Mondo Lizzie Borden

You know it is Halloween time when eBay explodes with very kewl items for your perfect scary party or house decor. Here is a great item—a carved bust of Lizzie Borden, measuring roughly 31″H x 22″W x 5″D.

It doesn’t matter that it doesn’t exactly look like her—what counts is they tried, and I think, mostly succeeded in capturing an angry woman who looks like she did the dastardly deeds.

Bidding starts at $49.99.

On sale on eBay is the signature of William H. Moody, prosecutor in the Lizzie Borden trial and fomer Secretary of the Navy.

Here is the link to the sale.

MOODY, WILLIAM HENRY 1853 - 1917: born in Newbury, Massachusetts, son of Henry Lord and Melissa Augusta (Emerson) Moody. Educated in the public schools of Salem and Danvers. Massachusetts, he prepared for college at Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, graduating in 1872. He continued his studies at Harvard University where he graduated third in his class in 1876. He studied law at Harvard and in the office of Richard H. Dana, Esq. and was admitted to the Salem bar in 1878. He then began a practice with Edwin N. Hill, Esq. in Haverhill, Massachusetts. Active in civic affairs there, he served ()it III(school board and held the post of city solicitor in 1888 and 1889. He was subsequently elected district attorney for Essex County, a position he held for six years. It was in this capacity that he was appointed by Massachusetts Attorney General Albert E. Pillsbury to serve on the prosecution in the Borden trial. He delivered the opening argument for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts vs. Lizzie A. Borden. In 1895, he was elected representative to Congress for the Sixth District, an office to which he was reelected in 1896, 1898 and 1900. In 1902, he was named Secretary of the United States Navy by President Theodore Roosevelt, succeeding Hon. John D. Long. He received the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws from Amherst College as well as one from Tufts University in 1904. That same year, he was appointed to the position of attorney general of the United States and remained in President Roosevelt’s cabinet until he was chosen to fill a vacancy on the Supreme Court in 1906. He retired from the bench due to ill health in 1909 and was residing in Haverhill, Massachusetts, at the time of his death. The following year destroyer #277 in the United States Navy was named for him in recognition of his accomplishments when serving as secretary of that division of the armed forces.

Source: Commonwealth of Massachusetts VS. Lizzie A. Borden; The Knowlton Papers, 1892-1893. Eds. Michael Martins and Dennis A. Binette. Fall River, MA: Fall River Historical Society, 1994.

The late poetess Ruth Whitman published a collection of poetry in 1973 and titled it The Passion of Lizzie Borden. It is a very nice book and since Lizzie is in the title, and one of the longer poems in the book is about Borden, it is a fine addition to any Lizzie Borden collection.

There is one on eBay right now that has a starting bid of only 1 cent. Cool, huh? Well, not so fast amigo. Look at that shipping fee: $5.00 for MEDIA MAIL, which would actually cost the seller under a buck for this slim volume. So here we have the classic snarley auction tactic: sell the item for cheap and jack up the shipping to make up the difference in item price. Please don’t fall for this type of disreputable behavior. You can grab this title on Abebook.com for under 5 dollars and shipping is a reasonable $3.50. I use Abebooks.com all the time and the book arrives very quickly and I have always (knock on wood) been happy with the condition matching the book’s description in the listing. On eBay, on the other hand, I have more than a few times been disappointed with the book’s wear. In once case, the seller even misread the jacket and sold the book as a Lizzie connected item when it wasn’t.

UPDATE: auction ended early on July 22. No other details than this from eBay: “The seller ended this listing early because the item is no longer available for sale.”

This just popped up on eBay, but don’t let the auction fool you. This is NOT Lizzie Borden of Fall River hatchet murder fame. It might be some lady named “Lizzy Borden” as the signature states, but it isn’t Lizzie Andrew Borden. 100 bucks plus 10 for shipping. Hmmm. Let me see . . . was I born yesterday? Nope. And neither were you.

An Actual Photo of the Ax Murderer Lizzy Borden?

The photo is in nice shape but for a small chip visible near her right eye

Print in bottom of photo reads “No Main St ALLEN Mansfield MA” and the photo is Signed “Lizzie Borden”, is it her signature?, probally not as it appears to be written in blue ballpoint ink which was not available when lizzy was alive.

This photo was found stuck in a book about lizzie borden at an estate sale about 10 miles from Fall River Massachusetts

This may or may not be a photo of her, it looks like a lot like her but Lizzy was a little plumper, the photo is being sold as is/as found

This reprint of the 1893 classic by Porter is a good buy on eBay if you can grab it for under $35. The starting bid is only $15. There are a lot of them out there, but a deal is a deal, so if you can snag it for cheap, do it.

