Lizzie Borden Society Forum

We've made quite a few trips to Fall River so far, starting with the invitation to come up to be interviewed for The Discovery Channel video, Lizzie Borden Had An Axe.

It was my first trip up, but Stefani's 2nd or 3rd, I think.
Her expenses were paid and mine absorbed between the two of us.

I was talking to our Stuart today and he had me thinking of old pictures of our trips- and I reaized maybe not many had seen some of these- and I know some of these have never been published or posted.

A trip down memory lane.
I will put a few up now and more to come.


This one looks like Morse is watching me in the guest room!

This was my first look at the House. Bill Pavao, resident curator, gave me my first tour. The place was empty for a time except for us: Bill, Kat & Stefani.
It was March, I believe 2003.

This sofa has casters and is no longer in the House- It can be seen in the (new) barn/gift shop.

I'm mainly showing pics of myself, because I don't have to get my permission!

Here I am trying out a theory as to how Abbie was approached and attacked. Bill & Stef were in the room.

It's a very sad spot.

My first visit to the Borden memorial marker.
This was after our filming was over.
When we finally returned to our room, there was a message from the Producer, asking us to dinner- but we had seen the sights and missed the call. We had been in the cemetery part of the time.

Making a video.
This was at the Historical Society.
The man in the foreground is Tim, the Producer and Interviewer. The book is not notes- it is a waiver to sign.

The FRHS is beautiful.
Behind the scenes...The making of a video starts with background and lighting.

I was granted permission to hold the Handleless Hatchet. They had to get it out of its *vault.*

WOW, Kat - Great pics - thanks for sharing them with us.

Thanks for sharing the pictures. Boy, it's so much better seeing pictures now since I've actually been to those places.

Love the "Kat & Morse"!

Yes the Morse picture is strange!

Here is the HH being unwrapped at the FRHS. Not all these pics are well-taken, but I figured you'all would rather see them than not.

HH in my gloved hands.
The wood stubb was a little loose.
Stef also handled it, and we were filmed examinng it but that did not make it into the video.

Spotlight on KK.
Believe it or not, it was pretty cold in there, even with all the lights! It was March, after all.
I think the video premiered the following October.

I am still reading the *Release* here in this pic
They interviewed Stefani for an hour and myself for an hour and used maybe 90 seconds each?

This is on that same trip. I was given a brick from the Borden House and have it in my left hand here.
This is the laundry room area of the cellar- the west wall.
I had a flashlight in my right hand.

This is Harry in the New Bedford Courthouse. We had gone in right at recess and were given about 20 minutes alone in there.

I think he is "Objecting!"

This was before they put in that ramp out front. When we walked in we were met by this security station. Immediately to the right after passing this checkpoint is the stairway up to Lizzie's courtroom.
I was ready to walk the length of this corridor, but was called back- I was surprised at the narrow entrance-way. It was not an obvious route to get upstairs.

As we were leaving the coutroom.
This is the stairway- Harry is down below on the first floor ready to leave.

Thanks for all the pics, Kat. I especially love the "behind-the-scenes" at the FRHS after watching you in that show so many times! Interesting to see how it was all set up. Is the HH wrapped in acid free tissue paper? And do you know who did the wrapping, was it Medley or Desmond?

Thanks for all the great photos, Kat. I for one am thankful to all the folks that post Fall River photos here so that less mobile members of the forum, like me, can live vicariously through your camera.

I love the photo of you on the sofa. There is something deliciously perverse about you laying "the other way" on it.

And, who is that behind you in the basement? Andrew?

Susan, that is Dennis unwrapping the HH.
(I don't think anyone ever decided who originally wrapped it.)

That is Bill in the corner in the cellar enjoying my enjoyment. He's like that. He gave me the House as a gift that evening.

I still have my Brick!

I've only seen the video once!

I hope people who visit Fall River this anniversary think to go to the court house in New Bedford. Maybe they would get into the courtroom. One member went in and sat in the audience during a trial!

[quote="Tina-Kate @ Wed Aug 01, 2007 11:57
Love the "Kat & Morse"![/quote]

Took me a while to catch that.

I didn't get that either, until you pointed it out!

It's raining all day here. Here are some pansies.

Back to Massachusetts!
(After the Florida detour for pansies)

I was always asking Fall River locals for an "overlook" of the city. Finally!
If anyone knows of a good place to go with views of the City from high up, let me know! (The Library has one window I think but it doesn't open- I tried there.)

Here we are in the parlour at the Borden B&B. This was, I think, 2004. Our member Augusta and her family were there. Sherry is probably the one who cracked us up!

The only photo taken on that visit that showed any anamoly: see my foot in the sitting room.

Killer's eye view of the sofa arm in the sitting room- Stef took this from the dining room door threshold area.

A Suspect!!

I always thought that Harry was a little shifty

Great photos, Kat!

Alas, I only saw that video once as well. I wished they'd had you on for longer, esp since some of it wasn't the greatest.

BTW---has anyone else noticed how on the Antiques Roadshow no one wears protective gloves when handling sensitive old papers, etc? I would have thought they'd advocate the practice.

I saw a repeat of the Taps thing when they visited the B and B and it ticked me off all over again.

I was just comparing the crime scene photo of Andrew on the couch, with the placement of my foot.
It's not too far, maybe within a foot or two?- of where Andrew's right foot rested.

Andrew's spirit causing your boot to glow perhaps to call attention to the shoes? "See, my boots were still on and I wasn't wearing slippers!"

I was thinking the same thing, Kat, about the placement of your foot. Now thats creepy and cool.

I agree!

Well, these pictures of past trips were to tide us over until members return from their own trips this Aug. 4th! Looking forward to everyone's pictures of the House!

Cool photos. I now I know I want to go to the B&B.

It is so cool you got to handle the famous hatchet. I can't believe they
let people other than themselves to touch such an item

nice pictures... I wanna go back to Lizzies sometime soon, just dont know when yet :P

I'm curious, why the picture of Lil' Audrey's in Somerset?

Did you pop in? Did you try the turkey salad? (It's excellent!) perhaps you picked up a clamboil?

Jeff @ Sun Aug 12, 2007 7:17 am wrote:It is so cool you got to handle the famous hatchet. I can't believe they
let people other than themselves to touch such an item

I too am impressed and amazed. Does anybody have more background on the hatchet?

I am going to answer my own question.

As it turns out the hatchet that sits at the Fall River Historical Society very well may not be the weapon that killed Andrew and Abby Borden.

Blood does not 'stick' to metal but can be found on wood, which is why it is thought to be handless. That the murderer, prehaps Lizzie, discarded the handle that was covered in blood. But the problem is there are no traces of blood on the spot of the handle that remains. That is the spot where most of the blood would be as the handle itself would have the murder's hands over it.

Also it should be noted that a Dr. Frank Draper claimed, as in David Kent's book, "Forty Whacks", that on Abby's skull a small amount of metal 'gilt' was found. When hatchets are new that 'gilt' is there but wears away as they are used. He seemed to think the hatchet used in the slaying to be a new one. The Hatchet at the historical society is not new looking at all.

If this item was the murder weapon I think they may have been able to put Lizzie away. Because the murder weapon was never was found, I think it was one of the main reasons Lizzie was found not guilty. No witness, or murder weapon, just possibly a motive.

None the less, you have a very important artifact from the Borden house, most likely the most famous of them all.





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Thanks Darth!
The weapon the State went to the Prelim with was a different hatchet altogether. It was a claw-head hatchet or claw-hammer hatchet that had a couple of cotton fibres on it!
After the HH came into the picture, they dropped the other. That other was a "new" hatchet and it can be found in The Witness Statements.