deeds.
01:19Even so, we may never be 100% sure if Borden committed parricide.
01:23Although, Monster leaves no room for ambiguity.
01:26No, Maggie!
01:33She's mine.
01:35Explicitly depicting Borden as a murderer isn't the only way Monster plays with the historical record.
01:39For example, a woman named Bertha Manchester was targeted in an axe murder around the same
01:45time as the Borden case.
01:46However, Borden didn't murder Manchester with her maid, Bridget Maggie Sullivan, as Monster suggests.
01:52This is for whipping Maggie.
01:53Yeah!
01:55Borden was in jail, awaiting trial when Manchester was murdered, meaning she couldn't have done
01:59it.
01:59The evidence pointed to Jose Correa de Melo, a Portuguese immigrant who was convicted.
02:05Speaking of Sullivan, there's no concrete elements that Sullivan was Borden's accomplice or lover.
02:09Your life is here with me.
02:15One today's year, Lizzie.
02:18That's...
02:20That's nothing that's not alive.
02:22While Sullivan's life after the trial is murky, what we know for sure is that she married
02:26a man named John Sullivan in 1905, settling down in Anaconda, Montana.
02:31How dare you complain about this house?
02:33I paid for this.
02:35How did you pay for it?
02:39Where'd that money come from?
02:46Where'd you come from?
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02:53Scan the QR code for more deep dives into crime, conspiracies, and more.
02:57I'm coming through the door, and I'm going to stay.
02:59Whether or not Borden got away with murder, she spent the rest of her life surrounded by
03:03comfort and wealth.
03:04And what do you call it again?
03:07Maplecroft.
03:10It's everything I ever dreamed of, really.
03:13We dreamed of.
03:14Emma and I.
03:15Although her father amassed a fortune thanks to various business ventures, he lived modestly.
03:20Andrew could have afforded a bigger house, as well as one with newer innovations like electricity
03:24and indoor plumbing.
03:25Yet, he settled for the house on 2nd Street, where he and Abby were brutally murdered.
03:30If Lizzie was behind their deaths, money seems like the most logical motive.
03:35Lizzie and her sister, Emma, both really desired to live a way better life, and they
03:41really resented their father for not providing that for them.
03:45Adding to the suspicions around Lizzie, Abby was murdered shortly before Andrew.
03:49So Abby's inheritance went to Andrew, which in turn went to Lizzie and her sister, Emma.
03:54It's what you're all asking yourselves.
03:56Why didn't she just leave?
03:58We split our father's fortune after all, after his untimely death.
04:02Emma.
04:04I tried to leave.
04:07But it turns out the surname Borden can be a bit of an albatross.
04:11Had Andrew died first, Abby would have been in a position to get everything, rather than
04:15his daughter's.
04:16While Lizzie and Emma reached a settlement with Abby's relatives regarding her state,
04:20the sisters still walked away rich.
04:22Can you believe it?
04:23All throughout the house?
04:25All throughout the house.
04:28And we have indoor plumbing.
04:29Andrew alone was worth over $300,000, or $10 million now.
04:33It's uncertain how the sisters divided the money, but one of their first major purchases
04:38was a Queen Anne Victorian mansion at Lizzie named Maplecroft.
04:41Lizzie and Emma bought the house they always wanted at the top of the hill in the wealthy
04:46part of town.
04:48She changed her name from Lizzie to Lizbeth, and she named her house Maplecroft.
04:54Lizzie seemingly had everything she had been denied when her father controlled the money.
04:58A 4,000 square foot modern home, more than one live-in maid, and independence.
05:03There's one thing that money couldn't buy Lizzie, however.
05:06A place in high society, or society in general.
05:09Lizzie Borden finds herself unwelcome at the church where she had spent so much of her time,
05:16and which had provided the foundation of her support during the trial.
05:20Despite the trial's outcome, the skepticism surrounding Borden did not go away.
05:23If anything, doubt only grew over time, especially as the 40 whacks rhyme caught on.
05:29Who killed your mother and father?
05:35Oh, come on.
05:37Everyone here is asking themselves the same thing.
05:41Who do you think did it, Ms. Borden?
05:44That isn't to say Borden didn't have supporters during her trial and shortly after.
05:49According to an account, Mr. and Mrs. Charles J. Holmes, two of Borden's most prominent defenders,
05:54threw a celebration in her honor with the band playing Auld Lang Syne.
05:58The tragedy done into my family can never be undone.
06:03But perhaps now my sister and I can usher in a season of healing.
06:08And kindness.
06:10For people and for animals.
06:12At the same time, though, the locals of Fall River, Massachusetts, couldn't separate Lizzie from the trial.
06:18People reportedly avoided sitting next to her at church while children pulled pranks,
06:22such as throwing rotten eggs at Maplecroft's door.
06:24Give us a treat, or we'll trick you.
06:31Who are you supposed to be?
06:33What are you dressed up as?
06:36I'm you.
06:36Borden arguably didn't do the best job of reestablishing herself as an upstanding citizen either.
06:41In 1897, she was accused of stealing painted porcelain in Rhode Island.
06:46A warrant for Borden's arrest was issued, but the matter was ultimately dropped.
06:50I can't control what's written about you.
06:52And I certainly can't control the appetite there is to read about you.
07:05Borden nevertheless attempted to leave her trial in the past.
07:09Shortly following her acquittal, she started going by Lisbeth A. Borden.
07:12Australia.
07:13Australia?
07:14Hmm.
07:16Did you see a kangaroo?
07:17Hmm.
07:18Yes, they're enormous rats.
07:22And Lizzie, it was your patronage that enabled all of it.
07:27While a minor name change didn't make people forget, Borden tried winning over the elite crowd,
07:32throwing parties at Maplecroft, and attending the theater across multiple states.
