By Stefani Koorey, Ph.D. © 2001. All Rights Reserved.
Table of Contents
Primary Sources
Secondary Sources – Bibliographies and Checklists
Secondary Sources – Book Length Studies – Non-Fiction
Secondary Sources – Book Length Studies – Fiction
Secondary Sources – Short Stories and Poetry
Secondary Sources – Essays and Brief Mentions in Books
Secondary Sources – Essays and Articles in Journals and Magazines
Secondary Sources – Articles and Essays in Newspapers
Secondary Sources – Encyclopedias and Compendiums
Media Resources
Burt, Frank H. The Trial of Lizzie A. Borden. Upon an indictment charging her with the murders of Abby Durfee Borden and Andrew Jackson Borden. Before the Superior Court for the County of Bristol. Presiding, C.J. Mason, J.J. Blodgett, and J.J. Dewey. Official stenographic report by Frank H. Burt (New Bedford, MA., 1893, 2 volumes). (Micro- text, Boston Public Library: 1971).
Copies of the trial on microfilm can be obtained by writing the Superior Court of Massachusetts and obtaining permission from them for the Boston Public Library to make a reproduction of the microfilm.
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.
A collection of previously unpublished letters and documents from the files of prosecuting attorney Hosea Morrill Knowlton. Limited edition published by the Fall River Historical Society; the only publication made up entirely of original documents.
Inquest Upon the Deaths of Andrew J. and Abby D. Borden, August 9 – 11, 1892, Volume I and II. Fall River, MA: Fall River Historical Society.
Witnesses: Eli Bence, Emma Borden, Lizzie A. Borden, Dr. Seabury W. Bowen, Adelaide B. Churchill, Hannah H. Gifford, Hiram C. Harrington, Frederick B. Hart, Frank H. Kilroy, John V. Morse, Alice M. Russell, Charles S. Sawyer, Augusta D. Tripp and Sarah B. Whitehead. Lizzie Borden’s testimony is reprinted from the New Bedford Evening Standard as both hers and Bridget Sullivan’s testimony is lost.
The Knowlton/Pearson Correspondence, 1923-1930. Fall River, MA: Fall River Historical Society.
Reproduced from the FRHS’s archives and are direct copies of correspondence between Edmund Pearson and Frank W. Knowlton, son of the Borden case prosecuting attorney, as Pearson conducted research before writing several essays and his major work, The Trial of Lizzie Borden. Hardcover version now out of print, paperback version soon to be published.
Preliminary Hearing in the Borden Case before Judge Blaisdell, August 25 through September 1, 1892. Fall River, MA: Fall River Historical Society.
Photocopy of original document. Seems to be AJ Jennings’ copy as it contains his handwritten notes throughout. The only known copy of the preliminary hearing known to exist. Velobound, 5 volumes, 641 pages.
The Witness Statements. Fall River, MA: The Lizzie Borden Bed and Breakfast/ Museum, 1997.
This document appears to be a facsimile copy of the statements given to police officers in the hours and days following the murder of Andrew J. Borden and his wife Abby. Witnesses include Lizzie Borden, Bridget Sullivan, Emma Borden, John Morse, Dr. Bowen, Mrs. Churchill, Alice Russell, and various other passersby and townsfolk. 46 pages of text, 3 page table of contents, and extensive 6 page index.
Flynn, Robert A. The Borden Murders: An Annotated Bibliography. ME: King Philip Publications, 1992.
Excellent source for sources printed pre-1992. Flynn, an authority on the Borden murders, a long-time collector of Bordenalia, and the publisher of many of the important reprints in the case, knows of which he speaks. His annotations are to be trusted. Any necessary addition for any serious student of the case.
Flynn, Robert A. “100 Years of Fact, Conjecture and Fascination.” AB Bookmans Weekly (10 Aug. 1992): 437-442. Rpt. as “Lizzie Borden: 100 Years of Fact and Conjecture.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 293-301.
Flynn traces the progression of non-fiction Borden studies, from early newspaper reports to David Kent’s works in 1992.
McDade, Thomas M. The Annals of Murder: A Bibliography of Books and Pamphlets on American Murders from Colonial Times to 1900. University of Oklahoma Press, 1961.
Zawadzki, Lisa. “The Borden Murders: An Annotated Bibliography.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 311-356.
Zawadzki, regularly contributing columnist for the Lizzie Borden Quarterly with her “Bibliographic Borden” pieces, offers an extensive and important annotated bibliography on the Borden murders.
Adler, Gabriela Schalow. “Our Beloved Lizzie: Constructing an American Legend.” Dissertation. University of Rhode Island, 1995.
Arnold, Muriel. Lizzie Borden: Pictorial and Historical – The Hands of Time. Nashua, NH: Tri Flag Press, 1999.
Though riddled with typographical errors, and some factual mistakes, this author has meticulously tackled the case from a fresh and interesting angle.
Axelrod-Contrada, Joan. Lizzie Borden ‘Axe Murder’ Trial: A Headline Court Case. Berkely Heights, NJ: Enslow Pub., 2000.
Intended for young adults, this book gives an accurate and thoughtful retelling of the case as well as some background material on Victorian America.
Brown, Arnold R. Lizzie Borden: The Legend, the Truth, the Final Chapter. Nashville, TN: Rutledge Hill Press, 1991.
One of the most controversial books on the case in recent memory, Brown theorizes that Andrew Borden had an illigitimate son named Billy Borden who, when learning of his disinheritance from the Borden riches, decided to kill papa and his wife. Brown also asserts that Lizzie knew of the assailant and conspired to cover up the truth of the events to protect herself from the disgrace.
Davis, Judge Charles G. “The Conduct of the Law in the Borden Case.” A Collection of Articles concerning the Borden Case. Boston: Boston Daily Advertiser, 1894.
A series of letters published originally in the Boston Daily Advertiser in December 1893. A legal discussion in which the letter writer disagreed with some of the rulings by the Court. Quoted extensively by Pearson.
de Mille, Agnes. Lizzie Borden: A Dance of Death. Boston: Little, Brown and Co., 1968.
While half of the book details deMille’s work on the development of her ballet The Fall River Tragedy, a good portion is also devoted to a retelling of the crimes. Of note is that deMille actually visited Fall River and interviewed many of the surviving people involved with the family and the crime. Loaded with excellent photographs. It was deMille who was privy to a plethora of evidence not before seen by authors of the case.
Flynn, Robert A. Lizzie Borden & the Mysterious Axe. ME: King Philip Publications, 1992.
A small book discussing types of hatchets; letters by Drs. Dolan and Draper; newspaper stories reporting the finding of two hatchets.
Geary, Rick. The Borden Tragedy: A Memoir of the Infamous Double Murder at Fall River, Massachusetts, 1892. NY: NBN Pub., 1997.
Geary presents the Borden murders story for the first time in a comic book format of approximately 300 drawings with captions that tell an accurate version of the story. A bibliography is included.
The Genealogy of the Borden Family Living In Fall River and Its Vicinity, 1876. Sold and printed by the Fall River Historical Society. 19 pages.
A History of the Central Congregational Church, 1905-1925. Munroe Press, 1926.
History of the church attended by Lizzie Borden compiled by Anna H. Borden, Mary A. Baker and Benjamin B. Earl; Anna H. Borden, a distant cousin of Miss Lizzie Borden, traveled with her on her Grand Tour and was a witness at her trial. Sold by the Fall River Historical Society.
History of the Ladies’ Benevolent Society, Central Congregational Church. Franklin & Co. Fall River, Mass, 1904. Sold by the Fall River Historical Society. Black cloth hardbound volume of the Benevolent Society at the church which Lizzie Borden attended.
Hoffman, Paul Dennis. Yesterday in Old Fall River: A Lizzie Borden Companion. Carolina Academic Press, 2000.
While well-conceived, Hoffman’s book contains some factual and typographical errors. It is an excellent companion to the case, nonetheless.
Jeans, James W. Classics of the Courtroom, Vol. XIII: Highlights from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts vs. Lizzie Borden. 1988.
Kent, David. Forty Whacks: New Evidence in the Life and Legend of Lizzie Borden. Emmaus, PA: Yankee Books, 1992.
Author re-examines court records and murder scene photos; with numerous photographs
Kent, David. Lizzie Borden Sourcebook. Boston: Brandon Publishing, 1992.
Reproductions from 41 newspapers, official correspondence and transcripts, illustrations and photos.
