Lizzy Borden’s life and trial have been discussed over the years with divided beliefs of her guilt in murdering her father and step-mother that fateful day in August, 1892.
In 1975 there was a movie made with a possible means of how Lizzy Borden committed the crimes and was able to leave no evidence behind for the authorities to find.
I got caught up in it once again by watching a variety of YouTube videos to get a clear picture of what happened. My quest started when I watched a Paranormal Investigation of the Lizzy Borden Bed and Breakfast.
But for this post, I believe it is best to begin with a documentary of Lizzy Borden.
It’s always important to discover what was going on in the Borden residence prior to the murders.
Each documentary brings forth evidence regarding Lizzy, but is that the complete story?
I do like the dramatization of this documentary . .. but some aspects of the story seem to be left out . . . Lizzy and her thoughts and feelings.
Later on you’ll hear some EVPs that state Lizzy was “spoiled”. Wouldn’t that indicate that she always got her way and thus would have no reason to murder her step-mother and father?
And what is the truth . . . something we’ll never know for sure.
Lizzy Borden Documentary:
Did Lizzy murder her step-mother and father? Was it motivated by greed?
Given the “personal” nature of the attacks, it seems likely Lizzy Borden did do the deadly deed . . . But what is the truth?
Paranormal Investigators FAM and Lou Rock decided to visit the Bed and Breakfast to see what they could learn from the haunting that seems to be taking place.
There is definitely some creepy stuff going on and the spirit box EVPs do give one a bit of a chill.
The Paranormal Investigation Video
What do you think?
There were definite disturbances in the basement.
It has been documented that Mr. Borden had once been in the furniture business and later became a mortician.
However, there is no evidence that he conducted any “mortuary” business in his home or that his home had ever been a mortuary.
That would be too easy to explain the “hauntings” . . . Yet, I do wonder what spirits came into the house when the home across the street had been burned own. It is said children came to stay, but was there more?
Did something evil come into the house — maybe possessing Lizzy?
No offense to these paranormal investigators, but I decided to go a bit farther and wanted to see what Amy Allan and the Dead Files had to say about Lizzy Borden and the house that was turned into a Bed and Breakfast.
This took a bit of a turn to my way of thinking.
It does shed more light on Mr. Borden and how he ran his home.
Dead Files Investigate The Lizzy Borden House
What wasn’t Amy revealing?
Lizzy Borden Documentary:
Does this add clarity or muddy the water a bit more?
I believe more information is necessary in the form of another documentary.
This documentary discusses Lizzy’s life after the trial and how she and her sister did move to a mansion on the hill. Lizzy named it Maplecroft and this was where she could live a lavish life — evidently the life her father could afford, but didn’t want to live — even for the future welfare of his daughters.
It also debunks Lizzy’s killing of animals in order to hold a funeral — and all the implications associated with harming animals to a criminal mind.
Yet, what is behind the statement that Lizzy was “peculiar” or “odd” what was the evidence of this? Was it how she was raised . . . yet she did church work . . . or was this after the trial? Or was this because of her shoplifting?
You can decide later what is truly relevant and what isn’t in order to seek the truth about Lizzy Borden and the murders of 1892.
In light of all of this . . . I’m wondering . . .
Emma may have had a lot of resentment of having to care for her sister, or she may have welcomed it.
Yet both women didn’t have the opportunity to meet gentlemen and back then, the only way for a woman to leave home was to marry. So, both Lizzy and Emma may have resented their father for not allowing them to attend fancy balls or for their father to host one.
Without a mother — a true mother who would have seen to it that her daughters were given every opportunity to meet suitable suitors, these women were really nothing more than house servants in their own home.
If there had been “abuse” in the home, then it seems reasonable Mr. Borden would want to hold a tight rein on his daughters — to keep his secret . . . or was it the sister’s secret . . . or was something else at play in the house . . .
I can understand how Lizzy Borden could have gone “mad” . . . but why continue living in that small town — or did Lizzy Borden have something to prove to the townfolk?
And what did she prove?
I would suggest that instead of asking Lizzy if she did the crime, why not ask her for her story and who she was with her goals and aspirations . . . Her feelings of how everything went terribly wrong . . .
I believe there is more to this story. And I believe this rings true with the second Biographical Documentary. There are definitely more questions that haven’t been answered.
Yet I do believe, too, that Lizzy and others who “haunt” the bed and breakfast are tired of being asked the same questions over and over again . . . and may just say “yes” to commiting the murders in order to be done with it.
Thanks for stopping by and please leave a comment.
Sharon
But wait . . .
And what could be said for Maplecroft — Lizzy’s last known residence?
Surely Lizzy Borden would haunt that place moreso than the residence where her father and step-mother were murdered.
