How Did Lizzie Borden Die? Inside Her Final Years

Accused ax murderer Lizzie Borden is the subject of the fourth installment of Ryan Murphy’s ‘Monster’ series

NEED TO KNOW

• Lizzie Borden was famously acquitted after being accused of murdering her father and stepmother with a hatchet in 1892
• She died 35 years later at the age of 66 in June 1927
• Her story is the subject of the fourth installment of Ryan Murphy’s Monster series

Lizzie Borden’s name has been synonymous with her father and stepmother’s brutal deaths for more than 100 years — despite the fact that she was acquitted of their murders.

In August 1892, Lizzie’s father, Andrew Borden, and her stepmother, Abby Borden, were found bludgeoned to death in their Fall River, Mass. home. Both victims had been struck multiple times in the head with a hatchet. Lizzie, who was 32 years old at the time and living at home, became the prime suspect in the gruesome murders, and was arrested and charged shortly after their deaths.

The case went to trial in June 1893, and Lizzie was acquitted. But while she was cleared in the eyes of the law, Lizzie was permanently shunned by her community until her death in 1927.

Lizzie’s story has lived on in pop culture in the years since her death, and was most recently brought to life by Ryan Murphy in Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story, which premiered on Sept. 17 on Netflix.

Here’s everything to know about Lizzie Borden’s death.

 How did Lizzie Borden die?

After years of near-total social isolation, Lizzie first fell ill in 1926. Her health had been declining and, at the advice of her doctor, she had an operation at a Providence hospital to remove her gallbladder, The Herald News reported. She reportedly checked into the hospital under the alias “Mary Smith Borden” and was given a private room to protect her identity.

However, Lizzie never fully recovered from the surgery and she remained in poor health for the rest of her life, according to The New York Times. After more than a year of complications, Lizzie died at home.

When did Lizzie Borden die?

Lizzie died on June 1, 1927.

Nine days later, her sister, Emma, who was the sole surviving member of the Borden family, died in Newmarket, N.H., at the age of 76, The New York Times reported. Her cause of death was chronic nephritis with senility, according to The Herald News.

Where did Lizzie Borden die?

Lizzie died at Maplecroft, the Fall River home where she lived after being acquitted of her father and stepmother’s murders in 1893, per Boston Magazine.

The house was purchased by Lizzie and her sister, Emma, who together inherited over $300,000 from their father’s estate (more than $10 million today). They lived there together until 1905, when Emma moved out following an argument with Lizzie.

How old was Lizzie Borden when she died?

Lizzie was 66 years old when she died on June 1, 1927.

What were Lizzie Borden’s last words?

The last words of Lizzie Borden have never been reported; in fact, she was rarely seen or heard from in public in the years following her acquittal. 

The last known communication from Lizzie came in the form of her will and testament. According to The New York Times, her estate was valued at nearly $1,000,000 when she died. She left $30,000 to the Animal Rescue League of Fall River; Emma, meanwhile, received nothing.

“I have not given my sister anything, as she had her share of her father’s estate and is supposed to have enough to make her comfortable,” a notation in the will read, per the outlet.

How has Lizzie Borden been remembered?

Lizzie’s story has been immortalized in pop culture in the decades since her death. She is the subject of a grisly nursery rhyme as well as several books and films, including 2014’s Lizzie Borden Took an Ax, starring Christina Ricci, and 2018’s Lizzie, starring Chloe Sevigny and Kristen Stewart.

Most recently, Lizzie returned to the spotlight thanks to Murphy’s Monster series. Starring Warren Beatty and Annette Bening’s daughter Ella Beatty, Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story premiered on Sept. 17 on Netflix.

“This season gives us our first female Monster and delves into female rage and repression which I’ve found to feel strikingly relevant,” Beatty told Netflix in September 2026. “I cannot wait to share it with the world.”

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