Lincoln, Victoria. A Private Disgrace: Lizzie Borden by Daylight. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1967. Rpt. NY: International Polygonics, 1986.
Winner of the Edgar Allan Poe best fact crime book award from the Mystery Writers of America in 1967. Lincoln, who grew up in Fall River, finds Lizzie guilty and theorizes that Lizzie murdered her parents in the throes of an epileptic fit.
Lizzie Borden: Did She? . . . Or . . . Didn’t She? Verplanck, NY: Historical Briefs, Inc., 1992.
Reproduced pages from New Bedford’s Evening Standard from August 4, 1892 through June 21, 1893. 11″ x 14″, 196 pages.
Lunday, Todd. The Mystery Unveiled: The Truth about the Borden Tragedy: Fresh Light That Must Be Convincing to All Readers. Providence: J. A. & R. A. Reid, 1893. Rpt. Portland, ME: King Philip Pub. Co., 1990.
A 56-page pamphlet, published immediately after the trial, in which the writer concludes that, with Lizzie Borden acquitted and no other suspect substituted, nobody committed the murders. “Todd Lunday” is the nom de plume for a writer whose actual identity has finally been revealed in the 2011 book, Parallel Lives: A Social History of Lizzie A. Borden and Her Fall River.
Marshall, John David. Lizzie Borden and the Library Connection. Tallahassee, FL: School of Library & Information Studies, Florida State University, 1990.
Martins, Michael and Dennis Binette. Parallel Lives: A Social History of Lizzie A. Borden and Her Fall River. Fall River: Fall River Historical Society, 2011.
Masterton, William L. Lizzie Didn’t Do It! Boston: Brandon Pub., 2000.
Masterton offers up his theory, based on a scientific investigation into the evidence, that the murders were committed by someone other than Lizzie Borden.
Pearson, Edmund. The Trial of Lizzie Borden. New York: Doubleday, 1937. Rpt. as The Trial of Lizzie Borden by Edmund Pearson; Notable Trials Library Edition, Foreword by Alan Dershowitz. Delran, NJ: Gryphon, 1991.
Important work that includes great quantities of trial testimony, not generally found elsewhere, but criticized for his one-sided approach which favored Lizzie as the killer.
Phillips, Arthur Sherman. The Borden Murder Mystery: In Defence of Lizzie Borden. ME: King Philip Pub., 1986.
An abstract from The Phillips History of Fall River (Fall River, MA: Dover Press, 1944-6, 3 vols.) written by a junior member of Lizzie Borden’s defense team who always maintained belief in her innocence. There is some serious doubt as to whether Phillips actually wrote the few pages devoted to the Borden murder case as he died before the third volume of his history was completed.
Porter, Edwin H. The Fall River Tragedy. Fall River, MA: George R. H. Buffinton, Press of J. D. Munroe, 1893. Rpt. with new introduction by Robert Flynn. Portland, ME: King Philip Pub., 1985.
Porter’s book is the first major work in the field of Borden studies. Includes many rare photographs.
Radin, Edward. Lizzie Borden: The Untold Story. NY: Simon & Schuster, 1961.
Somewhat dismissed as unsubstantiated by Borden scholars, Radin concludes in this otherwise well written book that the murderer of both Andrew and Abby was the Irish maid, Bridget Sullivan.
Rappaport, Doreen. Be The Judge, Be The Jury, The Lizzie Borden Trial. NY: Harper Collins Publishers, 1992.
Rebello, Leonard. Lizzie Borden: Past and Present. Al-Zach Press, 1999.
Important work in Borden studies.The book is organized into topical chapters, including contemporary interests such as literary impressions of the Borden case and the interpretations of the facts in the performing arts.
Ryckebusch, Jules R., ed. Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993.
Book contains a major portion of the presentations made at the three-day conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5,1993.
Sams, Ed. Lizzie Borden Unlocked! Yellow Tulip Press, ONLINE (08-18-01) http://www.curiouschapbooks.com
Samuels, Charles and Louise. The Girl in the House of Hate: The Story and All the Facts of the Lizzie Borden Murders. New York: Fawcett Publications, 1953, 1962. Rpt. as The Girl in the House of Hate: Being an Exact and Faithful Account of the Trial of Lizzie Borden. Mattituck, NY: American Reprint Co., 1989.
Criticized for turning the events of the murders into a melodrama, this work analyzes the case from newspaper accounts and the authors’ personal visits to the area. The book sees Lizzie as an inspiration for feminism, freeing the house-bound woman from the hell of domestic life.
Senate, Richard and Debbie. Psychic Solution: The Lizzie Borden Case. Ventura, CA, 1998
Spiering, Frank. Lizzie: The Story of Lizzie Borden. NY: Random House, 1984.
Spiering retells the trial through court testimony and includes court records, interviews, reports, reveals the real murderer to be Emma Borden.
Sullivan, Robert. Goodbye Lizzie Borden. Brattleboro, VT: Stephen Greene Press, 1974.
As the only jurist ever to write a full-length book on the Borden case, Sullivan provides a unique examination of the facts and legal aspects of the case. By using the condensed version of Lizzie’s inquest testimony that appeared in the Providence Journal when the entire testimony was available in the New Bedford Evening Standard, however, shows Sullivan’s bias towards Lizzie’s guilt.
Williams, Joyce G., J. Eric Smithburn, and Jeanne M. Peterson. Lizzie Borden: A Case Book of Family and Crime in the 1890s. Bloomington, IN: T.I.S. Publications Division, 1980.
With many factual errors in the short opening rehash of the case, Williams’ work is a troublesome volume for Borden scholars. As Lisa Zawadzki so aptly notes: “It is useful in finding a sampling of contemporary accounts of the event.” Lizzie’s inquest testimony from the New Bedford Evening Standard is reprinted here in full.
Bierstadt, Edward Hale. Satan was a Man. NY: Doubleday, 1935.
Fictional account of an insane killer who imagines himself as various female murderers, including Lizzie Borden.
Dougall, Lily. The Summit House Mystery or the Earthly Purgatory. NY: Funk and Wagnalls, 1905.
One of the earliest known work of fiction inspired by the double murders in Fall River, with a lawyer resembling Andrew Jennings, a murder of a father and stepmother, and two maiden sisters. Says Flynn, “One of the sisters was tried for murder and found not guilty. The story concludes that the father was the guilty party and another man was killed in his stead.”
Engstrom, Elizabeth. Lizzie Borden. NY: St. Martin’s Press, 1991.
Haskell, Owen. Sherlock Holmes and the Fall River Tragedy. Lazarus Press, 1997.
A novel in which Holmes visits Fall River to investigate the Borden murders.
Hunter, Evan. Lizzie: A Novel About Lizzie Borden-Her Life, Her Times, Her Crimes, Her Passion. New York: Arbor House, 1984.
Lowndes, Marie Belloc. Lizzie Borden: A Study in Conjecture. New York: Longmans, Green & Co., Inc., 1939.
Lowndess theory is that Mrs. Borden discovered that Lizzie had a European lover, necessitating Lizzie committing the murder to quiet the possible scandal.
Satterthwait, Walter. Miss Lizzie. NY: St. Martin’s Press, 1989.
Living in Massachusetts after WWI, Lizzie solves the murder of her young neighbor’s stepmother.
Albergaria, Afonso, Jr. “The Price of Maplecroft: Memories of Lizzie Borden.” People and Culture in Southeastern Massachusetts, Vol. 2. New Bedford, MA: Spinner Publications, 1982. 81-96.
Bixby, A. L. “To Lizzie.” Driftwood: A Modest Collection of Random Rhymes Written at Odd Times for Odd People. Lincoln, NE: State Journal Company, 1907. Rpt. as To Lizzie by Romar Books, Rabun Gap, Georgia, 1992. Available through the Fall River Historical Society.
Brown, Michael. “The Lizzie Borden Song.” Masterpieces of Murder. Ed. Jonathan Goodman. NY: Carroll & Graf Pub., 1992. 351-353.
Lyrics to the song known as “You Can’t Chop Your Poppa Up in Massachusetts.”
Burt, Olive Woolley. American Murder Ballads and Other Stories. NY: Oxford University Press, 1958. 14-15.
Burt provides variations of the “Lizzie Borden took an axe” ditty and reprints two stanzas of A. L. Bixby’s “To Lizzie.”
