Mondo Lizzie Borden

In recent posts, I noted that while Fall River is well regarded as being one of the top 10 least segregated cities in the county for blacks, it is at the same time infamous for appearing second on the list of most segregated cities in the nation for Latinos. All this is based on census information, and examines eveness, exposure, concentration, centralization, and clustering. Why study this now?

For the most part, sociologists are interested in residential segregation, which simple means refers to the racial/ethnic mix of blocks, neighborhoods, cities, and metropolitan areas. We tend to be less concerned with segregation as a legal concept, and it seems that a minority of sociologists studying segregation focus on school segregation or segregation in other social institutions such as churches and families.. I suspect that we don’t focus as much of school segregation because it is so highly correlated with residential segregation. I think too often people start by looking at school segregation, but they ignore the fact that more integrated neighborhoods would lead to more integrate schools. I suspect that people don’t focus on residential segregation because it is much harder to challenge, and it’s much more firmly entrenched (at least it is in recent history).

The reason why Fall River made this Latinos list is simple. It is the government’s fault. The State of Massachusetts made a great deal of money by bringing in, or importing, Latinos to Fall River and putting them in low income housing. These folks are not from the area. They were brought to the city in busses and planted here.

So this black eye of Latino segregation in Fall River is not because the people of Fall River are segregating the Latino population, it is the government who has created the segregation!

Fall River has a rich long history of absorbing minorities and immigrants into the fold. Portuguese and Irish live side by side with English and African American neighbors. But then the State steps in and literally creates a segregated community! What could be a worse reputation for a city? Segregation of this nature reflects badly on the city and its people and gives prospective businesses and newcomers the impression that the people of Fall River are a bigoted bunch—-a perfect way to further depress an already depressed economic situation.

By the way, this importing of low income housing residents has come under federal scrutiny recently, as possibly being a big payoff for some. The former governor Mit Romney was instrumental in creating the housing by providing “tax credits, grants and low-interest loans to produce over 548 rental apartments.” (source: Office of Gov, 8/25/2003). I read, but cannot locate, a Boston Globe article claiming that some of this section 8 housing was involved in some illegal practices.

So who suffers from this segregation problem? The community at large, who has become a dumping ground for low income families from other areas and becomes known for being number two in the nation for segregating Latinos.

I found a question posted on a site called Officer.com from a man who was thinking of relocating to the east coast and wondered about living in Fall River. The responses he got from contributors on the site’s forum was surprising to say the least.

Officer.com seems to be a catch all site for law enforcement people that need info on news, agencies, products, jobs, events, and matters relating to such careers. Their forum area is quite active and very interesting to read.

So what was so surprising? This:

07-05-2007, 09:10 AM
#1
just joe
Forum Member

Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: ohio
Posts: 354

Living in Fall River?

My wife and I are thinking about moving to New England. Would like to live in RI, but Mass looks a little cheaper. Is this correct? What about Fall River. I am not familiar with the neighborhoods, but I see North Side, South Side, Highlands, St. Anne, etc. What’s good and what’s bad? Thanks.

Yesterday, 09:47 AM
#2
george4
Forum Member

Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Massachusetts
Posts: 60

Fall River

Fall River = GHETTO, look elsewhere if possible..

Yesterday, 08:02 PM
#3
BlueLineCop
Forum Member

Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: NH
Posts: 13

I second the ghetto comment. You should look outside of Fall River

I like Fall River. A lot. It is very close to the ocean. The weather is rather mild. The city is located nearby several great cities (NY and Boston). The rental prices of apartments are slightly lower than Orlando, FL, my home state. There is a TON of history here, and not just Lizzie Borden stuff.

Now I am sure there are lots of reasons not to like it here, but that can be said of anyplace. A ghetto? I don’t think so. Not by a long shot.

Link.

In an opinion piece in the Ledger Dispatch of Jackson, CA, letter writer Joe Dirickx penned a letter titled “More handgun laws are not the answer.” He cites various instances where major crimes were committed by people who would have stopped at nothing to do their dastardly deeds. Of course, here we have the standard inclusion of Lizzie Borden. Even when we all know she was acquitted.