07:36Even in Boston and New York, the masses knew who Borden was,
07:39although the theater brought some high-profile friends.
07:42In 1904, Borden met stage actress Nance O'Neill, who later appeared in several films.
07:48Among them was 1931's Cimarron, which won Best Picture.
07:51The times I saw a look in her eyes, I'll never forget.
07:57The wonder to me that she hasn't killed herself.
08:01Maybe things have been different.
08:03O'Neill supposedly seemed uninterested in Borden's scandal and developed a close friendship with her.
08:07How close?
08:08Romance rumors arose, but were never confirmed.
08:11O'Neill married fellow actor Alfred Hickman in 1916.
08:14You are the most famous woman in the world, and I intend to be just as famous.
08:23If I save you, will you help me do that?
08:27Borden welcomed O'Neill and other members of the theater community to Maplecroft.
08:31Although it seemed Borden was finally finding acceptance,
08:34O'Neill might have been at the root of a falling out with her sister.
08:37Emma supported Lizzie through the trial, even providing testimony that likely helped her case.
08:41It seemed Lizzie and Emma would spend the rest of their lives together at Maplecroft.
08:45In 1905, Emma turned her back on Maplecroft and her younger sister, though.
08:50Why exactly is another mystery.
08:52How would you like to toast Miss O'Neill?
08:54Oh no, not her.
08:55That scenery-chewing ham actress.
08:57You couldn't act your way out of a burlap sack.
09:00I can.
09:01And I have.
09:02Emma.
09:03Emma's exit occurred not long after Lizzie threw a party for O'Neill,
09:07leading some to speculate that her new friend caused the rift.
09:10The most Emma ever said on the matter was that conditions became absolutely unbearable.
09:15Despite their estrangement, Emma maintained that Lizzie was innocent.
09:19And the truth is, I made a promise to our dear mother.
09:25She made me promise to protect you, Lizzie.
09:30To look after you.
09:33God knows I have.
09:34It seems unlikely that O'Neill was the sole wedge between the sisters,
09:38as her friendship with Lizzie wouldn't last much longer.
09:41By 1905, Borden and O'Neill started to go their separate ways.
09:44She can't help but push her husband to act.
09:49She is so stifled.
09:51As a woman in a world of men,
09:53she herself is desperate to murder.
09:57Again, the reasons aren't clear-cut.
10:00Money could have been a factor,
10:02with Borden loaning O'Neill a considerable sum.
10:04It also might be because O'Neill went on tour
10:06and simply didn't have time for Borden.
10:09The two reportedly didn't stay in touch through letters.
10:11It suggests to the jury that you are innocent.
10:15If you can't stand the sight of it now,
10:18how could you have done it then?
10:20How could you have kept chopping?
10:24O'Neill never went on the record expressing any animosity towards Borden.
10:27Concerning their falling out, O'Neill said,
10:29I am afraid I am a rather poor correspondent.
10:32Borden didn't become a complete recluse,
10:35still traveling and socializing with a select few.
10:37Over the next two decades, though, Borden became more private.
10:40Lizzie, who never married, finished out her life as a recluse,
10:44alone in her home with her dogs,
10:46until her death in June of 1927.
10:49Borden's health was never the same after a gallbladder surgery.
10:52The final year of her life was fraught with medical issues,
10:54culminating in pneumonia, ending the 66-year-old's life on June 1st, 1927.
10:59Lizzie Borden's death, of course, was front page news.
11:05Ms. Borden passed away in Fall River in 1927.
11:09She had been ill.
11:11She had had some surgery and died of complications.
11:14O'Neill spoke fondly of Borden following her passing,
11:16highlighting her intelligence and love of animals.
11:18Just as Borden's later years were defined by privacy,
11:22her funeral wasn't anything substantial.
11:24Reports of attendance have ranged from a small group to one person.
11:27In any case, Emma did not attend her sister's funeral.
11:31Having been living with chronic nephritis,
11:33Emma died nine days after Lizzie.
11:35The terms of Lizzie's will were quite unusual.
11:38To her sister Emma, she left nothing.
11:40The sisters never reconciled in life,
11:43but they'd be eternally joined in death.
11:45Both would be buried at Oak Grove Cemetery, along with their parents.
11:49Lizzie Borden will spend eternity right beside the two people she's accused of murdering.
11:56Lizzie and Emma died wealthy, although neither ever married or had children.
11:59It was always media coverage.
12:01At one point, I believe it was 1897,
12:05a newspaper article appeared that said Lizzie Borden to wed
12:08and mentioned the dressmaker who was making a trousseau for her.
12:12This was not true.
12:13Their fortunes were divided between charities and family members.
12:16Today, the house where the murders took place serves as a museum
12:19and bed and breakfast, but serial killer Eileen Wuornos was never a guest.
12:23Hi.
12:25Is this the Lizzie Borden house?
12:28Because we got a reservation.
12:30As for Maplecroft, Brooke and Michael Dougherty purchased the private residence in 2021.
12:35While Lizzie Borden's murder trial was among the most documented court cases of the late 19th century,
12:40there are still numerous gaps in her life.
12:43I think that there's no doubt that she was a very strong-willed character.
12:46She knew what she wanted perhaps, did what she needed to get it.
12:51However, her life was almost a pathetic one.
12:54For every fact we know, there are just as many legends.
12:57Be it a schoolyard rhyme or a Netflix miniseries,
12:59interpretations of Lizzie Borden seem to follow an old saying.
13:03When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.
13:06Thank you, Miss Borden, for your statement.
13:08If there's one thing we can be certain of,
13:12this girl is completely innocent.
13:14Do you have any interesting facts about Lizzie Borden?
13:16Share them in the comments.
13:17trials.
13:18MuAY
13:19MuAY
13:19MuAY
13:21MuAY
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