Victoria Lincoln Never Dies!

[Haulover]

i'm writing an article about her book/theory. in preparation i'm going over every sentence -- i'm 75% through it in this way.

for starters, i compiled all her text that you might call, "i personally saw lizzie borden." this is a plus about her book -- though we might doubt some of it.

i'm using "A Private Disgrace," G.P. Putnam's Sons, NY, 1967. looks like a hardback book club edition.

Pg 26:
"I went back. And I could not believe my own eyes. For years, in perfect good faith, I had dined out on my vivid memories of having once been Lizzie Borden's next-door neighbor. I was wrong. Lizzie had lived at the near end of the next block.
But the house she bought with her inheritance looked just as I had remembered it. And photographs assure me that her eyes, too, were as I remember them, though in some pictures they show darker than they really were, because their pupils were so distended. The eyes themselves were huge and protruding, the irises an almost colorless ice-blue. They were strangely expressionless. I have heard many speak of them as dead eyes, but the eyes of the dead are dull; Lizzie's had the shine of beach pebbles newly bared by the outgoing tide. [almost poetic?]
For the rest, she was tall, stocky, jowly, dressy, and unremarkable.
When I was small, I was shy with other children but quick to make friends with grown-ups; yet I never got far with Lizzie. Occasionally I tried to talk to her while she was out filling her bird-feeding station and feeding the squirrels, but she never quite seemed to see or hear me. It damped conversation.
I school, I began to make friends of my own age, and observed with interest that one was supposed to shudder and giggle when Miss Borden's name was mentioned. I asked Mother why.
'Well, dear, she was very unkind to her father and mother."

Pg 37:
"Her hair was naturally curly; however, until it turned the mousy brown I remember in her later years it was red, and in her day red hair was considered ugly , a misfortune to be pitied. Her hands were large, but nicely formed and elegantly white. Her shoulders were rather broad, and no severity of whalebone and lacing could hide the fact that her waist was thick; so was her lower jaw. She learned early never to turn her profile to the camera. Her complexion was unfortunate: course and sallow, it flushed to a mottled crimson in moments of excitement. But her huge, protruding pale eyes photographed surprisingly well, and she had a passion for having her picture taken by professionals, even after the murders when her face had gone round and jowly. [i wish lincoln had clarified this...were there many more photos than we know -- apart from the "questionable" ones]
In public, she dressed well, in clothes that were not only expensive but the last word in fashion. Her clothes were in startling contrast to her house, with its outmoded loud flowered carpets, cheap ornate U.S. Grant furniture and horsehair upholstery, described by the newspapers as being, all "of a style that was commonly seen forty years ago." [lincoln can't say she was ever in the house -- or name a reporter who had been]

Pg. 309:
"Yet almost daily we saw her. She had been one of the first in town to buy an automobile; every afternoon, unless there was a downpour, she went out for a ride over the river in the well-known big black limousine that looked like a stray from a funeral procession, sitting alone and staring straight before her." [lizzie had several cars, but lincoln paints a pretty good picture of the lonely town pariah]

[Tina-Kate]

You have the same copy of Lincoln that I do. Sadly, I suppose Lizzie would have *shut out* any & all children who tried to speak to her, as all to often their words were probably daggers. Her comment re red hair reminds me of "Anne of Green Gables", which also states how unpopular the color was in Victorian times. However, with Anne it just shows how she is different & special...it gives her character. Re the furniture, it seems kind of ironic that Lizzie should despise the "old fashioned" 1860s furniture @ 92 2nd St only to have her own tastes become outmoded by Lincoln's time! I do question whether the furniture was in fact "cheap" as Lincoln describes. Other accounts of Maplecroft say Lizzie had excellent taste.

[Bob Gutowski]

Tina-Kate, I think that reference is, indeed, to the furniture of 92 Second Street and not to the furnishings of Maplecroft.

Haulover, thanks for the excerpts. For years, this was THE book, as far as I was concerned. I used to talk about it at social gatherings. Of course, I've gotten older and wiser (and in touch with all of you other Bordenians), and I no longer believe Lincoln unreservedly. However, she writes beautifully, doesn't she? We can't take that away from her! I look forward to reading your piece on the book.

[Kat]

I've been reading de Mille, 1968 and she had talked to Victoria Lincoln and they had corresponded as well. The bit about living 2 doors down actually made it into Miss de Mille's book!