If an individual is set on doing harm to you, your family or the public, they will find a way. In the 1995 Oklahoma bombing, Timothy McVay killed 169 men, women and children using a mixture of fertilizer and fuel oil, materials available to anyone. On March 3, 2006, Mohammed Reza Taheri-azar drove his rented Jeep Cherokee into a crowd of students at the University of North Carolina. Luckily he didn’t kill anyone, but that was his intent. After his surrender, he was charged with nine counts of attempted first-degree murder and nine counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious bodily injury, and then there was Lizzie Borden and her ax.

Here is a link to his entire argument.

Dr. Charles Frost is a professor of Social Work and the Director of the Social Works Program at Middle Tennessee State University. He has a website that offers up his research on various topics, such as International Social Work, Leadership Skills and Interviewing Skills.

A link on his site is labled “Mitigation’s Web Page” and one can only assume the work is his, although his name is not attached to the article presented.

Mitigation Defined

Mitigation is that which tends to soften, temper, or make less harsh or severe. Mitigating circumstances surrounding a criminal offense are those circumstances that tend to lessen the apparent badness of the particular crime in question or the apparent badness of the particular defendant.

Mitigating circumstances are not limited by the law; they may be unlimited in number, as long as they are based upon the evidence introduced by either the prosecution or the defense at trial or sentencing.

The existence of any mitigating circumstances does not require proof beyond a reasonable doubt. A mitigating circumstance exists if there is any evidence supporting it introduced by either the prosecution or the defense at either the guilt-innocence or sentencing stage of the trial, which is uncontradicted or which outweighs any contradictory evidence. . . .

continued here.

If you click on the additional link labled “Murderers” there is another piece, apparently by Frost, in which he includes the following reference to Lizzie Borden:

Examples throughout history of serial murderers and other types of murderers are captured in the book: “Human Monsters: An illustrated Encyclopedia of the World’s Most Vicious Murderers” by David Everitt (Contemporary Books: Chicago, 1993). All quotes in this summary are drawn from his book. . . .

Lizzie Borden (1860-1927) is one of America’s most famous murderers….according to folklore, she took her axe and gave daddy 20 whacks and then gave mommy 9 more. Mommy was really her stepmother. And instead of being convicted, she was found not guilty by the court, but not by public opinion, which decided she was indeed the murderer. All evidence does point to her guilt; however, the jury just couldn’t see this nice young lady as being capable of two such dreadful murders. She was 32 when she killed her parents and lived on to age 67.

Lizzie Borden is an example of how important appearances are, often more important than facts or evidence. That is why the jury needs to see the accused dressed, shaved, looking as presentable as possible. That is why OJ was helped tremendously when he was allowed to try on the glove and address the court and jury stating his innocence without having to be cross examined—he knew how to play the role of OJ, the nice guy from the movies and commercials.

One of America’s most interesting murderers, far more interesting though not as famous as Lizzie, was H.H. Holmes (1860-1896). . . .

Here we find the commonly drawn connection of Lizzie to OJ Simpson. Nothing new there. But besides getting the number of whacks incorrect and reversed (it was 19 to Abby and 10 to Andrew), the author proffers the bold assertion that “all evidence does point to her guilt” and summizes that the reason why Lizzie was acquitted was solely because of her gender and the manner of her appearance. Quite an indictment of 19th Century jurisprudence!

All evidence did not point to Lizzie’s guilt. In fact, there was no evidence that pointed to Lizzie’s guilt! Only opportunity and motive.

Of note also is the source that the professor uses in his paper. Human Monsters is one of those mass marketed sensational murder books that has very little to offer in the way of scholarship. This book is like the National Inquirer’s version of history—certainly nothing to use as source material for a research study.

I guess even PhDs can get it wrong, but I hope that isn’t the sum total of his investigation into the Borden case. Nor the sum total of what his students hear of it either.

Thanks to Sherry Chapman for this link!

A new, yes new, haunted purse, supposedly belonging to Lizzie Borden is on sale on eBay.

Here is the seller’s ad—-the caps are their’s, not mine. I would never yell at you!