Butler, Gwendoline. “The Sisterhood.” Murder in New England. Eds. Eleanor Sullivan and Chris Dorbandt. Secaucus, NJ: Castle Books, 1989. 16-28.
Calder, Alexander. Three Young Rats: And Other Rhymes. NY: Curt Valentin, 1944
Carter, Angela. “The Fall River Axe Murders.” Saints and Strangers. NY: Viking, 1986. pp. 7-31. Rt. in The Black Cabinent. Ed. Peter Lovesey. NY: Carroll & Graf, 1989. 38-56. Rpt. in Burning Your Boats: The Collected Short Stories. NY: Henry Holt and Co., 1995.
Fictional story of the adult Lizzie on the morning of the murders of her father and step-mother. Carter puts the reader into the mind of Lizzie Borden as she goes about her day.
Carter, Angela. “Lizzie’s Tiger.” American Ghosts and Old World Wonders. London: Chatto & Windus, 1993. Rpt. in Burning Your Boats: The Collected Short Stories. NY: Henry Holt and Co., 1995. 321-331.
Fictional tale of a four-year-old Lizzie sneaking out to visit the circus, becoming bonded to the tiger in its cage.
Freeman, Mary E. Wilkins. “The Long Arm.” Pocket Magazine (December 1894). Rpt. in Detective Magazine (Dec. 1895). Rpt. In The Long Arm . . . and Other Detective Stories. London: Chapman & Hall, 1895. Rpt. in American Detective Stories. Ed. Carolyn Wells. NY: Oxford, 1927. pp. 134-178. Rpt. in Victorian Tales of Mystery and Detection. Ed. Michael Cox. NY: Oxford UP, 1994. 377-405.
While this story was the first fiction inspired in some way by the Borden murders, it is not about Lizzie nor does the author use details of the crime in her story. Instead, Wilkins-Freeman created strong-willed Yankee characters drawn from the Borden family.
Goodman, Jonathan. Bloody Versicles: The Rhymes of Crime. England: Newton, Abbot, 1971.
Henson, Robert. “Lizzie Borden in the PM.” Quarterly Review of Literature 18.3-4 (1973): 314-344. Rpt. in Murder in New England. Eds. Eleanor Sullivan and Chris Dorbandt. Secaucus, NJ: Castle, 1989. 91-119.
The 1974 O.Henry Award winner.
Parker, Phyllis. “Lizzie Borden: A Street Ballad.” How to Become Absurdly Well-Informed About the Famous and Infamous. Ed. E. O. Parrott. NY: Viking, 1987. 139-140.
Poem that consists of a dialogue between Lizzie and the author in which the accused hatchet murderess details her commitment of the crimes.
Ronan, Stephen. Our Lady of Fall River. Berkeley: Ammunition Press, 1983.
Whitman, Ruth. “The Passion of Lizzie Borden.” The Passion of Lizzie Borden: New and Selected Poems. NY: October House,1973. 11-19. Rpt. in Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 149-155.
Adams, Barbara Johnston. “The Fall River Murders.” Crime Mysteries. NY: Franklin Watts, 1988. 73-89.
Adler, Gabriela. “The Daughter’s Revenge: Lizzie Borden and Beatrice Cenci in the Literary Landscape.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 103-115.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Ashton, Barbara M. “The Hip-Bath Collection: How It Influenced the Legend of Lizzie Borden.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 210-221.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Avery, Donald R. “The Case of Lizzie Borden, 1893.” The Press on Trial: Crimes and Trials as Media Events. Ed. Lloyd Chiasson. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1997. 49-61.
Bass, Dennis. “The Gertrude Stein/Lizzie Borden Connection.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 117-135.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Blackburn, Dick. “Notes on the Writing of My Original Screenplay Fall River.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 163-164.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Bland, James. “August 4: Double Axe Murder in Fall River, 1892.” True Crime Diary, Vol. 2. London: Futura Books, 1989. 219-221.
Brief retelling of the case by an author who believes that Lizzie was guilty of the crimes.
Boardman, Barrington. Flappers, Bootleggers, ‘Typhoid Mary’ & the Bomb. NY: Harper & Row, 1988. 83.
“Body Languages.” Visions and Prophecies. Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1988. 79, 81. One of series in Mysteries of the Unknown.
Essay that details the findings of Nelson Sizer, the president of the American Institute of Phrenology, who was sent a photograph of Lizzie Borden for his review. He deduced that Lizzie’s “face indicated power” and “a tendency to be thorough and severe.”
Boss, Judith A. Fall River: A Pictorial History. Norfolk, VA: Donning Co., 1987. 102-104.
Bristow, Prof. A. T. “Medico-Legal Inspections and Post Mortem Examinations.” A System of Legal Medicine. Ed. Allen McLane Hamilton. NY: E. B. Treat, 1894. 28-29.
Brophy, John. “Heat Wave at Fall River.” The Meaning of Murder. London: Ronald Whiting and Wheaton, 1966.
Byrnes, Garrett D., and Charles H. Spillman. The Providence Journal: 150 Years. Providence: The Providence-Journal Company, 1980. 230-231.
Chamberlain, Kathleen. “Lizzie Borden Meets Dash Dare Or, Dime Novel Counterfeiting.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 137-148.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Curran, Colleen. “Making When The Job Was Nicely Done.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 157-161.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Douglas, John, and Mark Olshaker. “Lizzie Borden.” The Cases That Haunt Us. NY: Scribner’s, 2000. 81-118.
Written by the reknowned FBI profiler, this chapter is a disappointment, not because of his conclusion, but for the obviously flawed research and numerous factual errors. Despite this, Douglas makes a rather persuasive argument for Lizzie’s guilt.
Dunbar, Dorothy. “Far from the Old Folks at Home.” Blood in the Parlor. NY: A. S. Barnes & Co., 1964. 30-47. Rpt. The Pleasures of Murder. Ed. Jonathan Goodman. NY: Carol Publishing Group, 1990. 34-47. Rpt. in The Mammoth Book of Killer Women. Ed. Richard Glyn Jones. NY: Carroll & Graf Publishers, 1993.
Well-conceived and often times humorous account of the case, notable for its inclusion of several poems about the murders, a list of books which Lizzie has read, and the Borden coat of arms.
Early, Eleanor. “Did Lizzie Do It?” A New England Sampler. Boston: Waverly House, 1940. 230-253.
Early believes that Lizzie committed the double murder for which she was accused and offers an article on the case full of rumor, gossip, innuendo, and unkind comments on Lizzie’s weight and appearance.
Fidler, Douglas K. “Forensic Medicine and the Rules of Evidence in the Golden Age: The Trial of the Smutty Nose Murderer (1873).” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 251-261.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Girard, Gloria. “Lizzie, You Mean Spiteful Thing.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 81-87.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Fletcher, Paul. “Memories Of A Lizzie Borden Boyhood . . . Well, Sort Of.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 191-196.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Grenier, Margaret Judge. “Lizzie Borden: Violator or Victim.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 13-37.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Gross, Gerald. “The Pearson-Radin Controversy Over the Guilt of Lizzie Borden.” Masterpieces of Murder: An Edmund Lester Pearson True Crime Reader. Ed. Gerald Gross. Boston: Little, Brown & Co., 1963. 274-285.
Contains the letter from Mrs. Pearson defending her husband, and Pearson’s “Legends of Lizzie,” and “The End of the Borden Case: The Final Word.” In his essay, Gross defends Pearson’s treatment of the case and puts forth his own theory that Lizzie committed the crimes with the help of the maid.
Gustafson, Anita. “Could a Woman Do That?” Guilty or Innocent: Could a Woman Do That? NY: Holt, Rinehart, Winston, 1985. 26-39, 53-55. Rpt. in Guilty or Innocent? NY: Franklin Watts, 1988. 73-89.
Retelling of the murders and the trial aimed at young readers.
Hale, Judson D. “Fall River Legend.” A Sense of History: The Best Writing from the Pages of American Heritage. NY: American Heritage, 1985. 27-28.
Choosing the Borden murders as the event from American history he would most like to have witnessed, Hale recounts the incidents of 4 August 1892 from the position as “invisible observer.”
Hixson, Walter L. “Gendered Justice: Lizzie Borden and Victorian America.” Murder, Culture and Injustice: Four Sensational Cases in American History. Akron, OH: University of Akron Press, 2001. 5-66. ONLINE (08-18-01) http://www.uakron.edu/uapress/newtitle.html
Hixson explores the role that gender played in the Borden case, offering a broad retelling based on his belief in Lizzie’s guilt. The essay is riddled with factual errors and leaps in logic.
