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Welcome to LizzieBordenEncyclopedia.com! Our mission is to provide those curious about the infamous Borden Murders of 1892 with a systematically organized and easily searchable resource that provides in-depth information and analysis on just about every aspect of the case, which remains officially and maddeningly “unsolved.”

To understand why the case is so unique in the annals of American true crime and still attracts endless debate over whether Lizzie Borden killed her father and stepmother or not, see An Enduring Fascination.

Our Approach will tell you why this information (particularly the section on Evidence) is organized and presented the way it is, as if addressing members of a jury from first one side (the prosecution’s) then the other (the defense’s).

If you would like to start (or conclude) with a concise presentation of the evidence from the prosecutor’s table, see the Case For Lizzie Borden’s Guilt. Likewise, if you want a good grasp of why Lizzie was found “not guilty” at her trial, see the Case for Lizzie Borden’s Innocence.

Before delving into the individual entries, we recommend you go over Case Considerations to better understand the pleasures and pitfalls of wading through the evidence in a case that has achieved mythological proportions in American culture.

To learn more about Lizzie Borden herself, the enigmatic woman at the center of the Borden murders phenomenon, see the section on Lizzie. This section is where you’ll find details on Lizzie’s life before and after the murders, as well as much-debated “theories” that have formed around the world’s most famous (alleged) axe murderess over the decades.

The basic facts about the murders of Andrew and Abby Borden, including timelines of events, as well as the response of the police officers who investigated the case can be found in the Crime & Investigation section.

For a comprehensive dive into each and every piece of evidence introduced during Lizzie’s trial, along with potential evidence that only came to light after the verdict, see the section on Evidence, the meat-and-potatoes of the site, with over 50 meticulously-researched entries. (Seriously, we are talking years of research and careful reading of every transcript, source document, book, academic paper and newspaper article we could find on the subject. For the record, not once was A.I. software used in any research or writing.)

To learn more about the colorful cast of characters who played roles both large and small in the murders, their aftermath, along with those who featured in prosecuting and defending the case against Lizzie, you can find short biographies on them in the section on People.

To get a sense of what America’s first ever sensationalized “Trial of the Century” was like, and how it unfolded, see the section on The Trial.

For an exploration of the numerous books, movies and other countless creative interpretations of Lizzie and the Borden murders, see Pop Culture Lizzie.

To learn even more about Lizzie Borden, her life, and the murders for which she was accused, see our list of Resources.

You can find a list of all entries in this encyclopedia by clicking on the Index.

And, of course, if you would like to know the story of why we started this site—and the background of the writer and editor Teena Booth—see About.  (You can also read the author’s own personal journey through the case and her view of Lizzie’s guilt or innocence by clicking on Did She or Didn’t She?)