THIS VERY SPOOKY , VERY OLD , LEATHER PURSE, WITH CHANGE PURSE STILL ATTACHED, IT IS NOT IN BAD CONDITION, COULD BE USED BUT I WOULD FRAME IT! IT IS SAID TO HAVE BELONGED TO THE FAMOUS MURDERESS,LIZZIE BORDEN,WHO WENT INSANE AND MURDRED HER BOTH PARENTS, WITH AN AX, IN THE 1800S NOW I HAVE HAD VERY RARE ITEM, FOR OVER 20 YRS, BEACAUSE OF ITS HISTORICAL VALUE,AND MY ATTRACTION TO THIS ONCE IN A LIFE TIME FIND, I PURCHASED IT IN FALL RIVER, MASSACHUSETTS AT A SALE, BACK THEN, THE MAN WHO SOLD IT TO ME TOLD ME THAT HE KNEW THRU HIS GRAND FATHER, ANDREW , ANDREW BORDEN WAS , ( LIZZIES FATHER, THAT SHE WAS ACCUSED OF KILLING WITH AN AX.) A VERY FAMOUS NEW ENGLAND MURDER, ! HE SAID THAT HIS GRANDFATHER AND HER FATHER ANDREW ,WERE FRIENDS, THEY WERE A WEALTHY FAMILY, AND I WAS TOLD IT WAS LOANED , TO ONE OF THE RELATIVES FOR AN OUTING, AND NEVER RETURNED, BECAUSE THERE WAS NO CONTACT AGAIN AFTER THE BRUTAL MURDERS,AND PUBLICITY, OF ONE OF THE MOST HORRIFIC , COLD BLOODED MURDERS IN ALL OF AMERICAN HISTORY,WHEN HE DECIDED TO SELL IT, THIS MAN WAS IN HIS LATE 80S. AND WHEN I PICKED IT UP HE TOLD ME THAT HIS WIFE DIDNT WANT IT NEAR HER ,GRANDCHILDREN, AND ASK HIM TO TAKE IT OUT OF THE FAMILY HOME! LIZZIE WAS SAID TO BE SEEN IN THE EARLY DAYS, ON OCASSION CARRING THIS PURSE DAILY TO AND FROM THE BANK IN TH MORNINGS , PERHAPS RUNNUNG ERRANDS FOR HER FATHER!IT BEING A PART OF HISTORY, IS ENOUGH BUT I HAVE SEEN THE GHOST OF LIZZIE BORDEN WHEN I HAVE BEEN ALONE IN MY ROOM , SHE IS CRAZED LOOKING, AND I HAVE SEEN HER MANY TIMES, STANDING THERE WITH HER AX, AND ALL FULL OF BLOOD! I KNOW YOU WILL SEE HER TOO ! THIS IS A VERY VERY HAUNTED ITEM, NOT A TOY OR FOR MISUSE, SO PLEASE BE READY FOR IT! GOOD BIDDING

Starting bid? only $29.00.

Now the stranger part of this story is that not one month ago on eBay was yet another haunted Lizzie Borden purse. They were asking $500 for that one as a starting bid. No one wanted it, alas.

Here is that description:

As told to me by my mother, this purse was given to my great grandmother by Lizzie Borden.

My great grandmother immigrated from Italy via New York. Her journey to Boston/Maine led her to Fall River/New Bedford area, where she worked for Lizzie Borden doing laundry and sewing for a few weeks. Upon her departure Lizzie Borden gave my great grandmother this purse which has been handed down from generations.

Inside this purse were 2 coins : a silver dollar dated 1890 and a one cent penny dated 1853.

The purse is in immaculate condition as well as the coins. Black sequence with (I believe )is a silver base.

The problem with this beautiful purse is that when it is taken out of storage, strange things happen to the people and those around them that have handled it. We have had strange sensations of being watched, touched, strange sounds, shadowy figures as well as weird feelings, especially when alone. Circumstances seem to occur that things even break.

So is this a simple outbreak of Lizzie haunting her accessories? Or perhaps, an epidemic of insanity among eBay sellers? A sucker is born every minute, said a banker named David Hannum (no, not PT Barnum!).

If one of my faithful readers actually purchases this “haunted” purse, please email me and let me know when you see the “crazed looking,” axe weilding matron of Maplecroft.

On eBay right now is a framed image of a woman for sale: Vintage Oval Convex Curved Bubble Glass Picture Frame.

Seems the interest was not going as well as the seller wanted so they added this note on December 29th: “Could this photo be of Lizzie Borden? I did a Google search and the similarity is amazing! Look on Google for yourself and decide.”

13 bids so far. Hmmm. Namedropping Lizzie Borden on eBay seems to have its advantages.

Is it Lizzie? Nope. But then the seller doesn’t say it is, do they?

Found this short 57 second piece on a show called Perfectly Strange. The tv crew went to 92 Second Street to try to capture paranormal activity. This clip shows that they did.