82:
"Victoria Lincoln as a child lived two houses from Maplecroft and used to trespass casually into Miss Borden's garden where the elderly woman pottered about among her birdbaths and squirrel-feeders. Victoria's parents reacted with consternation. Her mother said, according to Alexander Woollcott, 'I wouldn't go into Miss Borden's house, dear, if I were you. Because---well, you see, dear, she was very unkind to her father and mother.' "


Also on that page and page 81:

"In her new grandeur she lived alone except for her servants, who demanded unusually high wages for staying under the same roof. She used to drive about in her carriage and pony cart (apparently she had conquered her concern for draft-animals), later in her chauffeur-driven limousine, with the children of the neighborhood staring and on her departure shouting rude rhymes. I asked Victoria Lincoln if they ever yelled the jingles in her presence? 'Oh, no,' she said, 'it would have been too dangerous.' Why dangerous---not rude or unkind, but dangerous? What could Lizzie have done? Obviously she still terrified the town."

--The kind of thing which is perpetuated because of Lincoln is really sad- it's like a virus which spreads.
I was recently reading a very learned article on the case, with emphasis on the trial and as soon as I hit a snag I checked the footnote and it was Lincoln who tripped me.

[Tina-Kate]

I stand corrected Bob -- I was associating Lincoln with her impressions from living near Maplecroft.

[Nancie]

Describing Lizzie as "tall with a thick waist" is
confusing, wasn't she short 5'2" or so? and the picture with the chair shows a rather thin waist.
I agree Lincoln's writing was excellent and intent
sincere, and she did capture the "class" structures
and distinctions of that time in Fall River

[Haulover]

"And I should like to thank my husband, not only for his long patience with a working wife but also for the frequency with which he said, 'How can you document that? How do you know?'"

the ways she works this, it is foreshadowing. preparation for convincing us that she is simply in the know, take her word for it.

"The case has always held its honest students spellbound, because the factual evidence of her sole opportunity and her guilt is so overwhelming, yet the bare idea of her guilt is so humanly incredible, so absurd."

there is truth in this. i think she is refuting radin in the following sentence:

"Ever since she was acquitted, Lizzie the legend, Lizzie the case, has fascinated writers; she has to be made plausible."

that she was a fall river native close to lizzie's generation is one reason to read the book, but this is the set-up for many following statements where she claims "insider knowledge" which she never actually justifies:

"Little by little I have come to realize that only such first-hand knowledge can save any writing on the Borden case, however careful and honest, from being only another deceptively well-documented fiction."

she is going to save us from radin.

"My parents, of course, knew Lizzie and her circle. Lizzie's own parents, strictly speaking, had no friends, except for Abby's half sister and Andrew's brother-in-law by his first marriage, but my grandfather sat with Andrew on many of the same mill boards and they were both presidents of local banks, a circumstance that has enabled me to uncover the precipitating motive of the crime. I myself was a close friend of Lizzie's sole friend of her later years, Miss Helen Leighton, a gentle spinster from Boston, who 'knew' that Lizzie was innocent because of their shared passion for animals and Lizzie's gift for endearing herself to her servants."

i wonder about her definition of "close friend" but how she uncovers this secret info is something we'll have to take her word for.

"Up on the hill, we never gave either of them a thought. We had no doubt that she did it. We also had no doubt that though Lizzie loved money as fully as old Andrew did, she had loved him even more."

foreshadowing of her motive in killing andrew. (she did not plan to, he came home too early, he would know, etc.) this is objectionable that the author pretends to know lizzie's love for her father and why she had to kill him. i can't believe the "love" part of the motive, but she develops that more later on. i must say it is a dangerous thing to define love in this way, because it invites a loss of the meaning of the word.

"We did, however, attach grave importance to Lizzie's 'peculiar spells.'"

as if they were up on the hill discussing this before the murders.

[Bob Gutowski]

Was Lizzie 5'2", or 5'4".

[Kat]

http://www.frpd.org/lizzie/lizzie.htm

The Fall River Police Department has redesigned their web-site. (William noticed the change).
This page should have the arrest record.
Click on the first link and Lizzie's official description is revealed.

[connecticuthills]

Hi Haulover
Im rereading Victorias book too.
What struck me is Sarah Morse Bordens raging temper (pg 47)
How much love and care did Lizzie experience in the first two yrs of her life?
Arent the first two yrs of our lives important for healthy development?

[Nancie]

The police record reads to me Lizzie is 5 H. could that read 5'4"? Maybe in those times that was conciderd "tall"? Or did it read 5 ft? anyway to me that is short, i'm 5'7" and i think i'm average.
i think our Susan is 5'13" or something, that is what
i would describe as Tall. Vicrtoria sure made a lot of mistakes but still I loved her book.