Edwin H. Porter. The Fall River Tragedy. A History Of The Borden Murders. A facsimile of the 1893 bookk with a foreword by Robert A. Flynn. Portland, Maine: KIng Philip Publishing Co. 1985. (Copyright 1985; This First Facsimile…is published…in the year 1985). 9.25×6 inches(h x w)/green textured cloth, gilt lettering front and spine/gray-green endpapers/312 pages/illustrated/no dust jacket. Condition: boards and spine are clean with very little wear, soiling to page edges (light to moderate), sound hinges and clean endpapers, clean pages. Please add $3.00 postage.

On eBay now is a copy of The Commonwealth of Massachusetts vs. Lizzie Borden.

No no no no NO. Do not pay $600 for this book. While it is out of print, it is not worth that amount of money. You can find this book every once in a while and if you are patient, you can, like I did, find one in a used bookstore for $20.

On eBay is an interesting item: BUTCHERED AND MUTILATED. UNUSUAL MURDER VICTIMS. RARE.

I’ve never seen this title before as related to Lizzie Borden but it looks like it is worth a looksee. Opening bid is $19.95, but shipping from Canada is $5.50. Only one copy is available on bookfinder, and that one is $36.

If you win it, please let me know about the Lizzie section. Perhaps you can even guest blog about it!

THE BUTCHERED AND MUTILATED by James Bellaugh.

A paperback original. 16 pages of black and white photos. 188 pages. Minor wear to the extremities and minor cover wear. The spine is somewhat shaken and the first set of photo illustrations are loose, but intact. Still, the book is in good condition. Very scarce. 9 chapters. Some familiar cases, such as Belle Gunness and Lizzie Borden, and others not so famous, but all interesting and rather macabre.

For sale on eBay right now is a great item: LIZZIE BORDEN A Play by Owen Haskell signed ltd. The opening bid of $24.95 is fair and you won’t regret this purchase—if you can grab it for under $50. It is funny and bright and full of surprising scenes and dialogue. Plus, this copy is signed and has a dust jacket. A rare find indeed. PS: there are a few copies available on bookfinder, but the cheap ones are without dustjackets, so if you just want a reading copy, buy one of those.

LIZZIE! , A two act play by Owen Haskell, hardcover with dustjacket, in maroon slipcase, signed by author and illustrator, Ted Beargeon, one of 26 lettered copies it is in excellent condition. The play follows closely the facts of Lizzie Bordens trial and the day of the murders. the front cover there are 41 axes hidden in the picture and the back has 40. Published by Lazarus Press.

This auction is for a book that is quite interesting but if you wish to read it I would suggest that you Interlibrary loan it for free. It really isn’t a book to buy at a premium as it is a very short reference work that is only 18 pages long. Starting bid is $49.95 and BuyItNow is $99.95.

LIZZIE BORDEN AND THE LIBRARY CONNECTION. RARE

LIZZIE BORDEN AND THE LIBRARY CONNECTION by John David Marshall. 18 page softcover book. Published by the School of Library and Information Studies, Florida State University. Frontis of Lizzie Borden. 18 pages.

INSCRIBED TO KENNETH SOUZA AND SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR ON THE TITLE PAGE

A very rare Lizzie borden item, the theme of this is Lizzie’s connection with three librarians, a judge and, of course, her connection with books

There are two interesting signs on sale on eBay related to Lizzie Borden today. This one Primitive Lizzie Borden Bed & Breakfast Sign, is an original piece, which makes it ultra cool in my book. Says the auction: “An original Design of Mill Creek Primitives. Base painted Black with butter pecan lettering…Stained and sanded. Approx 7 1/2 by 18 inches in size.”

Then there is this one making another appearance. You can read all about the history of this sign on other posts by me recently. Apparently, the seller decided that his $200 auction was too steep to garner a sale so he lowered it WAY down. Might be worth getting if you can get it inexpensively!

Inventive original art. Original Halloween Painting - Lizzie Borden Ghost.

This is an original painting in a frame. Painting measures 6.5″ by 4.5″. The entire piece measures 7.75″ by 5.75″ from the outside edges of the frame. This painting is done in acrylics on a 5″x7″ canvas board. It shows two jack o’lanterns looking up at the sky in a worried manner. Two ghosts are floating there who may be Lizzie Borden and a cat. This painting was recently completed in 2006 by the artist (me). The frame can be stood up, or hung on a wall.