Hobson, Wayne K. “Lizzie Borden and Victorian America: Shifting Perspectives, 1892-1992.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 167-190.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Hulme, John. Guillaume Chequespierre and the Oise Salon. NY: Harper & Row, 1985. 25-45.
In a book of known poems and songs translated into macronic form (fake French), Hulme includes his version of the “Lizzie Borden took an axe” ditty.
Jeffers, H. Paul. “When She Saw What She Had Done.” With an Axe. NY: Pinnacle, 2000. 127-159, 279-351.
Johnson, Robert T., Jr. “They Would Like to Have Been Cultured Girls: An Analysis of the Testimony of Alice Russell During the Prosecution of Lizzie Borden.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 225-240.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Jordan, Elizabeth. “Lizzie Borden and the Murders.” Three Rousing Cheers. NY: D. Appleton-Century Company Inc., 1938. 116-126.
Jordan, a reporter for the New York World, and one who covered the Borden trial, believed Lizzie innocent. Unfortunately, her first-hand account is rife with factual errors.
Kane, Stephen W. “Lizzie Borden, Anxious Attachment and Forty Whacks: A Systemic Exploration of Incest and Parricide.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 47-72.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Kaplan, George. “Lizzie Borden.” Big-Time Criminals Speak! NY: Maximum Exposure,1980.
Keylin, Arleen, and Arto De Marjian, Jr. Crime as Reported by the New York Times. NY: Arno, 1976.
In this reprint volume of the New York Times’ coverage of famous criminal cases since the paper’s inception, the Lizzie Borden case is represented in only a modest manner.
Kluger, Richard. The Paper: The Life and Death of the New York Herald Tribune. NY: Knopf, 1986. 158-160.
Kunstler, William Moses. “Murder in Hatred: The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Versus Lizzie Borden.” First Degree. NY: Oceana Publications, 1960. 22-35.
Written by a famous defense attorney, Kunstler recounts the details of the case without specifically naming Lizzie as the guilty party.
Lyons, Louis M. “The Globe and Lizzie Borden.” Newspaper Story: One Hundred Years of the Boston Globe. Cambridge, MA: Harvard UP, 1971. 86-97.
Manning, Lisa, and Alfonso Albergaria, Jr. “Lizzie Cold, Lizzie Hot, Lizzie Warmed Over: A Panel Discussion of the Lizzie Borden Case.” Spinner: People and Culture in Southeastern Massachusetts, Vol. 2. New Bedford, MA: Spinner Publications, 1982. 81-96.
Manning, Lisa, and Alfonso Albergaria, Jr. “The Price of Maplecroft: Memoirs of Lizzie Borden.” Spinner: People and Culture in Southeastern Massachusetts, Vol. 2. New Bedford, MA: Spinner Publications, 1982. 81-96.
Marshall, John David. “Librarians In The Life And Legend of Lizzie Borden.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 303-310.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992. Marshall examines the contribution of four librarians who have played a part in Borden studies: Helen Leighton, Edmund Lester Pearson, Mollie O’Meara, and Melvil Dewey. Of note is his examination of O’Meara who was a librarian in the Butte, Montana, Public Library, where Bridget Sullivan went to live after the trial.
Masterton, William L. “The Borden Case: Myths Versus Facts.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 197-200.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Maynard, Mary. Dead and Buried in New England. Dublin, NH: Yankee Books, 1993. 44-45.
McNamara, M. Eileen. “Was Lizzie Borden the Victim of Incest?” Rhode Island Medicine (Feb. 1993): 95-97. Rpt. in Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 39-45.
McNamara examines Lizzie’s character and concludes that the family dynamics and extreme personalities support the theory of incest as a possible cause of Lizzie killing her father and step mother. This article was later presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Mitchell, Betty.”The True Lizzie Borden.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 201-210.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Musselman, Faye. “Why We Don’t Know Lizzie.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 77-80.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Nickerson, Catherine Ross. “The Deftness of Her Sex: Innocence, Guilt, and Gender.” Lethal Imagination: Violence and Brutality in American History. NY: New York UP, 1999. 261-281.
Nickerson studies the way in which gender influenced the trial of Lizzie Borden.
Patrick, Q. (pseudonym). “The Case for Lizzie.” The Pocket Book of True Crime Stories. Ed. Anthony Boucher. NY: Pocket Books, 1943.
According to Borden scholar Terence Duniho, “Patrick Q.” was a pseudonym for Richard WilsonWebb and Hugh Callingham Wheeler. They also wrote under the names Patrick Quentin and Jonathan Stagge.
Pearson, Edmund Lester. “The Borden Case.” Studies in Murder. Garden City, NY: Garden City Publishing Co., Inc., 1924. 3-120. Rpt. in Studies in Murder. NY: The Modern Library, 1938. 3-119. Rpt. in Crimes that Shocked America. Eds. Brant House and Anthony Boucher. NY: Ace Books, 1961. 39-105. Rpt. in Unsolved! Classic True Murder Cases. Ed. Richard Glyn Jones. NY: Peter Bedrick Books, 1987. 187-271.
Considered one the best writers on the Borden murders, as well as the most prolific, “the Borden Case” is Pearson’s first work on the subject. After a careful analysis of the murder events and the trial, Pearson offers a strong argument for Lizzie’s guilt.
Pearson, Edmund Lester. “The Bordens: A Postscript.” Murder at Smutty Nose: and Other Murders. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1927. 291-302. Rpt. in NY: The Sun Dial Press, Inc., 1938. 291-302.
More personal account of Pearson’s own reactions to the case and comments to his books.
Pearson, Edmund Lester. “A Postscript: The End of the Borden Case.” Five Murders. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, Doran & Co., 1928. 263-294. A condensation of the article appears as “The End of the Borden Case.” Forum (March 1928): 370-390.
This article was written after Lizzie’s death, and includes details of Lizzie’s life following her acquittal, as well as interesting tidbits of gossip and rumor.
Pearson, Edmund Lester. “Rules for Murderesses.” Investigation of the Devil. NY: Scribner’s, 1930. 239-331.
Lizzie is mentioned as an example of a woman who had no romantic entanglements, thus escaping the hazard of Rule 3: “Even in the murder of a father or mother the astute murderess will take care that no lover appears upon the scene.”
Powers, Alan. “When the Punishment is a Crime: The Female Suspect in Fall River, 1892-1922.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 263-270.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Reach, James. “The Myth of Lizzie Borden,” The Quality of Murder. Ed. Anthony Boucher. New York: E.P. Dutton & Company, Inc., 1962. 57-65.
Robinson, Charles Turek. “Why Did Lizzie Borden Really Do It?” True New England Mysteries, Ghosts, Crimes, & Oddities. North Attleborough, MA: Covered Bridge Press, 1997. 15-20.
Ronan, Stephen. “Lizzie Borden, the Disquieting Muse.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 91-101.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Ross, Gary Earl. “If Lizzie Borden Had Been Born 100 Years Later.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 241-249.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Roughead, William. Enjoyment of Murder. NY: Sheridan House, 1938. 16, 36.
Roughead, William. The Murderer’s Companion. NY: Reader’s Club, 1941.
Schuetz, Janice E. “Lizzie Andrew Borden: the Logic of Justification.” The Logic of Women on Trial: Case Studies of Popular American Trials. Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois UP, 1994. 61-85.
Schuetz examines the effects of gender, law, and history on the trial of Lizzie Borden and offers a lengthy analysis of the trail and the prosecution’s case and the Victorian era’s notions about gender.
Shenkman, Richard. I Love Paul Revere, Whether He Rode or Not. NY: Harper Perennial, 1991. 173.
In a book that focuses on common misconceptions about American history, Shenkman briefly mentions the Borden case and asserts that Lizzie’s only crime was in alienating the public following her acquittal by refusing to grant the press any interviews or speak about the crimes.
Silvia, Philip T., Jr. ed. Fall River, 1865-1885: As Viewed through its Newspaper Accounts. Fall River, MA: R. E. Smith Printing Co., 1987.
Silvia, Philip T., Jr. ed. Fall River, 1886-1900: As Viewed through its Newspaper Accounts. Fall River, MA: R. E. Smith Printing Co., 1988.