I would definitely not want to haunt the old house, but haunt my home, the home where I was free to live and entertain as I pleased.
I would think Mr. & Mrs. Borden would haunt the bed and breakfast and Lizzy would haunt Maplecroft . . . but what do I know . . .
Maplecroft:
A beautiful place, but I don’t know if I’d like to live there.
I don’t know about operating a bed and breakfast out of Maplecroft Mansion, but I think a quaint little paranormal bookstore would be lovely selling crystals and other items of interest.
I wouldn’t really want to do seances in the home other than to discuss Lizzy’s life without mentioning the murders.
As I mentioned earlier, I believe the Lizzy Borden story is a lot more interesting than the murders and the trial.
I’m going a bit soft on thinking of buying such a house with a history . . . it could be a selling point or drop the price down . . . I do wonder what stories this house has to tell . . . since there were several previous owners . . .
Just something to think about . . .
Thanks for indulging me in my search for the Lizzy Borden story.
They have lived in 4 different houses and each and everyone has been haunted. They believe since both of them are sensitive to spirits that they may be attracting them into their lives.
Carl recalls seeing a ghost when he was just a child. He went into his bedroom one day to play with his toys and found a little boy playing on the floor with his cars. He went running to tell his mother and when they returned to his room, the little boy was gone. As the years went on, he would see spirits from time to time and accepted them as his normal day to day routine.
Brenda’s first encounter with the paranormal was after the death of her beloved grandfather. She would see him in his favorite rocking chair on the front porch of their house, smoking a cigar. She would play with her dolls next to the rocking chair for hours just to be near her grandfather. The family cat would curl up in her ghostly grandfather’s lap, just as when he was alive. Brenda knew her friends couldn’t see her grandfather in the rocking chair and she didn’t mention it to them. Her mother did sense him, but didn’t make a big deal about it. It was just accepted.
They were now living in their 8th house in as many years and shared with me their story.
Shortly after they were married, they moved into Carl’s grandmother’s house.
He didn’t want to bring his new bride there, because his grandmother had a strong dislike for him. It wasn’t anything he did, she just never liked him. Brenda loved the old Victorian and thought it was just perfect for them and for the family they wanted eventually.
It didn’t take long for Grandma to make an appearance — maybe not physically, but by turning up the burners on the stove or changing the temperature of the oven to ruin any meal Brenda made. She was able to interfere with the television by changing channels and turning it on or off. These were not necessarily dangerous pranks, but annoying. When Brenda and Carl were able to save enough money, they moved out and rented another house.
They moved into a duplex.
For the first few months, everything was calm and peaceful, but soon they found something was messing with the thermostat on the heater. At night it would get well above 80 degrees in the house. They would turn it down to 60 before going to bed. Brenda immediately thought of Carl’s grandmother and wondered if she followed them, but she was able to cook a meal without interference in the duplex.
Carl came home from work one day and found Brenda unconscious in the kitchen. She claims she was pushed and hit her head on the counter.
Brenda became more and more uncomfortable living in the duplex. She would hear loud music coming from the attached unit next door when no one was home. When the place became infested with rats, they moved.
Carl and Brenda found a lovely townhouse by a lake.
It seemed perfect for them. It was as though they were on a second honeymoon. There were no disturbances in the house or on the trails around the lake and the wooded area.
Things got a bit uncomfortable for them when some strange neighbors moved in next door to them. It started with their car being scraped while it was in the carport. Next there were strange odors coming from next door into their townhouse. The door to the bathroom would not stay closed. It was always coming opened, even when the door was locked. Next, they experienced shadows moving through the walls and drifting up to the ceiling watching them.
It became so uncomfortable for them that they had to move.
They found a newly built house that was a model home.
They believed this would be perfect for them. No previous owners and no wall that was shared with a neighbor. It didn’t take long for there to be disturbances. Drawers were spilled out in the kitchen. Water would turn on at various times day or night. The lights would flicker. They heard a telephone ringing continuously. There were also loud arguments between two ghostly men. They would hear a gunshot which ended the argument followed by running feet and the slam of the front door. This scenario played out several times a week.
They did research on the house and found that one of the owners was murdered by the contractor in the back bedroom Carl used as an office. It was always disturbed with desk and file drawers being opened. Pens, paper and paperclips were thrown off the desk and scattered around the room.
They were able to break their lease and moved out only two months after moving in.
Brenda was pregnant and sought professional help.
They moved back into Carl’s grandmother’s Victorian house. They called in a psychic to bless the house and to also do a reading for them. They did want to contact Carl’s grandmother to ask her permission to live there and to raise their family. Brenda and Carl planted flowers and also a vegetable garden. The landscaping was beautiful when they finished — similar to how he remembered it when his grandmother lived there.
