Lizzie Andrew Borden

Lizzie Borden has mystified and fascinated crime buffs for over a century. Few cases in American history have attracted as much attention as the hatchet murders and the unlikely defendant: a church-going, respectable "spinster" daughter charged with parricide, a crime worthy of Classical Greek tragedy. On August 4, 1892, a heavy, hot summer day in Massachusetts, a maid discovered the bodies of Andrew Borden, 70, a wealthy developer, and his second wife Abby, a short obese woman of 64. Mr. Borden's face had been struck 11 times while he slept on the couch; Mrs. Borden had been struck 19 times from the back. A broken hatchet was found in the basement. The day after the Bordens' funeral, a neighbor observed Lizzie burning a stained dress in the kitchen stove. The neighbor's testimony prompted Lizzie to be charged with the murders. The chaotic and stumbling murder investigation against Lizzie was circumstantial, without incriminating physical evidence or clear motive. After a trial in June 1893 and one hour of jury deliberations, Lizzie was found not guilty on all charges. Lizzie and her sister Emma moved into a 13-room stone Victorian house named Maplecroft. In 1904, she met actress Nance O'Neil, and the two became inseparable, prompting rumors of a romantic relationship. Lizzie died at age 67, after a long illness. Emma coincidentally died nine days later, after a fall down the stairs of her house. They were buried together in the family plot, along with their mother, stepmother, and father. Despite popular belief of Lizzie's guilt, it remains technically an unsolved crime.