Silvia, Philip T., Jr. ed. Fall River, 1901-1911: As Viewed through its Newspaper Accounts. Fall River, MA: R. E. Smith Printing Co., 1992.
Silvia, Philip T., Jr. Victorian Vistas: Fall River 1886-1900. Fall River, MA: R. E. Smith Co, 1988. 333-355.
Reprints of contemporary newspapers reports and photographs, providing a history of Fall River, with this section covering the Borden murders of 1892.
Smith, Patterson. “Lizzie Borden On the Rare Book Market.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 273-291.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992. An antiquarian bookseller by trade, Smith recounts the Borden murder, follows the history of true crime literature, and refutes the oft-printed myth of Lizzie’s suppression of all copies if Porter’s Fall River Tragedy.
Snow, Edward Rowe. “Lizzie Borden.” Boston Bay Mysteries and Other Tales. NY: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1977. 237-259.
Snow, Edward Rowe. “The Lizzie Borden Murder Case.” Piracy, Mutiny and Murder. NY: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1959. 248-288.
Snow focuses his essay on the now-famous shoplifting incident of 1897, where Lizzie was accused by Tilden-Thurber of Providence, RI of stealing two small paintings. Relating how the “confession” was obtained, Snow professes Lizzie’s signature to be authentic. Later experts have since disputed and disproven its authenticity.
Snow, Edward Rowe. “Lizzie Borden, Newburyport and Timothy Dexter.” Fantastic Folklore and Fact: New England Tales of Land and Sea. NY: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1968. 37-39.
Stephens, August. “Hatchet-Job Heiress.” Wild Women: Crusaders, Curmudgeons and Completely Corsetless Ladies in the Otherwise Virtuous Victorian Era. Berkeley, CA: Conari Press, 1992. 68-69.
Inaccurate but energetic retelling of the Borden case.
Stern, Ellen. “The Day I Ripped Off Lizzie’s House.” Murder Ink: The Mystery Reader’s Companion. Ed. Dilys Winn. NY: Workman Publishing, 1977. 205-206.
Towne, Charles Hanson. “The House of Lizzie Borden.” Jogging Around New England. NY: D. P. Appleton-Century Company, 1939. 44-49.
Watters, Barbara H. “Was Lizzie Borden Guilty?” The Astrological Looks at Murder. Washington, D.C.: Valhalla Paperbacks, 1969. 61-90.
Watters examines Lizzie’s natal astrological chart and shows how the stars predicted her guilt.
Whittington-Egan, Richard. William Roughead’s Chronicles of Murder. Scotland: Lochar Publishing, Ltd., 1991.
Williams, Joyce G. “The Collision of A Personality and An Era.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 3-10.
River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Williams, Joyce G. “The World Owed Her: Lizzie Borden’s Shoplifting.” Proceedings: Lizzie Borden Conference. Ed. Jules R. Ryckebusch. Portland, ME: King Philip Publishing Co., 1993. 73-76.
Paper presented at the Lizzie Borden Conference at Bristol Community College, Fall River, Massachusetts, August 3-5, 1992.
Woollcott, Alexander. “The Theory and Lizzie Borden.” Going to Pieces. NY: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1928. 218-227.
Ayotte, John U. “The Unfathomable Borden Riddle.” Yankee Magazine (Aug. 1966). Rpt. in Mysterious New England. Ed. Austin N. Stevens. Dublin, NH: Yankee Pub., 1971. 56-57.
Beeson, Jack. “The Autobiography of Lizzie Borden.” The Opera Quarterly, 4.1 (Spring 1986): 14-42.
Berni, Christine. “Taking an Axe to History: The Historical Lizzie Borden and the Postmodern Historiography of Angela Carter.” Clio (Fall 1997): 29-55.
“The Borden Case.” Frank Leslie’s Weekly (29 June 1893): 417.
Bringle, M. “It’s a Steal.” Cosmopolitan (1991): 93-96, 210.
Byrnes, Garrett D. “Beg Porden, Lizzie Borden.” Providence Sunday Journal (13 July 1972).
Carlisle, Marcia R. “What Made Lizzie Borden Kill?” American Heritage. (July/August 1992): 66-72.
Carlisle asserts that Lizzie Borden was the victim of incest, applying known information about the family dynamics (such as their “isolation” and Lizzie’s relationship with her father) to argue this as the precipitating factor in setting off Lizzie to murder her father and step mother.
Clark, Tim, and Victor Juhasz. “We Gather Together.” Yankee (Nov. 1993): 82-87.
Eaton, William J. “Just Like O.J.’s Trial, But Without Kato.” American Journalism Review (Dec. 1995): 12.
Gates, David. “A New Whack at the Borden Case.” Newsweek (4 June 1984): 12.
“Inn Cold Blood.” People Weekly (5 Aug. 1996): 65.
Jacob, Kathryn Allamong. “She Couldn’t Have Done It, Even If She Did. Why Lizzie Went Free.” American Heritage 29 (Feb/March 1978): 42-53.
Ketchum, Richard. “Faces from the Past.” American Heritage 15 (April 1964): 28-29. Rpt. in Faces from the Past. NY: American Heritage Press, 1970. 38-41. Rpt. as “Fall River Legend” in Stories of Great Crimes & Trials. NY: American Heritage Pub., 1974. 24-5.
Influenced by Radin, Ketchum believes Lizzie to be innocent of the crimes for which she was tried as well as unfairly ostracized later in life.
King, Florence. “A Wasp Looks at Lizzie Borden.” National Review (17 Aug. 1992): 24-28.
King examines the social milieu of the Borden world and finds parallels between the behavior of the participants and Wasp sensibilities.
Maguire, Edwin J. “Guilty — NO! NO!” Boston Sunday Post (13 April 1913).
McGowan, Pat. “Lizzie Borden Memories Abound at the Anchor.” The Anchor (31 July 1992): 8-9.
Mitchell, Walter. “Lizzie Borden: Her Life After the Murders.” Spectator (4 Jan. 1978).
Mitchell relates Lizzie’s life after the trial.
Murray, I., et. al. “The ‘Lizzie Borden’ Sign of Increased Intracranial Pressure in Infants.” Clinical Nuclear Medicine (June 1995): 560-561.
Paine, Donald F. “Lizzie Borden’s Trial Revisited.” Tennessee Bar Journal (May/June 1993): 29, 34.
Parker, Dorothy. “Book Reviews by Dorothy Parker: Lizzie Borden the Untold Story.” Esquire (Aug. 1961): 16, 20.
Parker, with her typical caustic wit, offers a review of Radin’s work that ends with these words: “I can find . . . nothing to recommend in or about Lizzie Borden: The Untold Story. If you will excuse the expression, I say the hell with it.”
Pearson, Edmund Lester. “The Whole Truth about Lizzie Borden at Last!” True Detective Mysteries (July 1931).
Pearson, Edmund Lester. “Legends of Lizzie.” The New Yorker (23 April 1933): 20-22. Rpt. in More Studies in Murder. NY: Harrison Smith and Robert Haas, 1936. 121-132.
Pearson recounts additional gossipy stories about Lizzie, including her fascination with axes and her murderous tendencies as a child.
Powers, Richard. “The Death of a Massachusetts Trojan.” The Chief of Police (Washington, DC) 4.4 (July-Aug. 1989): 34-45.
Written from a police officer’s point of view, Powers attempts to prove the real killer of Mr. and Mrs. Borden to be Dr. Seabury Bowen.
Randolph, Norris. “Hooked on Axe Murder.” New England Monthly (May 1984): 12-14.
Robertson, Cara W. “Representing Miss Lizzie: Cultural Convictions in the Trial of Lizzie Borden.” Yale Journal of Law and Humanities (Summer 1996): 351-416.
Lengthy essay that covers issues of class, gender and ethnicity and includes a detailed account of the crimes.
Schofield, Ann. “Lizzie Borden Took an Axe: History, Feminism and American Culture.” Annals of Scholarship (Spring 1993): 91-103.
Schofield examines Lizzie’s depiction in works of fiction and discusses themes of gender, sexuality, and violence prevalent in them.
Sutherland, Sidney. “The Mystery of the Puritan Girl.” Liberty Magazine (Vol. 1, No. 6, 1927). Rpt. in Ten Real Murder Mysteries Never Solved. NY: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1929. 151-175.
Tooley, Jo Ann. “Who Took The Ax And Gave The Whacks?” U.S. News & World Report. 3 Aug. 1992: 16.