Carl’s parents kept the grandmother’s furniture in the house and used it as a guest house for out of town guests. They didn’t want to sell it and didn’t want to rent it — other than to Carl and Brenda, which they would eventually inherit if they wanted it.
The psychic was able to find out that the Grandmother didn’t like men since she learned her husband of fifty plus years had been cheating on her since the beginning of their marriage. When she saw Brenda fixing dinner for Carl, Grandma decided he didn’t deserve a well cooked meal and messed with the oven and stove. She also didn’t believe he deserved a comfortable night’s sleep and messed with the thermostat. She did what she could to get them out of her house and make Carl’s life miserable.
Carl told his grandmother how sorry he was that his grandfather was such a womanizer and treated her so poorly, but he assured her that his father and he did not share their father’s and grandfather’s behavior. He wanted to prove it to her by living in her house with Brenda and their new baby who would be born in a few months.
Fortunately, the baby was a girl and they named her after Carl’s grandmother.
Everything seems to be working out well for the couple. They know the older woman is around. They have seen her sitting in a rocking chair in the nursery singing to the baby while she sleeps.
They have noticed things moved in the house, but Brenda is able to cook without interference. The thermostat remains where it was set.
They’re finding it is possible to live peaceably with a resident ghost.
I don’t like to admit it, but I believe this is sometimes true.
Rachel wasn’t feeling well one evening and got up to make some toast after everyone else went to bed and were sleeping soundly.
She was in the kitchen waiting for the toast to pop up out of the toaster. She heard something scratching under the table that was only a little ways away from where she was standing. Was it a mouse, she wondered. She stepped away from the counter and looked under the table. She saw nothing, but still heard the scratching. She got down on her hands and knees to get a good look under the pedestal.
When her toast popped up, it scared her half to death and she hit her head on the underside of the table.
As she was preparing her toast, she heard talking in the living room. She was sure no one was up, but called out.
The voices began mocking her.
“I’m in the kitchen.”
“I’m making toast.”
“My tummy hurts.”
Then there was laughter that seemed cruel.
“I bumped my head — hard too, it hurts.”
“The toaster scared me.”
“Oh what a baby.”
There were a few rude comments Rachel didn’t share, but she was so upset that she woke her family and they left to spend the night in a motel.
She did call in a paranormal team of investigators.
In the light of day she felt foolish, but she didn’t want to be mocked by entities in her house. She didn’t feel safe there.
The investigators stayed in the house for three days and three nights documenting everything. The experiences they had were similar to Rachel’s but escalated as the days progressed.
They ended up having to call paramedics due to the injuries they received.
When Rachel received a report from the investigators they told her that whatever was in the house had physically attacked them. They did need medical attention for the scratches and being tossed around like rag dolls. Several had broken bones.
They were mocked and their cameras and other equipment were smashed, the broken pieces were used as weapons. The kitchen knives were thrown around. Doors opened and closed. They were levitated and dropped.
When the realtor came to the house when Rachael told her she wanted to sell, she said that it looked like a wild party had taken place. She did get a cleaning crew and Rachel hired movers to pack their belongings. She never wanted to step foot in the house again.
The house had been vacant for three years.
Rachael decided to turn off the electricity. She thought whatever was in the house was feeding off it. If she received an offer, she’d turn it back on for the inspection.
Rachael did get an offer. All seemed quiet in the house. There were inspections the prospective buyers arranged. Everything was in good working order. The roof was sound.
Escrow closed and the new buyers had some remodeling done before moving in.
The workers complained that their tools were moved and they heard talking and music playing. They were feeling uncomfortable being in the house. Doors would open and close. One worker was working alone and was nailed to the wall by his own nail gun. He was stuck there until the next morning when the other men came to finish up their jobs.
The new buyers thought the workers were making up stories to get more money for the job they were doing.
Rachael didn’t hear any more about the house. The realtor retired and when she met with fellow realtors, she didn’t want to hear about that house.
As far as I know the house is vacant once again and has been for maybe ten years.
It had been rented out for Halloween parties, but that stopped when the band that was hired lost several members due to electrocution and another was hung on the chandelier with the electrical cables. It was a frightening experience that the homeowner didn’t want to repeat.
Other paranormal investigators wanted to check it out, but they were refused access to the house.
This was Rachael’s dream house. She lost her husband in a car accident and was raising her four children with the help of her parents. Then the incident in the kitchen happened. She had lived in the house for five years before anything happened. She wondered if her children had called in something or if it was the age of her children becoming teenagers.
They moved into another place across town and had no trouble at all.
