Ax murder suspect Lizzie Borden’s house for sale in Massachusetts. Take a look inside

Brooke Wolford
·2 min read

A piece of history is up for sale: the Massachusetts mansion alleged ax murderer Lizzie Borden owned and died in is listed on Zillow.

The nearly 4,000 square-foot Maplecroft mansion built in 1887 in Fall River was posted on Zillow in late August. The house Borden and her sister Emma lived in together, which has six fireplaces, seven bedrooms, and three and-a-half bathrooms, is listed for $890,000.

After losing a legal battle with the city of Fall River and getting hit by the pandemic, the owners of Lizzie Borden’s Maplecroft mansion are selling the property.
After losing a legal battle with the city of Fall River and getting hit by the pandemic, the owners of Lizzie Borden’s Maplecroft mansion are selling the property.

“Presenting Maplecroft — the Queen Anne Victorian Mansion that once belonged to Lizzie Borden, who was accused and acquitted of the brutal ax murders of her father and Stepmother,” the listing, posted on Zillow by Suzanne St. John, says. “This was her final resting place that she lived in until her death, NOT the house where the murders happened.”

This is the second time in three years Maplecroft has been on the market, according to Boston Magazine. Previous owner Kristee Bates bought the house in 2014 and restored it, hoping to turn it into a bed and breakfast, before putting it up for sale in 2017, the magazine reported.

After losing a legal battle with the city of Fall River and getting hit by the pandemic, the owners of Lizzie Borden’s Maplecroft mansion are selling the property.
After losing a legal battle with the city of Fall River and getting hit by the pandemic, the owners of Lizzie Borden’s Maplecroft mansion are selling the property.

Donald Woods and Lee-ann Wilber bought it in 2018 for $600,000, The Herald News reported.

Woods and Wilber own and operate the nearby Lizzie Borden Bed & Breakfast Museum — where the homicides took place in 1892, according to the Herald. They bought Maplecroft with the intention of turning it into a B&B but after spending $250,000 to update the house, the city asked them to make more changes to comply with accessibility regulations, the newspaper said.

After losing a legal battle with the city of Fall River and getting hit by the pandemic, the owners of Lizzie Borden’s Maplecroft mansion are selling the property.
After losing a legal battle with the city of Fall River and getting hit by the pandemic, the owners of Lizzie Borden’s Maplecroft mansion are selling the property.

Woods and Wilber appealed the city’s decision to the Massachusetts Architectural Access Board of Building Regulations and Standards because they wanted to preserve the house’s historical integrity. But after the coronavirus pandemic entered the picture, they decided to sell, local media reports say.

The mansion will come “fully furnished with exceptional period pieces that speak to the very special past inhabitants of this home,” according to the Zillow listing.

Borden and her sister bought the 14-room mansion in 1893 after she was acquitted, the Herald reported. Borden’s sister moved out in 1905 but Borden spent the remainder of her life there until she died in 1927, according to the Herald.

Borden’s wake was held inside the house as well, the Herald reported. Borden’s sister died just days after her, according to the newspaper.

Jerry Pacheco, operations manager for the Borden B&B and museum, says the mansion offers a truly haunting experience, Boston Magazine reported.

“Honestly, that house has a lot of paranormal activity in it,” Pacheco told the magazine “Even more than [the allegedly haunted Borden B&B], I would say.”

After losing a legal battle with the city of Fall River and getting hit by the pandemic, the owners of Lizzie Borden’s Maplecroft mansion are selling the property.
After losing a legal battle with the city of Fall River and getting hit by the pandemic, the owners of Lizzie Borden’s Maplecroft mansion are selling the property.
After losing a legal battle with the city of Fall River and getting hit by the pandemic, the owners of Lizzie Borden’s Maplecroft mansion are selling the property.
After losing a legal battle with the city of Fall River and getting hit by the pandemic, the owners of Lizzie Borden’s Maplecroft mansion are selling the property.