Uelmen, Gerard F. “Lizzie Borden Meets O.J. Simpson: the Trials of Two Centuries.” Litigation (Winter 1998): 57-58, 70-71.
Uelmen, a member of O.J. Simpson’s “dream team” during his “trial of the century,” compares the trial of Lizzie Borden with that of his most famous client and finds many similarities. Of note is that Uelmen was asked to defend Lizzie during a mock retrial.
Weafer, Don. “The Long Silence of Lizzie Borden.” Yankee (June 1996): 52-57, 123.
Wigmore, John H. “The Borden Case.” American Law Review (Nov.-Dec. 1893): 819-845.
Woollcott, Alexander. “The Theory and Lizzie Borden.” Vanity Fair (29 Sept. 1927). Rpt. in Vanity Fair: Selections From America’s Most Memorable Magazine. Eds. Cleveland Amory and Frederic Bradlee. NY: Viking, 1960.
“Arrests to Be Made: The Inquiries by Lizzie Borden about Poison Seem Peculiar.” New York Times 6 August 1892: 1.
Berger, Meyer. “The Lizzie Borden Case.” New York Times Magazine 9 Aug. 1942: 10, 26-27.
Bingham, Florence A. “Everyone Questions Everything, Including Things That Shouldn’t Be.” (unknown source, see Lisa Zawadzki’s review in “The Bibliographic Borden” in the Lizzie Borden Quarterly VIII.1 (Jan. 2001): 4). 4 Aug. 1991: A4.
Short newspaper article in which Bingham recalls that it was only after Lizzie began entertaining theatre people in her home at Maplecroft that the community began to shun her.
Borg, Linda. “Lizzie Borden Trial Papers Available.” Providence Journal 6 September 1989.
Brown, Arnold R. “Lizzie Borden’s Case.” Sunday Journal Magazine, Providence Sunday Journal. 30 June 1991: 18-21.
“Butchered in Their Home.” New York Times 5 August 1892: 1, 2.
Cantwell, Mary. “Lizzie Borden Took An Axe.” New York Times Magazine 26 July 1992: 18-21, 42, 44.
“Fall River Mystery.” New York Times 7 August 1892: 1, 3.
Gannon, Tom. “New Theory Points Finger at Doctor in Lizzie Borden Axe Murders.” Boston Globe 10 August 1989.
“I Am the Murderer.” Pawtuxet Valley Daily Times 19 Aug. 1892.
“Miss Borden Arrested: Charged With Murdering Her Father and His Wife.” New York Times 12 August 1892: 2.
Popkin, George. “A Borden Kin Remembers: She Was An Outsider.” Providence Journal-Bulletin (17 January 1969).
Popkin, George. “When Lizzie Took An Axe.” Providence Journal-Bulletin (17 January 1969): 1.
Rhines, Fred. “Eerie Events in an Old House on Durfee Street: The Ghost of Lizzie B.?” Fall River Herald News 27 July 1981.
Short newspaper piece that details strange events at the Fall River Animal Hospital. Since Lizzie was a benefactor of this organization, the Hospital is entertaining the possibility that Lizzie herself is haunting the place.
Stuart, Anne. “Lizzie Borden Murder Centennial Marked: Scientist Claims He Found Evidence Missing After Trial.” Santa Cruz Sentinel 5 August 1992: A-8.
Sullivan, Bernard F. “Commemoration of the Lizzie Lore Must Be Done With Taste.” The Fall River Herald News 4 Aug. 1991: A5.
In this newspaper article, Sullivan asserts that the city of Fall River will have to take into account the horrific nature of the double murders as they commemorate the occasion.
Sullivan, Bernard F. “Maine Woman Says Lizzie Borden Told Her the Real Killer.” Providence Journal-Bulletin 13 Jan. 1985: C1-C2.
News account of one Ruby Cameron who claimed to have nursed the dying Lizzie and was told by her the real solution to the crimes: they were committed by one David Anthony, a former suitor of Lizzie’s who lashed out when told by Mr. Borden that his marriage to Lizzie would not be allowed.
Sullivan, Bernard F. “My Affair with Lizzie Borden.” Providence Sunday Journal 10 July 1977: 13-19.
Sullivan, Edward. “Lizzie Borden Took An Axe and Gave the Press Innumerable Stories.” Providence Sunday Journal 4 August 1974: C4.
Urbon, Stephen. “Many Take a Whack at Naming Tool.” New Bedford Standard Times 24 Oct. 1982: 4.
Wiggins, John R. “A Solution to the 1892 Crime? Ruby Cameron Says David Anthony Murdered Lizzie Borden’s Parents,” Ellsworth, ME: The Ellsworth American, 3 January 1985: Section I, p. 11.
The most important, the most complete, and the first of the articles on Ruby Cameron’s deranged imaginings.
Aymar, Brandt, and Edward Sagarin. A Pictorial History of the World’s Greatest Trials from Socrates to Jean Harris. NY: Bonanza, 1967. 172-191.
Berger, Gilda and Melvin. Bizarre Murders. NY: Julian Messner, 1983. 24-29.
Short retelling of the Borden murders intended for children.
Blum, Daniel. A Pictorial History of the American Theatre, 1860-1970. NY: Crown Pub., 1969.
Of note are the six photographs of Nance O’Neil and the cast of New Faces of 1952, who first performed Michael Brown’s song “Lizzie Borden.”
Boar, Roger, and Nigel Bundell. The World’s Most Infamous Murders. London: Octopus Books, 1983. 16-23.
Boyer, Paul S. “Lizzie Andrew Borden.” Notable American Women 1607-1950: A Biographical Dictionary. Ed. Edward T. James. Cambridge, MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1971. 210-212.
Boyer, a scholar in the study of the Salem Witch Trials of 1692, has crafted an excellent and detailed essay on the Borden case. Without pronouncing her guilty, he does asset that the evidence against Lizzie was substantial.
Buck, Craig. “Lizzie Borden (1860-1927).” The People’s Almanac #2. Eds. David Wallenchinsky and Irving Wallace. NY: William Morrow, 1978. 499-500.
Brief article which recounts the details of the case, focusing on Lizzie’s life and her innocence in the double murder.
Christianson, Stephen G. “Lizzie Borden Trial: 1893.” Great American Trials. Ed. Edward W. Knappman. Detroit: Visible Ink Press, 1994. 204-208.
Churchill, Allen. “Lizzie Borden Took an Axe.” A Pictorial History of American Crime. NY: Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1964. 39-42.
Cohen, Daniel. “1892 – Lizzie Borden.” The Encyclopedia of Unsolved Crimes. NY: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1988. 153-141.
Cyriax. Oliver. Crime: An Encyclopedia. London: Andre Deutsch Ltd., 1993. 38-39.
Inaccurate retelling of the facts of the Borden case that includes mention of more recent theories regarding the relationships between the members of the family and the proposed exhumation of Andrew and Abby (that eventually did not take place).
Everitt, David. “Lizzie Borden.” Human Monsters: An Illustrated Guide of the World’s Most Vicious Murderers. Chicago: Contemporary Books, 1993. 52-55.
Brief overview of the pertinent facts of the case.
“The Fall River Axe Murders: Lizzie Borden.” The World’s Most Infamous Crimes and Criminals. NY: Galley Books, 1987. 359-366.
Fido, Martin. “Lizzie Borden: Gave Her Parents Eighty-One Whacks.” The Chronicle of Crime: the Infamous Felons of Modern History and Their Hideous Crimes. NY: Carroll & Graf, 1993. 90-91.
Fido, Martin. Murders After Midnight. London: Weidenfeld & Nicholson, 1990. 26-30.
Floyd, E. Randall. “Lizzie Borden: And When She Saw What She Had Done . . .” The Good, The Bad & The Mad: Weird People in American History. Augusta, GA: Harbor House, 1999. 25-28.
Brief accounting of the Lizzie Borden case, notable for its wealth of factual errors in the retelling.
Floyd, E. Randall. “Lizzie Borden Took an Axe.” Great American Mysteries. Little Rock, AR: August House, 1990. 21-25.
Full of factual errors. August House is a publisher of storytelling books, so perhaps this story is not meant to be true but rather fictionalized for effect.
Franklin, Charles. World’s Famous Acquittals. England: Oldhams, 1970.
Franklin, Charles. The World’s Worst Murderers. NY: Taplinger Pub., 1965. 10, 13, 181-206, 264.
