Lizzie Borden Society Forum

August is fast upon us although lately the weather here has felt more like March! The Pear Essential Players are getting ready for the big day, which this year falls on a Tuesday. We have a cast of thirteen again this year, with a few new faces. Since nearly all are also Mutton Eaters and thus forum members, I thought I would share the cast with our friends here and ask for some input on costuming:

Lizzie: Lorraine (Nadieja) , Bridget Sullivan: Kristin(Kfactor) ,
Emma Borden: Barbara
Mrs. Churchill: JoAnn

Andrew and Abby Borden (deceased): Jeff and Shelley
Uncle John : newcomer and forum member Joe of Ohio,

Officer Medley: Ben (house tour guide and forum member)

Alice Russell: Susan (works daytime house gift shop)
Dr. Dolan: Ted (Nadieja's hubby)
Mr. Winward: the irrepressible and
dashing Andrew (a.k.a. Undertaker Winward on the forum)
Little Mary Doolan: Miss Woods
Mrs Bowen- Ellen Borden

Uncle John has found a nice gray sack suit and black string tie and we think from the newspaper cartoons that John must still have that mustacheless beard- maybe it is grayish by 1892? Andrew will be under the sheet, we have cotton calicoes for Abby, Lizzie and Bridget as well as most of the other ladies and a skirt and blouse for Lizzie who is bravely dyeing her hair the light brown! Now that is dedication. We are hunting for a doctor's bag for Dr. Dolan and I believe I may have found the perfect policeman's hat and uniform with billy club and whistle for Mr. Medley. What would you hope to see as part of the character costumes and set dressing?

Okay, here is a project I can use help with. Dr and Mrs. Kelly married and moved into their house next to Lizzie's in 1891. On the day of the murders, Mrs. Cantwell, Mrs. Kelly's mother, was staying with the family. She and Mary Doolan were nervous and locked their doors and peeped out the windows. The Kellys had a child in 1892- Philomena I think her name was. Was Mrs. Kelly pregnant on the day of the murder, or had the baby just been born and her mother was helping out? I would doubt any heavily pregnant woman would be walking down the street to the dentist if she were near her confinement. Ladies stayed at home when they began to "show" in a big way. Anybody know? It is fun to imagine Lizzie with a newborn next door.

I'm quite sure there was a baby...someone will have to back me up with documentation.

Sounds likely TK- Caroline and Michael wasted no time starting a family! I rather thought she might have a little one. I picture Emma adn Lizzie peering into the babby perambulator and cooing. I saw an article in the paper that Mrs. Kelly, Mary and her mother were anxious and spent the day behind locked doors peering out the window. I have Mary Doolan making a reference in the re-enactment so I wanted to make sure.

I noticed the other day that Dr. Dolan lost his baby boy Francis Dolan at age 2 months- always sad to see the tiny grave of an infant. His other son William was a WWI vet and has a nice plaque at the base of the family stone in Saint Patrick's. I am not sure how many other children the Kellys had.

Tell me , Shelley, will there be extras walking around outside entertaining the waiting guests? Last year, there was a lady reporter milling about. I think that provided some fun and diversion for those waiting.

Our old pal Edisto thought that Mrs. Dr. Kelly was pregnant in one of her witness stand appearances, so that would mean the babe had not yet arrived by murder day. Edisto had followed up on the baby angle, but this was on an earlier incarnation of our discussion forum.

Well I need an answer pretty soon on this pressing baby question. My ancestry.com just expired. I know Mrs. Cantwell was at the house- either the baby was due soon and she came to help with the baby, or Mrs. Cantwell actually lived with her daughter. Anyone got the street directory?I thought maybe she was there to help with the new baby. Lizzie Brain Trust- do your stuff!

Found this in Pearson's Trial of Lizzie Borden, page 145:

"Bridget Sullivan's testimony was interrupted to allow the court to hear another witness---Mrs Caroline Kelly, next-door neighbor of the Bordens. Mrs Kelly, mother of a young child, was unable to be absent from her home in Fall River more than a few hours, and Bridget Sullivan (whose testimony has been given here, for convenience sake, as continuous) briefly left the stand while Mrs Kelly testified."