[connecticuthills]

I think Lizzie hated her father as much as she hated Abby, both their death were overkill.Isnt overkill a sign of rage and hate? (of course getting an axe in the head once is still a sign of rage and hate lol) She hated them for different reasons. She hated Abby because of jealousy or Andrews will and Andrew because she felt he didnt really love her. Just a quess.

[Susan]

i think our Susan is 5'13" or something, that is what
i would describe as Tall.

Actually, I'm only 5' 9", which I think is tall for a woman, I would certainly tower over our Lizzie! I do have some girlfriends that are like 6' 1", now thats really tall!

Yes, despite the flaws, Victoria's book is still one of my favorite reads.

[Haulover]

connecticut:

about sarah's migraines or fits of rage: i don't know, but i notice lincoln has it that the prosecution discovered evidence of this but "also shelved them."

my personal opinion is that lizzie did not love abby or andrew either one. i don't buy lincoln's idea that, in some convoluted (specious) sort of way, lizzie loved her father -- whether her hand did the axe work or not.

i think lizzie's reaction to the murders is telling about this -- NOT because she was not an emotional basketcase, etc. she's upset in some way, she's in a bad mood, but it isn't grief. i hear it in her remark about getting the undertaker, and especially in that statement about the telegram -- she expresses concern for an old feeble person who might be shocked to hear about this. what's more disturbing is this brand of "thoughtfulness" expressed at this time.


this is something from lincoln i find appalling:
"We say that love has many faces (though more accurately we should say that in our English language love is a furry word, capable of many definitions). Yet, within one definition, I do not hesitate to say that Lizzie murdered her father out of her love for him."
i hope she didn't think she had found truth in this. i think this is a foolish way of explaining it even if her theory is correct. what she should have said is that lizzie killed him out of self-interest.

[Kat]

Hi Haulover
Im rereading Victorias book too.
What struck me is Sarah Morse Bordens raging temper (pg 47)
How much love and care did Lizzie experience in the first two yrs of her life?
Arent the first two yrs of our lives important for healthy development?

There were quite a few people living together at Ferry Street in 1860- extended family. I'm not quite sure how much extended family was depended upon to help out in raising children? I'd think that would be a big reason to live together. There were enough people to shower Lizzie with attention, if not love, as a baby in that house- if any were capable of that or so inclined...
It's the Morse side which was rumored to be *ugly* or bad-tempered.

[Nancie]

Haulover, it had to be a love/hate situation, not
just "self interest" to Lizzie. She was only 32, she
had to have a love of her father in some way. How
Lincoln described it was just her opinion, as we have ours. I think you are on to something though
anyway and hope we get to read your paper, good
luck.

[Kat]

Here is a precursor to the Epilepsy theory of Victoria Lincoln. This is a case presented to us by Edmund Pearson, in the Gerald Gross book, Masterpieces of Murder. All Pearson's stories were out of print by 1937, according to Gross's preface- this one is titled "Sob Sisters Emerge."
It's about a case of deliberate murder by an Italian woman of her lover who would not marry her, in New York, 1895. She crept up behind the man and cut his throat ear to ear with "an unpleasant jagged razor," while he was playing cards with his friends. (You get the idea this unhygenic appliance was more horrifying to Pearson to contemplate than the death itself).

"The defense was 'psychical epilepsy,' Mr. House described the prisoner's life, and her family history in Italy for three generations. Her ruin had been accomplished by means of drugs. In the 1890's no girl was ever ruined except by drugs. Sometimes the rascal put the drug into her soda water; in especially wicked instances into beer. Maria had been ruined both ways.

A genealogical chart was produced: it showed that Maria was descended from the Barbellis on one side and Bonfantis on the other. Both families were full of insanity and epilepsy. The lawyer mentioned other allied families, all lunatics. Maria had an uncle who was an 'exhibitionist'; he used to take his friends to a tavern, treat them to drinks all round, get himself drunk, and then, tearing his clothes off, run down the street shouting."

..."Next day, however, he questioned her at length [she took the stand]. So she Wept on Stand and Collapsed in Cell. [-As depicted in the newspapers.]

The high spot of the eighteenth day of the trial came as a surprise. Angelo Piscopo, friend and neighbor, was testifying as to Maria's infirmities. Nobody had suspected Mr. Piscopo's accomplishments as an actor of the Grand Guignol school. When he was asked about the prisoner's fits, he suddenly uttered a dismal howl and gave such an imitation of epilepsy that two of the sob sisters became hysterical and had to be removed from court, while the Tombs Angel ran out of peptonoids."