I am forever tickled by this seller’s creativity. I even bought a purse they created a while back. Check out her newest idea for the Bordenphile in your life: .Lizzie Borden hairclips psychobilly punk. By CapgunCowgirl. Only $3 starting bid and $1 shipping. Can’t beat that with a axe.

These are a cute pair of pink/white polka dot Lizzie Borden hair clips! So cute! And you get two of these bad boys! These are approx. 2″ in length.

This photo of the stage and film actress Nance (pronounced Nancy) O’Neil, comes up on eBay from time to time, always, so far, for a starting bid of $75.

It is a lovely image, but the seller’s description is not to be taken as fact, i.e. there is no proof whatsoever that Lizzie Borden and Nance O’Neil were lesbian lovers. They were, we know, friends for some time.

As an actress she was the star in companies featuring the young John and Lionel Barrymore, but she remains known to posterity in part due to the fact that she was the lesbian lover of the legendary acccused murderess Lizzie Borden. A rare original silver print photograph of Nance O’Neil with Elsie Ferguson in the play The House of Women. Dimensions ten by eight inches. Light corner wear with small chip to one corner else fine.

Here is the final sale prices on those six Maplecroft books that sold on eBay.

1. Loveliness Eliz S. Phelps- Owned by Lizzie Borden, 1900, no signature, but inscribed: “To Miss Borden (probably her sister Emma) and Miss L. A. Borden, from the author.” Ended June 26, 2006, 14 bids, Sold for $255.

2. V.V.s Eyes- Owned & Initialed by Lizzie Borden, 1913, inscribed: “L.A.B” on the flyleaf and is from the Borden estate of Maplecroft. Ended June 26, 2006, 8 bids, sold for $135.29.

3. Book of Inscriptions- Owned/Initialed by Lizzie Borden, the book is inscribed: “L.A.B” on the flyleaf and is from the Borden estate of Maplecroft. It has the green and gold Maplecroft sticker with the letter “B” for Borden and a small maple leaf. Ended June 29, 2006, 23 bids, sold for $519.

4. Bud- Neil Munro Owned & Initialed by Lizzie Borden 1st, the book is inscribed: “L.A.B” on the flyleaf and is from the Borden estate of Maplecroft. Ended July 1, 2006, 15 bids, sold for $338.33.

5. Nancy Stair- Elinor M Laine Owned by Lizzie Borden 1905, the book has a sticker from Ms Borden’s estate, Maplecroft. It is green with a stylized “B” for Borden and the word “Maplecroft” with a maple leaf. Above that there is a sad little quote pasted in: “There is no frigate like a book to take us lands away.” The book also has a pencil mark at a passage on page 146 that also has a corner folded over. The paragraph is about a man spoiled by his mother marrying an equally spoiled woman. The book also has a ribbon used as a book mark. Ended July 1, 2006, 23 bids, sold for $810.

6. Right off the Chest- Revell Owned by Lizzie Borden 1923, unsigned, the book has a sticker from Ms Borden’s estate, Maplecroft. It is green with a stylized “B” for Borden and the word “Maplecroft” with a maple leaf. Ended July 1, 2006, 21 bids, sold for $811.22.

While we all wait for the Maplecroft books to sell, I thought I would share with you an eBay gem.

In 2003, on eBay of course, someone sold a mantle clock that they said was from the Borden house. It was supposedly still spattered with the blood of Andrew’s murder. Here is the description, typos and all:

I bought this clock at auction over 25 years ago. There is an old label attached inside the clock written in old penmanship stating “Clock from the famous Lizzie Borden Estate after the trial in 1892. The blood spots never left.”. That’s true, as you can see from the photos’s. Their is, now pink colored, blood splatters across the face and over the top. This was the mantel clock in the living room where Lizzie killed her father with an axe. The spots will not come off and are consistent with what one can only imagine blood spewing across a room and landing on a painted china clock would look like after a hundred and eleven years. The clock itself seems to be made around the 1880`s and is 14 inches tall by 11 inches wide. There is no maker’s name and it does not work. It is in perfect shape, no damage whatsoever. I have always believed in the origin of this clock and the authenticity of the attached note but I would hesitate to say I am absolutely certain as I am no expert in this historical field. Therefore, please, if you have any questions contact me. This clock is a pretty important part to the Borden puzzle and is after all one of a kind. Thank you for viewing.

Some photos to refresh your memories:

The clock sold for $999. An interesting discussion of the item took place on the Lizzie Borden Society Forum.