According to the Knowlton papers (Glossary A) the Kelly's were married in 1891.

It's possible that they already had one child and another on the way. The Glossary also has this:

"... Late in her life, she relocated to the home of her daughter in Passaic, New Jersey, where she spent the remainder of her days ..." There was no mention of another child.

There was a son Christopher. Mention of him is on the Kelly stone in St. Patrick's. YAY Harry! The Brain Trust comes through! I did not think she would have gone out to the dentist had she been far along-and having her mother there made sense that the baby was born. Caroline was born in 1861 and died in 1951!! She was 30 when she married Dr. Kelly- old for the days-and having her first baby at 31 was a bit late as well. She made old bones. She died the year I was born-I wish I could have interviewed her. Caroline was just about exactly Lizzie's age- I try to picture Lizzie chatting with her and cooing over the newborn. Interesting vision.

The excerpt that Harry provided does not seem to specify when the Kelly baby was born. If Pearson is alluding to the Trial, that was 10 months later- 1893.

There would not be a Directory reference to the child, but there might be an age in a 1900 census. Finding a Caroline Kelly may be quite a search tho. Maybe find her by her mother's name?

Well we know the Kellys were married in 1891. Figure nine months later at the earliest date the baby could have been born.Somewhere in the back of my ageing brain I have seen a date for Philomena and it was 1892. No month given however. The fact that her Mother was living there at the time hints that there is a good possibility the baby was very young if not newborn. If I could dig out the Kelly wedding date, we would be further ahead. Mostly I wanted to establish that there was a little one next door as one line of the re-enactment refers to it.

I seem to recall a newspaper article where a baby is mentioned. Sourcebook? Rebello? Maybe something to do with Bridget's friend? I will have a look at home.

There was a sick baby in the Churchill house.

Eureka, I have found it. (I know that's a redundant statement.)

The Kelly's were married June 17, 1891 per the Boston Globe.

YAY Harry- you are da bomb! My anniversary is June 18th so now I will remember. YAY for the babies! The Kelly tyke could have been born as early as Feb-Mar. 1892. Yes, who was it at Addie's who was pushing the baby up and down in the baby carriage inside. Was it Mrs. Cheetham's baby? Hmm- still though, I have to find where I saw mention of Philomena's 1892 birthdate.

Well SHOOT! I got the Kelly family at 255 Third Street in 1900 and the baby Christopher is given the birthday of December 1892! Mary Philomena is born in March 1894 and Eva not until 1897. SO Caroline was pregnant at the time of the murders! Okay, so we "stuff her" with a pillow.


I did not realize both Caroline and Michael had been born in Ireland. I wonder how soon they fled from Second Street!! They have a 17 year old servant named Mary Austen from England to help with the housework and children-guess Mary Doolan left them.

Yay, great find. One less Borden mystery to solve.

Here's the announcement of their marriage:

St. Mary's- ooooh! I will trot right over and look up the wedding info. Hope their records are not archived elsewhere. Come to think of it- I have seen a photo of Father Hughes. This must be the same St. Mary's across the street from the Borden house. Another coincidence- my Mom's maiden name was Hughes.

Great find, Shelley! Thanks for keeping at it!

YAY Harry!

Sorry- I made an error up there- Mrs. Kelly was not born in Ireland- she was born in Peoria, Illinois. Her parents were born in Ireland.

Today begins our one-week countdown to the August 4th preparations. Our annual cast has a few new additions this year which is always fun. Every year there's something fresh and new. Most of our cast is made up of LB forum members. Most are also Mutton Eaters (Second Street Irregulars) as well as Pear Essential Players. They now have a link on the B&B website. It's interesting having a performance group meet only once a year for one day only- and challenging.
Next Monday we begin getting the house ready and rehearsing our parts. The gang will take over the Jennings Room which will serve as wardrobe and make-up during the day-and some of us will crash there overnight. The tent goes up on Sunday. The P.E.P. website will once again be busy and now daily posts are going up about our cast members- all names you will know! http://pearessentialproductions.wordpress.com/
Hoping some forum friends who can will turn out to cheer us along!