--This was Maria's second trial. Public outcry forced this. She had been convicted and faced the electric chair. Here is an epilepsy defense. I bet Lincoln read Pearson. He is so tongue-in-cheek, with a dry wit.
We also have drugs, and an examination of her forebears as to insanity!

--What is a *Peptonoid*? Maria had a lot of those.

[Susan]

From what I could find,a Peptonoid appears to be some sort of predigested protein by a proteolytic enzyme in a liquid form as nourishment for invalids, yuck! From what I've seen, it usually appears a beef based, but, there was also some milk based.

[Harry]

Thanks ladies for the info.

I couldn't help noticing that the company 1n one of the ads Susan posted was located in Yonkers, NY - my home town!!

Wow, that ad said it contained creosote. Thought that was a tar like substance made from wood or coal.

[Haulover]

from the description, this peptonoid sounds like something for bronchial or lung congestion. it specifically says it's not a narcotic. somewhat like today's robitussin DM expectorant (well there are six or seven varieties)?

i would think narcotic drugs would be ruinous.

anyway, it fits that lincoln would have been aware of this -- she admires pearson while knocking radin for knocking him (though i don't believe she ever actually names radin).

i'll have to post her whole justification for the epilepsy -- which she claims to get confirmed from someone at john hopkins university, i think (i don't have the book with me now).

as for the history of it in lizzie's family -- the mad spells of lizzie's dead mother -- this thus far sounds apocryphal -- about like lizzie's cat-killing or the fights between her and abby. anyone ever seen a primary source for insanity in the borden family?

[Haulover]

on creosote -- also i thought it was used in treating wood and making disinfectants.

i think it is somewhat telling of lincoln's methods that she would use Pearson for developing an epilepsy theory, while pretending to come up with it through her insider knowledge.

[Susan]

Found this, apparently it was the Creosote that made that Peptonoid an expectorant:

"Creosote is the name used for a variety of products that are mixtures of many chemicals; those products include wood creosote, coal tar creosote, coal tar, and coal tar pitch. Creosotes do not occur naturally in the environment; they are created by high-temperature treatment of beech and other woods (wood creosote) or coal (coal tar creosote), or from the resin of the creosote bush (creosote bush resin).

Wood creosote (CAS #8021-39-4) is a colorless to yellowish greasy liquid with a characteristic smoky odor and sharp burned taste. The major chemicals in wood creosote are phenol, cresols, and guaiacol. It has been used as a disinfectant, a laxative, and a cough treatment; it is rarely used today in the United States, but is still used as an expectorant and a laxative in Japan.

Coal tar creosote (CAS #8001-58-9) is the most common form of creosote in the workplace and at hazardous waste sites in the United States; it is referred to by EPA as creosote. It is a thick, oily liquid that is typically amber to black in color, and is a distillation product of coal tar. It has a burning, caustic taste. Coal tar creosote is the most widely used wood preservative in the United States, and is used as a wood preservative and water-proofing agent for log homes, railroad ties, telephone poles, marine pilings, and fence posts. It is also a restricted-use pesticide, and is used as an animal and bird repellant, insecticide, animal dip, fungicide, and a pharmaceutical agent for the treatment of psoriasis."

From this site:

http://www.nsc.org/library/chemical/Creosote.htm

While I was living in Arizona I came across creosote bushes quite a few times, the smell always made me think of the boardwalks on the Jersey shore.

[lydiapinkham]

They still put coal tar in shampoos for bad dandruff and psoriasis. My daughter had a bad case of cradle cap (an icky waxy buildup on babies' scalps) and a friend suggested T-Gel. The stuff smelled so bad we nearly gagged! And it didn't work. The remains of the T-Gel stayed in the cupboard for at least a couple of years till I took it out to the dumpster with a pair of tongs. (She outgrew the cradle cap finally with a bit of help from Head and Shoulders.) I would think creosote would make a better emetic than expectorant.

--Lyddie

[Kat]

Could these be lozenges?
The book says "peptenoids" was in a bottle and Maria was "slipped" a peptenoid from time to time.

[Susan]

I'm not sure, Kat, most ads I saw for Peptonoids were in liquid form, maybe they came in some sort of tablet form? I can't imagine wanting to suck on some predigested food product. Did they say why they were giving Maria peptonoids? From what I've seen, its administered to people with stomach ailments. This is all the rest I could find on the subject:

Main Entry: pep·to·noid
Pronunciation: 'pep-t&-"noid
Function: noun
: a substance resembling peptone

peptone
<physiology> The soluble and diffusible substance or substances into which albuminous portions of the food are transformed by the action of the gastric and pancreatic juices. Peptones are also formed from albuminous matter by the action of boiling water and boiling dilute acids.

