Everyone knows the rhyme made famous by such gruesome murders. Nearly 116 years later the murders of Andrew J. Borden and Mrs. Abby Dufree Borden are as much of an interest to the public eye as they were in 1892. Lizzie was acquitted at her trial and the actual reason why, or how, remains a great assumption. Speculation if Lizzie is the true murderer continues with stories circulating of hatred toward her step-Mother, and anger toward her Father relating to jealousy due to greedy financial concerns within the family. Lizzie felt her step-family was receiving the money from her extremely wealthy father when she and her older sister, Emma, should have been presented with the Borden cash.

Is jealousy, anger and envy toward her parents enough to cause a 32-year old unmarried woman to carry out two identical, brutal murders? People take vacations to the small historical mill town south of Boston called Fall River, Massachusetts, only to tour the exact home in which the Borden murders took place. It is even open as a bed and breakfast for those who want to spend more than a couple of hours to place themselves in Lizzie’s mindset and try to solve the murder mystery.

Hans and I spent the first night of our honeymoon at the Lizzie Borden Bed and Breakfast on October 10, 2007. The Greek revival style home was actually quite clean, comfortable and rather interesting. We arrived around 3:00pm and met with Lee Ann Wilbur, manager of the B&B. After Lee Ann showed us to our room, the John Morse guest room where Abby was murdered, we spent a few minutes with her discussing the ghosts of the Borden house and her personal opinion of the idea of it being a haunted house.

Lee Ann was delightful, sharing her beliefs that the house is indeed haunted. Her intuition has led her to believe that she has been one of the many to be accompanied by a Borden family member.

Hans and I then roamed the house, taking photos and allowing myself the time to open up and sense, or “see” any of the alleged ghosts that haunt the house.

Photo to the left is the John Morse room where Abby Borden was brutally murdered in 1892. This is the room we stayed in during our visit to the Borden house on 92 Second Street in Fall River, MA

We walked through downtown Fall River to eat dinner at the Abbey Grill, which was at one time the Borden family’s church and now houses the International Institute of Culinary Arts. Doug Tweedy, the host of the IICA gave us special treatment along with a behind the scenes tour of the church and some great history lessons.

We would like to thank Doug for the time he and his staff spent with us that afternoon. The atmosphere was so warm, welcoming and friendly, and the tour was phenomenal and interesting! Before departing Fall River the following day, we also took a tour of the Fall River Historical Society, another great suggestion from Doug, and learned much more about the town, the people and the history.
 
The International Institute of Culinary Arts was housed in what was once the Borden family church (see photos below). Unfortunately, and much to our dismay, we learned that the IICA which operated the Abby Grille was closed recently. We are thankful that we had the opportunity to visit the location and experience such exquisite delectable cuisine on more than a few occasions over the years.

Seen through the eyes of a clairvoyant…

The first question I am asked when one learns that we spent the night at the Borden house is, “is Lizzie there?” Personally, I did not see her. I did not even sense her, but my intuition lead me to believe that Lizzie’s spirit may pass through occasionally. I believe that if Lizzie is haunting anywhere, she would be found in Maplecroft, the house that she and her sister, Emma, purchased weeks after Mr. and Mrs. Borden’s’ murders. Maplecroft is “up on the hill” where those with exorbitant amounts of money resided, and where Lizzie yearned to live while Andrew and Abby were still alive.

One of the first spirits to manifest was a woman I thought to be the maid, Bridget Sullivan. This female attached herself to Hans, causing him to have a strong sensation of electrical currents as well having the impression of someone always standing right next to him and following him around the house. Hans experienced the phenomenon of a ghostly touch, an antagonistic touch that caused his emotions to grow into frustration. After seeing a photo of Bridget in her room, I realized that she was not the one disturbing Hans. When we walked through Emma’s room and noticed a photograph of her, it was surprising to discover that it was she who seemed to enjoy agitating Hans.

Also affixed to Hans, and sometimes to me as well, was the ghost of a black cat.

We later learned that Abby Borden enjoyed cats and her favorite was a black feline she once owned. A story exists that Lizzie allegedly killed Abby’s cat in the basement of the Borden home. Regardless of why the feline’s spirit appears, the cat is always friendly and likes to make its presence known. The cat visited us during the night when we had an opportunity to get a couple hours of sleep, and made itself evident by walking right across our legs.