Oh how I would love to be there this August 4th. I am sure all of you are going to be just fantastic. I wish I had known about all of you way back when I lived in Fall River.....I would of joined all the fun in a heartbeat. Thanks Shelley for keeping us posted on the Peartree site.

Well Steve- I have a part and a costume just waiting for you- just say the word!! We need you!
I will be posting like a fiend this week on Pear Essential Players site as we go rushing into the big day. I will be at the house this weekend and then Monday and Monday night with the early arrivals-the rehearsals, set dressing and prep work are tiring, but always fun fun fun. And we go out to dine alot! Uncle John, Addie Churchill, Bridget, Emma and I will be pretty busy on Monday. And one day soon, I hope to have enough actors to do this thing in REAL time.
http://pearessentialproductions.wordpress.com/

I will be leaving to go up to Fall River tomorrow to get ready for the 4th. So much to do to get ready. Our new Uncle John is arriving from Ohio -can't wait to see his real hair beard and gray sack suit! LeeAnn has a vintage marseille work bedspread we plan to "bloody" for the Morse room. The cellar will get some set dressing and I am swiping all my hatchets and axes from the garage. They look sort of funny all riding quietly in my back seat on the way up.
The cast board will go up with photos of the gang (you can see this at the link below). There's a few last minute costume bits to get together. Officer Medley is going to borrow a night stick and badge from our Dee's husband. Dee is our general office (barn) manager. I have a whistle for Ben (Medley) from England, a FR policeman's patch and old-fashioned copper hat. The tent goes up on Sunday, and some more of the cast arrives Monday to make lemonade and rehearse. A lot of us are hole-ing up in the Jennings room on the third floor and it is hard to get to sleep with all the giggling. And the snacking and dining out.
Kristen is practicing her Irish accent and she will have quite a scene played with a young Mary Doolan from the Kelly house. Am charging up the batteries to get lots of prep shots as we set it all up- and of course on Tuesday- the big day, our actors are not camera-shy!. I am looking forward to spending Tuesday quietly lying on the guestroom floor again, listening to all the others do their stuff.

We always end the day with a trip to Oak Grove to leave flowers for Abby and Andrew. How I wish I could spirit everyone here on the Forum to Fall River this weekend. Boy- could we ever do a realtime re-creation then!! The weather forecast for the 4th is for sun and about 86 degree weather.

My costume is ready,suitcase waiting to be packed, lines rehearsed and just itching to kick up my heels.......Yahoooo! See you Monday Shelley!

Uncle John (aka Joe Radza from the forum) arrived for a visit at #92 yesterday, caught the car from Weybossett and is coming up Second St. Hmmm- it must be August!

Out by the bahn the pears are ripe- Max finds John a bit scary!

Looks like the pears are ripe and the price is right.

They always said he looked peculiar in that old gray suit and string tie!

Wish I could be there, though I'm not exactly in style for the occasion at present. (The beard and most of the hair are gone for the summer (at least).) Have fun, everybody. See you some other time.

Joe looks awesome as Uncle John. I love the real hair beard and gray suit and straw hat and string tie. . You guys really bring this story to life. IT'S AMAZING! Wish I could be there. Make sure you have a chow mein sandwich for me Shelley.

You got it Steve! Yes, Joe has really enjoyed getting his costume from River Junction. We had a good time getting the beard in place for his big photoshoot. I think he looks even better in black and white. There will be zillions of pix of Tuesday.
http://www.slide.com/r/DCw0Rl2m2D8tuwOmpppqe8nynQhqP0E0

Joe looks fantastic as Uncle John, we can't wait to meet him. I love the way you did that slide show, also the one on the cast.
I also like the small pics in the corner they are quite interesting.