The new owners are stuck with this house that is not fit for the living.
I wish I had more information and something definite to report about why there was suddenly paranormal activity in the house — poltergeists?
Whatever it is, I believe this makes a great Real Ghost Story.
Thanks for stopping by!
Please leave me a comment below if you have any ideas as to why the sudden paranormal activity.
I was delivering flowers to grave sites one afternoon when I saw a ghostly apparition of three ladies dressed up in Victorian style clothing having tea.
They nodded at me as I passed by. It was quite remarkable to see a formal tea party. I didn’t want to intrude and I wasn’t dressed appropriately for such a formal tea party, but when I passed by again, I handed each lady a red rose. I always keep extra flowers in my truck in the event I see a ghost or have a feeling of leaving flowers on a particular grave.
Since Veteran’s Day was drawing near, I was setting out arrangements requested by family members and they wanted me to tuck a bottle of Jack Daniels in the flowers. I had several similar requests and was spreading these “special” arrangements throughout the cemetery. I think when they arrived to pay respects, they wanted to give a special toast to their loved ones.
I did pass by the “tea party” several times.
One ghostly woman stopped me. She spoke formally. “We appreciate the flowers, but we wouldn’t mind a little something to brighten the taste of this tea.” She then inclined her head toward the floral arrangement I had in my hands and more notably the bottle I had tucked inside.
I set the flowers down and fished out the bottle and very formally bowed to the ladies and offered the bottle of Jack Daniels to them.
I delivered the flowers and had to get another bottle out of my truck.
After delivering all my arrangements for the day, I sought out my “tea party” ladies. They seemed to be enjoying themselves. I made a mental note to have a bottle for them instead of flowers. I got in my truck and drove away.
I was curious about these ladies and their tea party.
There’s a man I met years earlier in the archives at the library and I thought I would pay him a visit.
I explained my experience at the cemetery and he led me out of the library and to the park. He started laughing. I didn’t know the joke, but I was pleased I could bring some happiness into his life.
He told me those weren’t fine ladies having tea, they were “working girls” engaged in the “oldest profession.”
I couldn’t believe it. They seemed so refined and lady like, but that must have made them successful in their line of work.
David bought a small house a year after his wife of 40 years passed.
He needed a change. The house was a constant reminder of the life he shared with his family — the children were grown with families of their own. So, David decided he needed to move on and maybe a new living environment would help him not be so lost and lonely.
In his new home, David. noticed the rooms were filled with junk from the previous owner. He phoned the realtor to see if they needed more time to remove all the old belongings they left. After an hour he received a call saying they took what they wanted and he could do as he pleased with what was left.
He busied himself disposing of all that was beyond repair and put other items into another spare room, for the next trash pick-up day. He also set aside some miscellaneous items to see if at a later date he might find a use for them.
He found a set of iron shelves he put on the wall as a bookcase, he used a couple of old chests to display his wine collection and used a sofa, chair, end tables and coffee table to balance things out a bit.
He was pleased there was a dining table with chairs already set up in the dining area and the kitchen still had dinnerware, silverware, and cookware in the cupboards.
He found an old bird cage he cleaned up and decided to put candles in.
He spent most of the day and evening putting together an old broken rocking chair.
He was sitting in the rocking chair and smelled honeysuckle. He wasn’t aware if any was planted outside, but he liked the scent and if not, he was going to definitely plant some outside.
He looked around the room, admiring all he accomplished and then wondered what was missing. He was positive something was missing. Consciously, this was the first time he started furnishing his house, but this was all odds and ends of another life, long ago — not David’s life. Was he remembering something? Was some entity there directing him?
He walked into the spare bedroom for anything he could add to his living room. He found a clock he could put on the mantle and some figurines of wild life.
When he arranged them on the mantle, he was feeling a bit more “complete.”
He turned around and said very seriously, “Is there someone here? Were you helping me? I hope you don’t mind my using your furniture, book shelves and these pieces I put on the mantle. I couldn’t throw some of this stuff out. I didn’t mean to interfere . . .” David didn’t want to say the next part. He really liked this little house, but he knew in order to have peace with spirits he would have to get it all out.
“If you don’t want me to be here, I guess I’ll have to sell the house and find someone else to buy it and find someplace else to live. If this is what you want, let me know, but please don’t move things around and make a bunch of noise. That would scare me half to death. Thank you.”
It seems everything is fine at David’s house. He’s been there for 5 years now. He has noticed the rocking chair rocking slightly and he feels there is someone there — an older man keeping him company when he doesn’t have friends or family visiting.
Yes, it does seem possible for the living and the non-living to share a space compatibly together. Very few mention having a resident ghost in their house, but sometimes they do seem just like one of the family.