Collectively, in a broader sense, all the products resulting from the solution of albuminous matter in either gastric or pancreatic juice. In this case, however, intermediate products (albumose bodies), such as antialbumose, hemialbumose, etc, are mixed with the true peptones. Also termed albuminose.

Pure peptones are of three kinds, amphopeptone, antipeptone, and hemipeptone, and, unlike the albumose bodies, are not precipitated by saturating their solutions with ammonium sulphate.

Origin: Gr. Cooked.

Source: Websters Dictionary

(01 Mar 1998)

[Kat]

Thanks for all the information!
The context is:

"Maria had learned English in her sixteen months at Sing Sing. She was supported in court [at the new trial] by the 'Tombs Angel,' a being whom the newspaper artists made to look as gloomy as the gates of Tartarus. Her function was to restore Maria from time to time by means of 'peptonides,' of which she had a bottle in her pocket. Everybody who read the Journal or the World knew how often, and at what times, the Angel slipped Maria a peptonoid."
--Masterpieces of Murder, chapter "Sob Sisters Emerge."

[Susan]

You're welcome, Kat. It does sound as though they were in some sort of singular solid form if they were slipped to Maria. Perhaps they had something else mixed into them like the peptonoids with creosote that had some sort of medicinal value to them.

[lydiapinkham]

One thing that strikes me is the fact that the bottle pontedly says "liquid," as if there was an alternative. I lean toward the expectorant myself--maybe a cough lozenge like "Fisherman's Friend." (Which just tastes nasty enough to have a coal tar base!)

--Lyddie

I just noticed that in my last post I said better "emetic than expectorant" when I meant to say I would think it would have made a better emetic than laxative because I think you'd throw up before the laxative properties kicked in. Perhaps they should have called it "Bulimic's Friend."

[Kat]

With all the help, I still am not sure what that was. Going in to this discussion I thought they were pepper-uppers- lozenges with some cocaine or something.
Maria was not a willowy string-bean who might need actual food-based medicine. Still confusing...

[Susan]

Every time I read that word "peptonoid" I keep thinking Altoids, the curiously strong mint. Maybe it was in a predigested food base for easier and quicker absorption of whatever medication may have been added to it? Or, like certain medications today tell you to take it with food, perhaps too strong for the stomach alone?

[Tina-Kate]

I've just finished re-reading Lincoln & found something curious. Lincoln states -- "...when Grandfather brought in Miss Helen Leighton from Boston to be our librarian and she became Lizzie's friend and ours." She goes on to talk about Helen Leighton coming for tea, her mother's reactions to Helen's Lizzie conversation, etc etc. Victoria Lincoln's mother would say, "Poor thing, poor thing, living alone in that big ugly house...what a hell. Thank God that she has someone to believe what she wishes that she could believe." (This would have had to have been before Lizzie died, as VL has her mother speaking of Lizzie still present, hence before 1927). HOWEVER, in Rebello, he wrote quite a lengthy, well-researched bio of Helen Leighton. She was a trained nurse (NOT a librarian), President of the FR Animal Rescue League, a dietician, and a companion for elderly ladies. She was also not from Boston, but apparently a Fall River native (altho Rebello has her living in Boston between 1919-1924 in her dietician incarnation). I'm not sure how old Victoria Lincoln was when she wrote her book (1967). I wonder if she has Helen Leighton confused with someone else. Can anyone shed any further light?

[Tina-Kate]

Quick correction -- Helen Leighton was born in Maine. Interestingly, Rebello has her appearing in Fall River in 1892, graduating from the Fall River Hospital Nursing School in May 1893. (She was there smack dab in the midst of the hooplah). I still find it hard to connect her to a time when she would have coincided with VL & mother. And, I am sure if she was a librarian in FR, Rebello would have found that.

[augusta]

Tina-Kate, If you go to the picture of Lizzie on the intro to this site, and click on "Crime Lab, Galleries and Resources", then click on "Resources", you'll see a "search" box. Type in Helen Leighton and it'll show you what has been said and researched about her.

Also, I know there is an old LBQ that featured a story about Helen Leighton - what she really was. The old LBQ's are on the "Resources" page. You can choose to search them by author or date. Each article is described, and it gives you the issue it's in. Hopefully you have back issues.