Gaute, J. H. H., and Robin Odell. “Borden Case.” The Murderer’s Who’s Who: Outstanding International Case from the Literature of Murder in the Last 150 Years. Montreal: Optimum Pub., 1979. 47-48. Rpt. in The New Murderer’s Who’s Who. NY: International Polygonics, 1989. 56-57.
Harlow, Alvin F. “Lizzie Andrew Borden.” Dictionary of American Biography. Vol. II, Supp. 1. Ed. Harris E. Starr.NY: Charles Scribners’ Sons, 1944. 97.
Brief outline of the events of the case, notable for its inclusion of a bibliography noting several obscure items.
Harris, John. A Century of New England in News Photos. Chester, CT: The Globe Pequot Press, 1979. 26-27.
A single paragraph that seemed to support the trial jury’s verdict in the case.
Hart, James D. The Oxford Companion to American Literature, 5th ed. NY: Oxford University Press, 1983. 85.
“The Hatchet Woman of Fall River.” The Illustrated Crime Encyclopedia, Crime and Punishment Series, Volume 2. Westport, CT: H.S. Stuttman, Inc., 1994. 146-154.
Half-way accurate retelling of the murders, loaded with photos. Relies heavily on newspaper accounts for its facts.
Hertzberg, Max. “Lizzie Borden.” The Reader’s Encyclopedia of American Literature. NY: Thomas J. Crowell Co., 1962. 97-98.
Two-sentence blurb, notable for its bibliography which lists several obscure titles.
Hoogenboom, Olive. “Lizzie Andrew Borden.” American National Biography. NY; Oxford UP, 1999. 210-211.
Page and a half overview of the case, notable for its solid retelling of the crime as well as its attention to the social factors surrounding the crimes.
Jones, Ann. Women Who Kill. NY: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1980. 13, 196, 209-237.
Jones, Elwyn. “Lizzie Borden.” On Trial: Seven Intriguing Cases of Capital Crime. London: MacDonald and James, 1978. 11-33.
Believing Lizzie to be guilty of the crimes, Jones argues that the arrival of John Morse and a property transfer to Mrs. Borden were the catalysts that compelled her to kill.
Keating, H. R. F. “29 Whacks.” Great Crimes: Classic Crimes, Murders, Swindles, Poisoners, Gangsters, Great Robberies, Mass Murderers, Unsolved Mysteries. NY: Harmony, 1982. 77. Rtp. Stamford, CT: Longmeadow Press, 1991. 77.
Inaccurate and objective brief overview of the case (for instance, John Morse is noted as Mrs. Borden’s brother and that he was heard quarreling with Mr. Borden). Notable for its focus on the suspects rather than the trial.
Kohn, George C. “Lizzie Borden: Alleged Parricide.” Encyclopedia of American Scandal. NY: Facts on File, 1989. 40-41.
While containing some rather elementary factual errors, this well-written account of the crimes focuses on class nature of the case.
Kurland, Michael. A Gallery of Rogues: Portraits in True Crime. NY: Prentice Hall General Reference, 1994. 42-49.
Multi-page essay that details the murders in an overview bereft of bias or mistakes.
Lane, Roger. Murder in America, A History. Columbus, OH: Ohio State UP, 1997. 2-3, 205-209, 291, 339.
Brief overview focusing on the legal and forensic areas of the case and how these fields have progressed.
Langley, Andrew. “Lizzie Borden.” Twenty Names in Crime. NY: Marshall Cavendish, 1988. 24-25.
Lesberg, Sandy. “Lizzie Borden.” A Picture History of Crime. NY: Haddington House, 1976. 14.
Lester, Henry. “Lizzie Borden.” Unsolved Murders and Mysteries. Ed. John Canning. Secaucus, NJ: Chartwell Books, 1990. 41-47.
Important and well-drawn retelling, notable for its inclusion of details of Lizzie’s life beyond the scope of the murders, including her friendship with Nance O’Neil and the shoplifting charges with the Tilden-Thurber Company. Lester additionally provides a detailed review of all of the majro theories in the case (Gross, Lincoln, Snow, Radin, and Pearson).
“Lizzie Borden.” The Alyson Almanac. Boston: Alyson Publications, 1989. 100.
Short entry that includes Lizzie as one a number of famous people who were either confirmed or suspected homosexuals. The essay theorizes that Abby had discovered Lizzie and Bridget in bed together and that Lizzie had killed her to silence her. Andrew was killed because he had guessed the truth of Lizzie’s sexuality.
“Lizzie Borden.” The World’s Most Infamous Crimes and Criminals. NY: Gallery Books, 1987. 359-366.
Lustgarten, Edgar. “Lizzie Borden.” The Murder and the Trial. NY: Scribner’s, 1958. 135-154.
Lustgarten, Edgar. “Lizzie Borden.” Verdict in Dispute. NY: Scribner’s, 1950. 206-253. Revised and reprinted as “The Lizzie Borden Axe Murder Case.” Great Courtroom Battles. Ed. Richard Rubenstein. Chicago: Playboy Press, 1973. 1-34.
“The Making of a Legend.” Crimes and Punishments. Part of The Library of Curious and Unusual Facts series. NY: Time-Life Books, 1991. 10-11.
Of note are the particularly clear images of Andrew’s dead body on the couch, Lizzie standing portrait behind the chair taken soon after her acquittal, and a scene from the deMille ballet.
Martinez, Lionel A. “A Famous Chopper.” Great Unsolved Crimes of North America. Secaucus, NJ: Chartwell, 1988. 83-88. Rpt. in Murder in North America. Secaucus, NJ: Wellfleet Press, 1991. 34-38.
Morton, James. “Abigail and Andrew Borden.” The Who’s Who of Unsolved Murders. London: Kyle Cathie Ltd., 1994. 39-42.
“Murder with a Hatchet.” Infamous Murders. London: Verdict Press, 1975. 134-142.
Nash, Jay Robert. “Lizzie Borden.” Almanac of World Crime. Garden City, NY: Anchor Press – Doubleday, 1981. 191-194.
Nash, Jay Robert. “Lizzie Borden.” Encyclopedia of World Crime, Volumes I and II. Wilmette, Illinois: Crime Books, Inc., 1990. 437-440.
Four-page essay in which Nash supports the theory of a stranger as assailant of the double axe murder. Includes several photographs and a bibliography.
Neff, Fred. “Lizzie Borden.” Mysterious Persons in History: Baffling Cases of Unsolved Mysteries. Minneapolis, MN: Runestone Press, 1997. 10-22.
Paton, John. ed. “The Hatchet Woman of Fall River.” Crime and Punishment. Vol. 3. NY: Marshall Cavendish, 1985. 432-440.
Radin, Beatrice H. “Lizzie Andrew Borden.” Encyclopedia Americana Vol. 4. Danbury, CT: Grolier Incorp., 1990. 268.
Randall, Floyd E. “Lizzie Borden Took an Axe.” Great American Mysteries. Little Rock, AR: August House, 1990. 21-25.
Richmond, Ray, ed. The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to Our Favorite Family.
Notes that Lizzie Borden appeared in an episode of The Simpsons (“The Devil and Homer Simpson”) as a member of the “Jury of the Damned” was given the task of judging Homer after he sold his soul for a donut.
Robins, Joyce. “Lizzie Borden.” Lady Killers: 100 Tales of Passion, Revenge and Despair. Wallsend, Tyne & Wear: Premier Books, 1993. 270-276.
Citing as her influence Victoria Lincoln, Robins sees Lizzie as the most likely murderer in the case.
Rubenstein, Richard E. Great Courtroom Battles. Chicago: Playboy Press, 1974.
Sabljak, Mark, and Martin H. Greenberg. A Bloody Legacy: Chronicles of American Murder. Avenel, NJ: Gramercy Books, 1992. 14-16.
Two-and-a-half page essay that details the case and offers alternate solutions to the murders.
Search, Pamela. Great True Crime Stories: Women. Twenty Five of the World’s Most Thrilling Crime Stories, Ancient to the Present. London: Arco Publications, 1957. 136-142.
Sifkis, Carl. “Bordenmania,” The Encyclopedia of American Crime. New York: Facts on File, 1982.
Solomon, Louis. “The Ma and Pa Murders.” Great Unsolved Crimes. NY: Scholastic Inc., 1976. pp. 122-154. Rpt. in The Ma and Pa Murders and Other Perfect Crimes. NY: Lippincott, 1976. 127-157.
