Upon Lizzie's death

Harry · Post by **Harry** » Sat Sep 25, 2004 10:09 am

David Kent's Sourcebook (page 330) has a newspaper article (July 2, 1927) on the death of Lizzie Borden. Unfortunately he doesn't cite the name of the paper. I found some of the things mentioned interesting.

She "... died at 8:30 last night at her home .... Death was due to heart disease..." Her death certificate reads she died of myocarditis which is defined as "... inflammation or degeneration of the heart muscle."

At the time of her death she had a female physician, Dr. Annie Campebll Mccrae. I don't know whether female doctors were common in the 1920's but Lizzie was never one to obey custom if they weren't.

The lawyer handling her legal affairs was a Charles L. Baker of Fall River.

It mentions "In her own home (Maplecroft) in Fall River, she had the companionship of dog and cat, two horses at one time, canaries, and squirrels lived in houses on her grounds and she fed them, luring them to her shoulders."

"Lizzie was said to have her father's business acumen and temperament generally."

"She did not shop in Fall River stores." I assume that means her personally.

"It soon became apparent that Emma Borden's friends were not intending to admit Lizzie Borden within their circle. There was no evidence that she sought such entry."

"She also had generous opportunites for travel and out-of-town living experiences; she traveled abroad; and she was fond of reading."

I have been trying to find out whether she ever went overseas again after the 1890 trip and there are vague hints such as above that she did.

All in all an interesting newspaper article.

augusta · Post by **augusta** » Sat Sep 25, 2004 10:23 am

I would think she did travel abroad after her acquittal, Harry. But we may never know. She could have used an assumed name for something like that, after the trial. She did when she got her gall bladder out.

I am curious what happened to her doctor after Lizzie died. I found the location of where her practice used to be. It's not far from Maplecroft. I think the address is in Rebello. Pretty, nice white house on a corner.

A cat, huh?

Susan · Post by **Susan** » Mon Sep 27, 2004 2:39 am

Thanks, Harry, I was always under the impression from the authors that Lizzie died due to complications from her gall bladder surgery. Myocarditis sounds like something completely different, heres a bit more about it:

Myocarditis is inflammation or degeneration of the heart muscle. Myocarditis may be a complication during or after various viral, bacterial, or parasitic infectious diseases, such as polio, influenza, rubella, or rheumatic fever. It is often caused by various diseases such as syphilis, goiter, endocarditis, or hypertension, however, myocarditis may appear as a primary disease in adults or as a degenerative disease of old age.

Cause?

Myocarditis is a caused by inflammation of the muscle of the heart. Although a variety of medical conditions can cause myocarditis, the most common cause is infection by viruses. Enteroviruses are recognized as the most common cause of myocarditis. Over many years, a chronic enterovirus heart infection and the body’s response to that infection in the heart can lead to irreversible heart muscle damage and heart failure.

I love that Lizzie had a female doctor in life, thats pretty cool! From what I've read, women doctors comprised close to about 5 percent of the profession around that time period.

For more info on early female doctors, click here:

http://college.hmco.com/history/readers ... icians.htm

Kat · Post by **Kat** » Wed Sep 29, 2004 4:11 am

I wonder if her dentist was a female as well?
Lizzie had work done it seems between the murders and the trial? At least, not until after the arrest was the gold in her mouth ever remarked upon.

Harry, I was just reading that same exact account in The Sourcebook, by battery-powered lantern Saturday night!!!
I made a note of that trip to overseas!

Anyway, back to dentists. If one is susceptible, having one's teeth cleaned or worked on can release the kind of bacteria into the bloodstream which can collect around the heart and cause this myocarditis. One should take pennicillin before a proceedure if one is prone to this disease.

Susan · Post by **Susan** » Wed Sep 29, 2004 9:46 pm

It may have been possible for Lizzie to have had a female dentist, though I don't think many women were in the field for quite some time.

1866 Lucy Hobbs, the first woman to obtain DDS, graduated from Ohio College of Dental Surgery.

From this site:
http://www.agd.org/consumer/topics/hist ... enium.html

I wonder if the gold seen in Lizzie's mouth was fillings and/or bridges and crowns. It seems that gold was used quite extensively in Victorian times for dentistry, but, they did also have the beginnings of todays amalgam filling too.

You can read more about it here:

http://www.carabelli.com/dental/dhistory.htm

Kat · Post by **Kat** » Thu Sep 30, 2004 2:56 am

Thanks, Susan! You come up with some interesting things!
Since Andrew and Abby both had dental work, and so did Lizzie- I suppose it's safe to assume Emma had work too...

It's possible infection from her teeth invaded Lizzie's heart.
Has anyone Lizzie's death certificate?
Has this cause of death been confirmed?

Susan · Post by **Susan** » Thu Sep 30, 2004 11:04 am

You're welcome, Kat. I'm really amazed at how sophisticated dentistry was at the time, not the old yank those teeth and send 'em on their way sort of thing.

Yes, I wonder if Lizzie had had any dental work done before the gall bladder surgery or after?

diana · Post by **diana** » Fri Oct 01, 2004 1:17 pm

Like Susan, I'd always had the impression that Lizzie's death was in close proximity to her operation -- but it looks as though the interval between the two was well over a year.

From Rebello page 318:

"Personals: Miss Lizbeth A. Borden, 306 French Street, is ill at the Truesdale [Hospital]. It is understood that Miss Borden was operated on about three weeks ago and that she is well on the way of convalescence."
Feb. 24, 1926 (Fall River Herald)

"Local Lines: The condition of Miss Borden, who underwent an operation at the Truesday [Hospital], is reported as being satisfactory to her physicians."
Feb. 25, 1926, (Fall River Daily Globe)

"Lizzie Borden is Operation Victim," June 2 , 1927 (Foster's Daily Democrat, Dover, NH)

On the same page (in Rebello) is the information on her death certificate --which lists her cause of death as myocarditis.

Was she sick that whole time?

A Fall River Gobe header in Rebello (318) says: "Lisbeth Borden Dies After Short Illness, Age 68," (dated June 2, 1927)

I'm confused....

Susan · Post by **Susan** » Fri Oct 01, 2004 8:45 pm

Thanks for posting that, Diana. Makes me wonder if Lizzie had some sort of viral infection for a short time and that brought on the myocarditis or if it was an infection due to the operation she had? Confusing, yes.

lydiapinkham · Post by **lydiapinkham** » Mon Oct 04, 2004 8:21 am

Interesting stuff, Susan and Diana. That would have been one long misery, but I guess it's possible. Or could the reporter jumped to conclusions when connecting the two?

--Lyddie