[Tina-Kate]

Thanks, Sherry. I'll give the Resources a shot. Unfortunately, I never had any LBQs.

[Tina-Kate]

That did the trick. In July 2002 Kat asked the very same question. William confirmed Helen Leighton was never a librarian (no records of this with Fall River library), but was in fact, a nurse. Edisto pointed out a Lincoln Bio on page 367-368 in Rebello (it's not in his Index, blast that Index!). She was born in Oct 1904, so she would have been 62 when she wrote her book Acknowlegements (June, 1967). She resided at 116 French Street (2 blocks from Maplecroft) 1916-1919. This would match up with Helen Leighton, but Rebello has her as a companion to a lady on Rock Street during that time. Methinks VL's memory was failing her when she wrote her book.

[Kat]

Here is a "Simple Index" to Len Rebello's book compiled by me and Terence Duniho, based on the constant need to search for mainly Biographical Info.
I suggest book owners print it out and keep in the back of the tome. At least that's what I do.

Adams, John S. 453
Adams, Melvin Ohio 197
Allen, Charles M. (built Maplecroft) 287
Almy, Franklin (Emma's admin/bondsman) 277-278
Almy, William M. 53
Anderson, Mrs. Matilda Wilhemina Johnson (Anderson) (listed as Domestic)
328
Anthony, David M., Jr. 139

Baker, Charles A. (witness L's will) 340
Baker, Gertrude Mary (legatee of "L", or of her legatee) 335
Bence, Eli 80
Blackwood, Algernon 203
Blaisdell, Judge Josiah Coleman 152
Blenn, Emma MacVicar (legatee of "L", or) 330-331
Blodgett, Caleb 193
Borden, Abby Durfee Gray 22
Borden, Abraham Bowen 3, 6, 23, 25-27
Borden, Andrew Jackson 3 (correct birth date), 6, 23, 25
Borden, Anna Howland 20
Borden, Bebe Wilmarth 4
Borden, Carrie Lindley 21
Borden, Charles Lott (includes Amanda, Hannah, Eliza Ann, William S., Phebe
Hathaway) 373-377
Borden, Charlton W. (A.J.B. scholarship recipient) 346
Borden, Emma Lenora (Impressions of: 228-237) 7, 138, 228, 231, 310, 341
Borden, James 357
Borden, Lizzie A. (Impressions of: 228-237) 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15,
17, 19, 20, 228, 231, 236, 318
Borden, Peace (Borden) Bassett (includes 4 Bordens: Stephen, Mary Catherine
(Hart), Charles
Harold, Joseph H., Susannah B. Crossman, Sylvester L.& William L. Bassett)
377-379
Borden, Sarah Anthony Morse 6
Borden, William S. 130, 373
Bowen, Joseph A. (bondsman Emma / Admin.) 277-278
Bowen, Dr. Seabury Warren 69, 136
Boucher, Mary (listed as Domestic) 289
Braley, William E. (newspaper sketch artist) 207
Brayton, Elizabeth Hitchcock 21
Brown, Arnold R. (no bio., listed as Books) 372
Brownell, Helen M. 83
Buck, Rev. Edwin Augustus 15
Buffinton, George H. 359n
Bump, George Leonard 297

Callow, Gertrude M. (Russell) (listed as Domestic) 289
Carlisle, Elsie F. 337
Carpenter, Joseph W., Jr. 56, 132, 133
Churchill, Adelaide (Buffinton) 98
Collins, James (?) (witness / Emma's will) 347, 349
Cook, Charles C. 329
Correiro, Jose 188
Coughlin, Mayor John William 10 different pages in Rebello's index, but
no bio info
Cleveland, Rev. Edmond J. ("L" funeral svc.) 320
Coggshall, Fredrick (listed as Domestic) (pallbearer) 319
Cunningham, Allan 324

Demarest, Mary Augusta (Lee) 323
deMille, Agnes 369, 466
Dewey, Judge Justin 194
Doherty, Patrick H. 7 different pages in Rebello's index, but no bio info
Dolan, Dr. William Andrew 99

Eagan, Ellen 128, 129
Eldredge, Obed (Jane Gray's first husband / includes Henry H., Lucy J.
(Eldredge) Cahoon) 23
Emery, William (listed under Collections as 384) 386

Fall River 393
Fessenden, Susan Breese (Snowden) 169, 259
Fielding, Thomas (A.J.B. scholarship rec.) 346
Fish, Priscilla & George 23
Fleet, John 149
Freeman, Mary Eleanor (Wilkins) 441
French, Winifred F. 336