Aimed at children, this retelling of the events and facts of the case concludes that Lizzie is innocent of the crimes of murdering her father and step-mother.
Songini, Marc. “Lizzie Borden and Her Forty Whacks.” New England’s Most Sensational Murders. North Attleborough, MA: Covered Bridge Press, 1995. 144-164.
Suellentrop, Joyce Batman. “Lizzie Andrew Borden.” Encyclopedia USA: The Encyclopedia of the United States of America Past and Present. Vol. 7. Gulf Breeze, FL: Academic International Press, 1986. 23-24.
Symons, Julian. A Pictorial History of Crime. NY: Crown, 1966. 58-59.
Tuleja, Tad. “Lizzie Borden.” The New York Public Library Book of Popular Americana. NY: Macmillan, 1994. 41.
7 line entry that mistakenly describes Lizzie as a “Massachusetts schoolteacher.”
Vandome, Nick. “Borden Case.” Crime and Criminals. Edinburgh, Scotland: Chambers, 1992. 34-35.
Watkins, John Elfreth. “The Borden Murder Mystery.” Famous Mysteries: Curious and Fantastic Riddles of Human Life That Have Never Been Solved. Philadelphia, PA: The John C. Winston Co., 1919. 262-265.
Weatherford, Doris. “Lizzie Andrew Borden.” American Women’s History: An A to Z of People, Organizations, Issues, and Events. NY: Prentice Hall General Reference, 1994. 46-47.
Brief essay that purports that Lizzie was acquitted because of her gender.
Welschler, Shoshana. “The Lizzie Borden Case (1892).” The People’s Almanac. Eds. David Wallechinsky and Irving Wallace. Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Co., 1975. 577-578.
Wilson, Colin. A Criminal History of Mankind. London: Granada, 1984. 15, 482.
Wilson, Colin. “Lizzie Borden, the New Solution.” A Casebook of Murder. NY: Cowles Book Co., 1969. Rpt. in The Mammoth Book of True Crime 2. NY: Carroll & Graf, 1990. 310-320.
Wilson, Colin, and Patricia Pitman. Encyclopedia of Murder. London: Pan, 1961.
Albert, Thomas. Lizbeth: An Opera in One Act. Music by Thomas Albert, libretto by Linde Hayen Herman, 1976.
Bast, William. The Legend of Lizzie Borden. Television movie starring Elizabeth Montgomery. Directed by Paul Wendhos, produced by George La Maire. ABC/Paramount TV. First broadcase on 10 Feb. 1975.
Beeson, Jack. Lizzie Borden: A Family Portrait in Three Acts (Opera). Libretto by Kenwood Elmslie, based on a scnario by Richard Plant. NY: Boosey & Hawkes, 1966.
Beeson, Jack. Lizzie Borden. New York City Opera, Anton Coppala, conductor. NY: Desato Records, 1970.
Bloch, Robert. Straight Jacket. Directed by William Castle. Columbia Pictures, 1964. Starring Joan Crawford.
Joan Crawford “gives a performance so unrestrained it makes Faye Dunaway’s in Mommie Dearest look less like parody and more like homage.” (Review by Fred Hunder, http://www.dvdfile.com/news/views/camp_corner/isawwhatyoudid.htm)
Case Reopened. Hosted by Ed McBain. The Learning Channel.
Chad Mitchell Trio. “Lizzie Borden.” Mighty Day on Campus. Kapp Record, KI. – 1262, 1961. Also appears on The Best of the Chad Mitchell Trio. Kapp Records, KS-3334.
Humorous song by Michael Brown.
Colton, John, and Carlton Miles. Nine Pine Street, a Play in Three Acts and Epilogue. NY: Samuel French, 1934.
Conn, Marjorie. Miss Lizzie A. Borden Invites You to Tea. Production premiered in Provincetown, Mass, in 1995. http://www.gaussian.com/ptownfringe/lizzie.htm
Daniels, Robert C. “The Older Sister.” Alfred Hitchcock Presents teleplay. From the story by Lillian de la Torre. Airdate 1.22.56. Directed by Robert Stevens.
de la Torre, Lillian. Goodbye Miss Lizzie Borden; A Sinister Play in One Act. Boston: Walter Baker, 1947. Rpt. in Murder: Plain and Fanciful. Ed. James Sandoe. NY: Sheridan House, 1948. Rpt. in Twenty Great Tales of Murder. NY: Random House, 1951. 132-157. Rpt. in Mistresses of Mystery: Two Centuries of Suspense Stories by the Gentle Sex. Eds. Sean Manley and Gogo Lewis. NY: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Co., 1973. 96-129.
de la Torre, Lillian. “The Small Shadow.” Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine (Aug. 1992): 115-122.
Interesting account of the crimes that blames the murders on a young boy who, after being caught inside the house on 92 Second Street, kills Mr. and Mrs. Borden after panicking.
de Mille, Agnes. Fall River Legend: A Ballet. Choreography by Miss De Mille. Music by Morton Gould. Presented several times yearly since 1948 by the American Ballet Theatre.
Denham, Reginald, and Edward Percy. Suspect, a Play in Three Acts. NY: Dramatist’s Play Service, 1940.
Double Play. Directed by Silvio Narizzano, 1983
Starring Robert Clothier and Maureen McRae, Running Time: 94 minutes. Film based on story of Lizzie Borden.
Gerson, Natasha. The Third Tenant. A play in 2 acts, produced in 1990 by the “Wicked Ladies” Company in Glasgow, Scotland.
Gould, Morton. Fall River Legend. Orchestral suite from the de Mille ballet, 1948.
Haskell, Owen. Lizzie! A Play in Two Acts. Providence, RI: Lazarus Press, 1993.
A tongue-in-cheek comedy in two acts with a challenge in its dust jacket illustration.
Henderson, Donald. The Trial of Lizzie Borden. Radio play. London: Hurst & Blackett, 1946. Broadcast on the BBC, 16 July 1945.
History’s Mysteries – Strange Case of Lizzie Borden. VHS.
Can be purchased at: http://store.aetv.com/cgi-bin/ae.storefront/0/Ext/OutsideFrame/UT/32/Search/lizzie
Kelly, Tim. Lizzie Borden Of Fall River: A Drama in Two Acts. Denver: Pioneer Drama Service, 1976.
Kent, David. Slaughter on Second Street. Shreveport, LA: Rosebud Productions, 1991. Rpt. ME: King Philip Pub., 1993.
A play in two acts, first published and staged in 1992, after the author’s death.
Lawrence, Reginald. The Legend of Lizzie: A Play in Two Acts. Chicago: Dramatic Publishing Co., 1959.
A two-act play; closed after two performances on Broadway
Lizzie Borden (1998 American Stage Company Cast), Music by Christopher McGovern.
Starring Amy Powers, Alison Fraser, Eleanor Glockner, Michael Babin, Joan Barber, Rex Hays. http://members.aol.com/bearluvva/index2.html and http://www.eur.com.musicals/rec.cfm?RNumber=3205&TNumber=1825
Lizzie Borden: Hash and Rehash. NY: Filmakers Library, 1996. 30 min.
Produced and directed by Immy Humes. Interviews of 28 “Bordenites,” including three who have taken the name of Lizzie Borden for themselves, each revealing a different connection to Miss Borden.
Lizzie Borden: A Woman Accused. (1995), A & E Biography, VHS.
Maloney, Terry. Lizzie: Or Better An Outlaw. http://www.sirius.com/~rif/lizzie.html
Norfolk, William. The Lights Are Warm and Colored: A Play. London: Samuel French, 1980.
A play in two acts.
Pelino, Nick, Jr. Lizbeth of Maplecroft. http://hometown.aol.com/npelinojr/myhomepage/business.html
Pollock, Sharon. Blood Relations. In Blood Relations and Other Plays. Toronto: Playwrights Union of Canada, 1981. Rpt. in Plays By Women, Vol. 3. Ed. Michelene Wandor. London; New York: Methuen, 1982: 91-122.
Reach, James. Murder Takes the Stage. NY: Samuel French, 1957.
A three-act play in which a woman known as “Miss Liz,” who had been acquitted fifty years earlier for a double-ax murder, becomes a suspect in a new murder.
Souza, Kenneth J. Lizzie Borden: A Century of Fascination. Fall River, MA: University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Production, 1992.