Lizzie Andrew Borden, born on July 19, 1860, was the youngest daughter of Andrew Borden, a wealthy property developer and businessman, and his first wife, Sarah. After Sarah’s death, Andrew remarried Abby Durfee Gray. The Borden household, despite its wealth, was known for its frugality and tension.

The morning of August 4th started like any other. John Morse, Lizzie and Emma's maternal uncle, had visited the previous night and stayed in the guest room. After breakfast, Andrew and Morse chatted in the sitting room before Morse left for errands. Andrew went out for his morning walk, leaving Abby and Lizzie at home with their maid, Bridget Sullivan.

Abby Borden was found first. She had gone upstairs to make the bed in the guest room when she was attacked. She was struck on the side of the head with a hatchet, causing her to fall face down. Her assailant then delivered seventeen more blows to the back of her head.

Andrew Borden returned around 10:30 AM. Unable to unlock the door, he knocked, and Bridget let him in. He settled on the sitting room sofa for a nap. Moments later, he too was attacked. Andrew was struck ten or eleven times with a hatchet, with one blow splitting his eye in two, suggesting he was asleep when the assault began.

Lizzie’s behavior during the investigation raised many suspicions. Her statements to the police were inconsistent and strange. She claimed to have heard a groan and a scraping noise, then later said she heard nothing. She also mentioned that Abby had received a note asking her to visit a sick friend, but no such note was ever found.

In the basement, police found two hatchets, two axes, and a hatchet head with a broken handle. The broken hatchet head was suspected to be the murder weapon. Despite this, no blood-stained clothing was found, and Lizzie was not checked for bloodstains.

Lizzie was arrested on August 11th, 1892, and her trial began on June 5th, 1893. The trial was a media sensation. The prosecution highlighted the hatchet head and Lizzie’s contradictory testimonies. Lizzie’s defense argued that no physical evidence directly linked her to the murders.

After a dramatic trial, Lizzie was acquitted on June 20th, 1893. The jury took only an hour and a half to reach their verdict. Lizzie, however, remained the prime suspect in the public eye. She and her sister Emma moved to a new house in Fall River, but Lizzie was ostracized by society.

Lizzie Borden died of pneumonia on June 1, 1927. She left a considerable fortune, much of which was donated to the Fall River Animal Rescue League. Despite her acquittal, the mystery of who killed Andrew and Abby Borden remains unsolved to this day.

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