Gardner, Orrin A. (he or Julia A. Reed to name scholarship recipient) 342,
343, 346
Grant, Louis F. (newspaper sketch artist) 207

Hall, Barbara (A.J.B. scholarship rec.) 346
Hall, Norman (listed as Domestic) (pallbearer) 319
Hammond, John Wilkes 183
Handy, Dr. Benjamin Jones 65
Harrington, Hiram C. & Lurana (H.H. 438) (correct birth date- H.H. 3) 3,
4, 229
Harrington, Capt. Phillip 56, 151
Hawthorne, Henry J., Jr. (includes Arnold Brown, Lewis Peterson, Henry J.
Hawthorne, Bridget
(Gillespie) Hawthorne, Lawrence, Margaret, Elizabeth, Henry Jr. (above),
Mabel, Mary L.,
Catherine) 379-80
Hilliard, Marshal Rufus Bartlett 148
Howe, Col. Louis McHenry & Grace Hartley 333
Hunt, Josiah A. (jailkeeper / New Bedford) 67

Jennings, Andrew Jackson 196
Johnston, James 55
Jordan, Elizabeth Garver 204
Jubb, Rev. William Walker 167
Jurors 200-201


Kelly, Dr. Michael & Mrs. Caroline (includes Mrs. Philomena (Kelly) Hart,
Edmund
Pearson, Mary Doolan) 390
Kent, David 381
Knowlton, Hosea Morill 194

Lanza, Lee Cleverley (legatee of "L", or) 331
Leighton, Helen (legatee of "L", or) (includes Jefferson Borden, Eudora
[Borden] Dean) 330-331
Lincoln, Victoria Endicott (listed under Books) 367
Livermore, Mary Ashton (Rice) 169, 186, 259
Lubinsky, Hyman 88
Lunday, Todd (listed under Books) 363

MacFarland, Miss Catherine Mary (listed as Domestic) 334
Macomber, Lucy S. 337
Macrae, Dr. Annie Campbell 337
Manchester, Bertha 188
Maplecroft 282, 290
Mason, Judge Albert 193
McHenry, Edwin G. 164
Medley, William H. 150
Miller, Miss Ellen (Nellie) (listed as Domestic) 338
Miller, Southard Harrison 24
Minard, Martha (legatee of "L", or) 331
Minnehan, John 150
Mix, Rev. Dr. Eldridge 281
Moody, William Henry 195
Morse, John Vinnicum 70-71, 121
Morse, Sarah Anthony (Borden) 6
Munroe, John D. (owner / printer) 359n.

Nelson, Hannah B. (listed as Domestic) 288
Noonan, Katherine & Alice (witness Emma will, codicil) 347, 349
Nottingham, Ellen (witness "L" will) 340

O'Neil, Nance 308
Orters, Mary (Leighton) 336

Pearson, Edmund Lester (listed under Books) 363, 364, 402
Pemberton, Florence A. (listed as Domestic) 328
Phillips, Arthur Sherman 199
Pillsbury, Albert E. 16 different pages in Rebello's index, but no bio
info
Pinkham, Nellie (legatee of "L", or) 331
Plympton, Albert 447
Porter, Edwin H. (listed under Books) 206, 359, 360-361

Radin, Edward D. (listed under Books) 365, 366
Ralph, Julian 206
Rappaport, Doreen 381
Reagan, Hannah 158
Reed, Julia A. (either she or Orrin A. Gardner to name scholarship
recipient) 346
Reynolds, Mary A. 289
Robinson, Edson (cousin) 319
Robinson, George Dexter (cousin) 198
Rotenberg, Judge Ernest 349
Russell, Alice Manley 63
Russell, Mary U. (Thomas) 159

Sawyer, Charles S. 1 page referenced in Rebello's index, but no bio info
Shove, Ellen "Nellie" M. 21
Smith, Helen (listed as Domestic) 289
Soderman, Alice Isabella 336
Spiering, Frank 372
Stevens, S. (bondsman / Emma admin.) 277-278
Stone, Lucy 259
Sullivan, Bridget 65, 67, 273
Sullivan, Daniel 137

Terry, Carl A. (witness "L" will) 340
Terry, Ernest Alden 326
Tetrault (Tatro), Joseph H. (listed as Domestic) 288
Trickey, Henry G. 165
Turner, Vida Louise (Pearson) 321

Watters, Barbara (Hunt) 171
Washburn, Rev. Samuel 6
Whipp, Adelaide B. 338
Wood, Theodore D. W. 54

Buildings:
A. J. Borden Bldg. 56
Borden & Almy Furniture Business 53
Central Congregational Church 6
Central Police Station 143
French Street 287
Mission Bldg. 11
Second Street 32, 38, 45-49
Swansea Farm 50

Compilation of Names 511-542

[Haulover]

having just put victoria to bed, in a sense, i'm more curious now about simple biographical info. library?

she seems remembered only for her lizzie book, though i've noticed several titles.