A new eBay listing “Lizzie A. Borden Autograph Display 8×10 Rare Autograph Display!!” caught my eye. Starting bid: $400! Check it out!

A very rare signature of Lizzie A. Borden, professionally matted together with a black and white photograph to an overall size of 8 x 10 inches. In excellent condition .

Lizzie Borden was born on July 19, 1860.She is known as an american woman accused of killing her father and her step-mother. The elder Bordens were hacked to death with an ax on Aug. 4, 1892. Although Lizzie Borden claimed that she was out in the barn at the time, she was accused of the murders and tried. The trial, which aroused great public interest, ended with a verdict of not guilty. The case was never solved.She died on June 1, 1927.

The Autographs World is a proud new member of the European Division of the Universal Autograph Collector’s Club, we offer only authentic hand-signed autographs which are guaranteed for life and we guarantee the fastest possible delivery from Central Europe. We appreciate your support and look forward to serving you for many years to come!

Only problem is that this isn’t Lizzie’s photo and it isn’t Lizzie’s signature. Hmmm. Wonder if this is the first time she has been confused with the woman she was accused of murdering?

For the last year, I have had for sale through my CafePress Lizzie Borden sale site a set of US Postage stamps I designed for those interested in all things Lizzie. I thought them in good taste and got many compliments on them. They are in the style of Andy Warhol.

Today, CafePress wrote me a nice note. Here is the text:

Thank you for using CafePress.com! Unfortunately we have removed some of the products from your shop. Please be advised that Stamps.com does not allow images depicting notorious figures and/or criminals. Accordingly, your stamps section containing Lizzie Borden has been removed. Please feel free to visit the Stamps.com webpage to view the Terms and Conditions for further information.

If you have any quetsions or concerns, please let us know.

So Lizzie is officially designated by Stamps.com as a “notorious figure and/or criminal”—-Just thought you should make a note of that!

A very funny item has appeared on eBay—-Lizzie Borden Hatchet Grease—this one required ingenuity and creativity to craft. It is a good hoot and a half to read! One thing, however. The seller is using a photo of the Gray’s Portrait Studio “Lizzie”—which has been deemed by experts not to be her!

So, this auction is funny for several reasons—but probably not the reasons the seller intended.

Custom labeled antique bottle. Stopper not included. Bottle shipped empty and not cracked, chipped or split, but interior may exhibit signs of age. Will make a wonderful addition to your cupboard, apothecary table or theme collection.

Lizzie Borden Hatchet Grease – Lizzie Borden (July 19, 1860 – June 1, 1927) was a New England spinster who was acquitted of the brutal axe murders of her wealthy father Andrew Borden and stepmother Abby Borden at their home on August 4, 1892 in Fall River, Massachusetts. No one else was ever tried, and Borden was ostracized for the rest of her life. Even after her death, she has remained an infamous figure in American folklore. The slayings, trial, and surrounding media circus became a cause célèbre. The notoriety of the case has endured in American pop culture and criminology as one of the most celebrated incidents of the Victorian era. Dispute over the identity of the killer continues to this day. Bottle is 6.5” tall.

Shipping is $5.00 via USPS

An odd article appeared online on Azstarnet.com, “the online service of the Arizona Daily Star“, about animal abusers. It begins:

I read the newspaper with great interest. A few stories jump out, either at me or my mother: These are stories about people tormenting animals or keeping them in conditions not fit for any living being. It is well documented that the vast majority of humans who enjoy hurting other species go on to more interesting prey — us.

The article then goes on to list several infamous people from history who liked to “harm puppies and kittens when they were children.” The list includes “Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gacy, Jeffrey Dahmer and that great humanitarian Adolf Hitler.” I don’t even know if this is correct, but the author, one Lee Reynolds, then makes the audacious statement that “I don’t know much about Lizzie Borden’s past with animal life, but she evidently “took an ax” and made use of it.”

So there you have it. A new turn to the worm. Lizzie grouped in with serial killers who abused animals. Quite a new low for her, don’t you think? Especially when she was acquitted of the crimes and was such a famous benefactor to animal rescue leagues in later life. I guess the old girl is fated to be manhandled by history. Seems a shame though. For whatever Lizzie Borden was or did or maybe did, she was no Jeffrey Dahmer or Adolf Hitler.

In an online article on Broadcasting & Cable about Fox’s TV show about OJ Simpson’s new book O.J. Simpson: If I Did It, Here’s How It Happened (yes, that is actually the title), writer John Eggerton waxes poetic about Lizzie Borden.

