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Mentions Lizzie Borden
Posted: Sat Jan 09, 2010 2:13 pm
by augusta
Ran across a site doing a search. Page 4 starts talking about Lizzie Borden.
http://www.law.uoregon.edu/faculty/cfor ... esDown.pdf
On one of the pages, it says, "The defense made certain that there were several fathers with daughters Lizzie's age on the jury".
The footnote says this was taken from page 218 from Ann Jones' "Women Who Kill", c 1980, Holt Rinehart and Winston, NY
I had never read this before. It is in Ann Jones' book. Does anyone know any more about this? How many jurors had daughters around Lizzie's age? Who were the jurors?
Posted: Sat Jan 09, 2010 8:52 pm
by Kat
I would think the jurors Voir Dire in the Trial's first several pages would tell as much about them as anyone might know, as they answer questions pertaining to themselves.
The only other place might be the newspapers, but I wonder what Ann Jones used for her source?
Posted: Sat Jan 09, 2010 9:02 pm
by Kat
Here is an example of the jury questioning from the Trial:
JOSIAH T. HORTON, Dighton.
Not related to the parties.
Q. Have you any interest in this cause?
A. No, sir.
Q. Have you formed or expressed any opinion in relation to it?
A. I have, both.
Q. Are you sensible of any bias or prejudice in it?
A. No.
Q. Have you formed any opinion that would prevent a candid judgment upon a full hearing of the evidence?
A. I have not.
Q. Have you any opinions which would preclude you from finding the defendant guilty of an offence punishable with death?
A. I have not.
MR. KNOWLTON. We have no questions to submit.
MASON, C. J. The juror stands indifferent.
MR. KNOWLTON. The Commonwealth challenges.
Page 10
OTIS T. SPRINGER, No. Attleborough.
Excused, not being summoned correctly by the record.
WILLIAM F. DEAN, Taunton.
Q. Are you related to the prisoner at the bar?
A. No.
Q. Or to Andrew J. Borden or Abby D. Borden, the deceased?
A. I am not.
Q. Have you any interest in this cause?
A. I have not.
Q. Have you formed or expressed any opinion in relation to it?
A. I have.
Q. Are you sensible of any bias or prejudice in it?
A. I am not.
Q. The opinions that you have formed or expressed---are they such as would prevent you from rendering a candid judgment upon the full hearing of the evidence?
A. They are not.
Q. Have you any opinions that would preclude you from finding a defendant guilty of an offence punishable with death?
A. I have not.
MASON, C. J . The juror stands indifferent.
MR. KNOWLTON. The Commonwealth does not challenge.
MR. JENNINGS. The defendant does not challenge.
The juror was sworn and took his seat upon the panel as the second juror.
Posted: Sat Jan 09, 2010 9:29 pm
by Kat
I did a check of The Evening Standard thru the end of the trial to see if there was any allusion to what comprised sitting jurors families~ but did not find any personal background material.
Maybe Jones took the pleas of Robinson in his closing, literally? She quotes him as saying:
. . ."you have wives and daughters and sisters and you have had mothers..."--pg 218.
I did not check Robinson's final plea to see if he was quoted accurately by Jones.
Posted: Sat Jan 09, 2010 11:45 pm
by Harry
One of the best places for information on the jury is in the Knowlton papers, pages 218 to 221, document HK206.
It mentions each juror by name, their marital status and whether they had children. Some had children but in no case does it mention the children's ages.
The prosecution, and probably the defense as well, apparently gathered as much information as they could on the chosen jurors. The document HK206 is not dated but obviously this information had to be acquired after they were chosen. State Detective Seaver seems to be the source of quite a few of the comments on each juror.
The Glossary in the rear of the Knowlton papers goes into detail on each juror but again no mention of the childrens, if any, ages.
Posted: Sun Jan 10, 2010 12:55 am
by xyjw
I don't currently have access to censuses but what if you checked the 1880 and 1900 households of some of the jurors? If I were Lizzie's attorneys I would really want fathers of same aged daughters! This is an interesting thing to think about.
Posted: Sun Jan 10, 2010 1:49 am
by Kat
I thought about checking The Knowlton Papers but decided since Ann Jones was published 1981 (my copy), and "Knowlton" in 1994, it would have no relationship to her claim. I still wouldn't know where she would get that tid-bit.
It's still good info you give on that source tho, Har, thanks!
Posted: Sun Jan 10, 2010 7:33 am
by Harry
Then I guess it's nowhere.
Posted: Thu Jan 21, 2010 10:13 am
by nbcatlover
The trial information and the newspapers are not the only sources of information.
From 1880 census (
www.FamilySearch.org)
Household:
Name Relation Marital Status Gender Race Age Birthplace Occupation Father's Birthplace Mother's Birthplace
Josiah T. HORTON Self M Male W 40 MA Moulder MA MA
Rebecca A. HORTON Wife M Female W 38 MA Keeps House MA MA
Lizzie J. HORTON Dau S Female W 16 MA Does House Work MA MA
Annie L. HORTON Dau S Female W 14 MA At School MA MA
Georgie T. HORTON Son S Male W 10 MA At School MA MA
Emily B. HORTON Dau S Female W 7 MA At School MA MA
Minnie D. HORTON Dau S Female W 2 MA MA MA
Household:
Name Relation Marital Status Gender Race Age Birthplace Occupation Father's Birthplace Mother's Birthplace
William F. DEAN Self M Male W 35 MA Engineer In Shovel Shop MA MA
S. Elizabeth DEAN Wife M Female W 33 MA Keeps House MA MA
Florence L. DEAN Other S Female W 4M MA MA MA
Household:
Name Relation Marital Status Gender Race Age Birthplace Occupation Father's Birthplace Mother's Birthplace
Otis SPRINGER Self M Male W 48 ME Works On Boots RI ME
Sarah SPRINGER Wife M Female W 35 MA Keeping House MA MA
Frank A. SPRINGER Son S Male W 14 MA MA MA
Couldn't find C.J. Mason on 5-minutes notice, but a good search of Massachusetts 1890 Census and its Vital Records could have provided basis for support of the statement, jurors with daughters for publication.
Most of the jurors selected seem to come from families with many ties to Bristol County. It is possible that a shrewd lawyer like Robinson had his own methods of jury selection research or his own local jury consultant (my speculation).
Checking out the daughter connection would be interesting.
A future Hatchet article for someone, perhaps?