[theebmonique]

Thanks for the list Kat !


Tracy...

[Tina-Kate]

From Rebello, pgs 367-368 --


Victoria "Vicky" Endicott Lincoln was born in Fall River, Massachusetts, October 23, 1904. She was the only child of Jonathan Thayer Lincoln and Louise Sears (Cobb). Her father was a manufacturer, writer and lecturer on economics and the textile industry. He was the author of two books, City of the Dinner Pail (1909) and The Factory (1912). The Lincoln family resided at 182 June Street (1904-1910), 715 High Street (1912-1914), 527 Maple Street (1915), 116 French Street (1916-1919), two blocks from Maplecroft, and at 68 Bigelow Street (1920-1927). The family left Fall River in 1927 and moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Miss Lincoln was educated in the Fall River Public Schools and graduated from B.M.C. Durfee High School in 1922. While at Durfee, she edited the Durfee record book and wrote the class ode. She went on to study at Radcliffe College and graduated with honors in 1926. In 1927, Victoria completed her studies for a Master of Arts degree at Radcliffe and University of Marburgh, Germany.
Victoria Lincoln's first marriage was to Harvard classmate, Isaac Watkins on January 27, 1927, at the Church of the Ascension in Fall River. The marriage ended in 1933. Victoria had one child, Penelope Thayer. A year later, she married Victor Augustus Lowe. He was then a young doctoral student and later became a professor of philosophy at John Hopkins University. Victoria had two more children, Thomas Cobb and Louise Lincoln.
The Swan Island Murders (1930) was Lincoln's first novel. Four years later she wrote what was to become a highly controversial novel, February Hill. She told the story of the unconventional Harris family from a small New England town (Fall River). In 1935, Mrs Vera A. (Wright) Burdette, her mother, Mrs Minna Wright and other family members filed a libel suit against Victoria Lincoln, the publishers, the printers, RKO Pictures and a local New York book dealer. The suit claimed the book depicted her family and used their Christian names: (Minna, Joel, Dorothy and Jenny). Attorney James Seligman, the Wrights' legal counsel, said, "Mrs Victoria Lincoln Lowe had played with Mrs Burdette when they were both growing up in Fall River. Mrs Lowe's mother took a motherly interest in the Wright girl." While the case was in litigation, February Hill became the basis for a Broadway play, The Primrose Path, in 1939. It was brought to the motion picture screen in 1940 with a new family and the location changed to California. The film starred Joel McRea and Ginger Rogers. Lincoln was quite displeased with the film. The libel suit that began in 1935 was finally dismissed in the courts on June 17, 1944, by Judge George C. Sweeney.
Mrs Lincoln went on to travel, teach writing, and write thirteen novels dealing mainly with adolescent girls. She was a contributor to several leading magazines. Her most famous work was A Private Disgrace: Lizzie Borden by Daylight (1967). It was the first time the Borden story was written by a Fall River native and told from a woman's point of view. A Private Disgrace recieved the Edgar Allan Poe Award and was honored by The Mystery Writers of America. Lincoln proposed the theory that Lizzie murdered Abby Borden during an epileptic seizure. Being unable to handle losing her father's love, she murdered him.
Victoria Lincoln died in Baltimore, Maryland, on June 13, 1981, at the age of 76. She was survived by her husband, Victor Lowe, three children and eight grandchildren. Memorial services were held at the Second Presbyterian Church in North Baltimore. Her body was donated to the Anatomy Board of Maryland.

[Susan]

Thanks for all the info, Tina-Kate!!! Great sleuthing! I've had trouble searching out any info on Vicky myself. Okay, her father's name is Jonathan, what is that listed on the census for 1920 where his name looks like "Baba"?

[Tina-Kate]

Yr welcome, Susan -- tho Mr Rebello is the "real" sleuth. He would have been of great help to VL; he could have proved a lot of what she wrote was in fact F/R hearsay, not insider info as she thought. They would have made an awsome team! Thanks too, Kat, for the list.

[Nancie]

Thanks TK for the bio of VL, very interesting