Read the article here.

I found this somewhat new publication: a 2006 reprint of Porter’s Fall River Tragedy, by The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd. It is overpriced at $95, but I really like the cover!

Porter, Edwin, H. The Fall River Tragedy. A History of The Borden Murders. 1584775467.

2006 ISBN 1584775467 Porter, Edwin, H., Reporter. The Fall River Tragedy: A History of The Borden Murders. A Plain Statement of the Material Facts Pertaining to the Most Famous Crime of the Century, Including the Story of the Arrest and Preliminary Trial of Miss Lizzie A. Borden and a Full Report of the Superior Court Trial, with a Hitherto Unpublished Account of the Renowned Trickey-McHenry Affair Compiled from Official Sources and Profusely Illustrated with Original Engravings. Fall River: J.D. Munroe, 1893. 312 pp. Illustrated. Reprinted 2006 by the Lawbook Exchange, Ltd. ISBN-13: 978-1-58477-546-1. ISBN-10: 1-58477-546-7.

Cloth. * Compiled nearly contemporaneously with Lizzie’s sensational trial, the author aims to provide “a connected story of the whole case, commencing with the day of the tragedy and ending with the day that Miss Borden was set free.” He touches on such topics as the discovery of the murders, the adjournment of the preliminary hearing and some the many theories that were advanced before any arrests were made. The book is handsomely illustrated with photos and line illustrations of the deceased, the accused the jury and others. Porter was the Police Reporter of the Fall River Globe.

A site called Uncyclopedia has a cute section on nursery rhymes that for some reason includes the Lizzie Borden doggerel.

Lyrics
Lizzie Borden took an axe
And gave her mother forty whacks.
When she saw what she had done
She gave her father forty-one.

Origins
This famous children’s rhyme was inspired by a girl’s alleged double murder of her father and mother. While this does not appear to be suitable for a children’s rhyme (due to the fact it may put dangerous ideas into kid’s heads) it has still been passed along for generations. However, a few verses have been lost along the way (mainly because they were redundant and repetitive not to mention unnecessary).

Lizzie Borden took a nine*
And shot her mother in the spine.
When she saw what she had did
She shot her father in the head.

Lizzie Borden took an M-16
And shot her mother in the spleen.
When she saw what that entailed
She shot her father while getting the mail.

Lizzie Borden took a lance
And stabbed her mother in the pants.
When she saw what she did commit
Onto her father she dropped a brick.

Lizzie Borden had a little LAM**
And blew her mom up while sendin spam.
When she saw the smoking house
She threw another to make sure her dad didn’t get out.

Lizzie Borden took a mace
And swung it at her mother’s face.
When she saw the chain had broke
She made her dad and house explode.

Lizzie Borden took some WMD’s***
And killed her mother with the greatest of ease.
When she saw that burned up whale
She killed her dad with anthraxmail.

Mama Borden was a slut
So lizzie had to kick her butt
When she finished doing that
She lypo-sucked her father’s fat

*9mm
**Lightweight Attack Munitions
***Wobbly Massage Dinkytoys

What Have We Learned?
Be nice to your kids.
People get carried away with slander.
Writing stupid violent rhymes can be educational.
At a certain point, it isn’t necessary to have sources support your claims. For example, although the 5th verse suggests Lizzie sent spam mail, this is most likely just a slanderous and unbased comment to make people dislike her more.
After a while, you run out of ways to kill.
Children’s literature is creepy and macabre.
Lypo-sucking your father is really nasty and uncalled for.
Actually Lypo-sucking your dad is not cruel, mean, or deadly at all, it is actually quite nice if your father is very obese and needs some type of surgerey, and this misconception was not reconciled until 1989.

A very strange but true story of a young man who killed his neighbor appears on CourtTV news. “Convicted teen killer knew tragedy, drugs early in life, but was considered gentle”.

MARTINEZ, Calif. — Scott Dyleski was a 16-year-old college student, animal rights’ activist and budding artist when he woke up one morning last fall and apparently decided to bludgeon his 52-year-old neighbor to death.

The horrific crime left his friends and neighbors baffled. They would soon learn that the teen took evident pleasure in the act. He carved a symbol into his victim’s back as she lay dying and then joked with friends that night about killer Lizzie Borden as they pondered how many whacks it would take to kill a human being.