Site of the Unsolved 1892 Borden Axe Murders
230 2nd St, Fall River, MA 02721
Age
All Ages for tours; 18+ recommended for overnight investigations
Cost
$$$
House tours priced separately. Overnight stays and investigation packages available; check lizzie-borden.com/house-reservations/ for current rates.
Access
Limited Access
Multi-floor Victorian home with narrow staircases, stairs throughout
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1845 · 1892 Borden Murders · Victorian True Crime · Famous American Unsolved Case
The house was constructed in 1845 at what was then 92 Second Street in Fall River, Massachusetts. Andrew Borden, a bank president and one of Fall River's wealthier citizens, purchased the property and converted it from a two-apartment structure into a single-family home for himself, his second wife Abby, daughter Lizzie, and a live-in maid, Bridget Sullivan. The street number changed to 230 in 1896.
On the morning of August 4, 1892, Andrew Borden was found dead on the sitting room sofa, struck with a hatchet approximately ten times. Abby Borden had been killed in the upstairs guest bedroom earlier that same morning, struck approximately nineteen times with the same or a similar instrument. The timing of the two deaths, discovered in the same house within hours of each other, shaped the investigation that followed.
Lizzie Borden, Andrew's daughter from his first marriage, was arrested and tried for both murders. Her trial in 1893 became one of the most covered criminal proceedings in American history. The jury acquitted her after deliberating for roughly an hour. No other suspect was ever charged. Lizzie subsequently purchased a house at 7 French Street, which she named Maplecroft, where she lived until her death in 1927. The murder house at 230 Second Street passed through several owners.
Between 1996 and 2004, Martha McGinn and Ronald Evans operated it as a bed and breakfast. Donald Woods and Lee-Ann Wilbers continued that operation after 2004, adding murder investigation materials and autopsy photographs to the decor. In 2021, Lance Zaal, owner of US Ghost Adventures, purchased the property for $2 million and expanded the programming to include themed dinners, murder mystery nights, and a podcast, while preserving the original furnishings and floor plan.
Sources
The paranormal literature on the Lizzie Borden House is extensive and spans three decades of organized investigation. The property's current ownership through US Ghost Adventures has maintained investigation access as a central offering, which means the documentation record is ongoing and cross-referenced across multiple teams.
The third-floor attic generates the highest volume of investigative reports. The accounts describe children's laughter with no identifiable source, rocking chairs observed in motion when no one is seated, and toys moved between the positions left after one investigation group and found before the next. These reports arrive from groups that have not communicated with each other.
Class A EVP recordings — meaning audio clear enough to be transcribed without disagreement among listeners — have been captured in the guest bedroom where Abby Borden died. One frequently cited recording documents a woman's voice saying what sounds like "help me." The guest bedroom itself is among the overnight suite options, allowing guests to sleep in the room where Abby was found.
Paranormal investigation teams using thermal imaging cameras have reported full-body heat signatures in the sitting room where Andrew died, in positions that do not correspond to the investigators present. Temperature drops of 15 to 20 degrees measured in seconds have been documented in the same room during multiple unrelated sessions.
The scale of media attention this property has received — Ghost Adventures, Ghost Hunters, Kindred Spirits, Most Haunted, and Paranormal Witness among the television productions — means the investigative record is both extensive and publicly available for cross-reference.
Notable Entities
Media Appearances
Guided tour of the Victorian home where Andrew and Abby Borden were killed with a hatchet on August 4, 1892. The tour covers the sitting room where Andrew's body was found, the upstairs guest bedroom where Abby died, and the crime scene context including autopsy photographs now displayed throughout the property.
Six rooms and suites in the original house, including the guest room where Abby Borden was murdered. Breakfast is served in the same dining room where the family ate on the morning of the killings. Overnight stays include access to the house for independent exploration through check-out.
Full-night paranormal investigation with access to the basement investigation space and all public areas of the house. The third-floor attic is the most consistently reported active zone, where investigators have documented children's laughter, rocking chair movement, and EVP recordings. Equipment welcome.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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