*****WoW! A Star Is Born, Joe!! *****

Since everyones doing re-enactments....I wonder how many of us are eating swordfish tonight?

i hope everyone involved has a great time over the next few days! i'm jealous that i can't be over there to experience the re-enactment and to discuss the case with you all.
Wonder if anything will be uncovered during the re enactment

ps - Uncle John is looking mighty dapper

Well, it's August 5th and we made it through another one- the day was hot, 90 degrees and sunny, and in the evening, a big harvest moon. We did 7 performances, having to add an extra one. Tickets had sold out by noon.
Sadly, Mr. Winward had a death in the family and could not attend (Andrew Correia)-and we missed him. Joe did a great job as Uncle John and Nadieja (Lorraine) was a smash as our new Lizzie B. We had wonderful press coverage and Channel 10 came from Providence. I will scan the press cuttings. http://www.heraldnews.com/news

After we finished at 4, it was a pizza party and cake, followed by a trip to Oak Grove to sing at the gravesite and leave flowers. On the way passing down French St. we saw the owner of Maplecroft raking the yard and asked if he minded if we took a photo of our cast in front of the house. He was so delighted to see us in our costumes that he invited us inside for a tour of Maplecroft, and a rest on Lizzie's back porch and yard. It was a great way to end the day, and of course, very exciting for those who had never seen Maplecroft. Do we have photos? Oh, my- stand by! We started shooting Monday of preparing #92, to costumes, hair, rehearsals, graveyard, and of course, Maplecroft. Big thanks to the superb cast (most from the forum here), Mutton Eaters and P.E.P. players for a job well done! I think we did you proud ! Exhausted?- and how!

I had a wonderful time playing Bridget!! I looked forward to August 4th for so long, and it was over in a flash... (my feet were glad for that, however).


I enjoyed working with everyone involved - old friends and new. Extra big thanks to Shelley who wrote the script, provided much of the wardrobe and props, coached the players, and made us all feel excited and confident.

I might add that playing Bridget helped me to realize what a horrendous day August 4th 1892 was for her. I'll never take that for granted.

And you were a superb Bridget! I have just gotten home again from FR and am working on the photos. I have 155 and others have many also so I will probably try to makes some slide shows with all of this material and put up a few here.

Ben Rose as Medley and Joe Radza as Uncle John were also new in their roles with Kristin this year.

I have just finished going through my photos, and it was hard to pick a favorite of each cast member but here's trying- we missed our Andrew, Undertaker Winward!
Lorraine Gregoire as Lizzie
Ellen Borden as Phoebe Bowen (with Lizzie's toast)

Ted Gregoire as Dr. Dolan
Ben Rose as officer Medley
JoAnne Giovino as Addie Churchill
Kristin Pepe as Bridget Sullivan
Joe Radza as Uncle John Morse
Barbara Morrissey as Emma Borden
Jeff Masson (with little gold ring) as Andrew

Kathryn Woods as Mary Doolan the Kelly's Girl

Sue Hauck as ALice Russell
and Shelley as Abby taken at 9:30 in the Morse Room

Slideshows #1 and 2 are now viewable at http://pearessentialproductions.wordpress.com/

Shelley, TERRIFIC slide shows! Bravo!

Congratulations to all who participated. The costumes were perfect.

I especially liked the slide show "The Slide Times" featuring Lorraine as Lizzie. She made a good Lizzie.

Kristin (kfactor) did a fine Bridget as well.

Again, congrats to all. You made it fun for the rest of us who couldn't be there.

You all look adorable! Wish I could have been there.

I'm sorry......but I am just in shock. To find out this way that Lizzie was having an affair with Dr. Dolan. I wouldn't of believed if it I hadn't seen the pictures. And right there on her fainting couch. Well I never.

Yes- now we have the truth, the final chapter-the mystery unveiled. It was Dolan in cahoots with Lizzie all along. Now- who can we get to write the book now that Arnie Brown has departed this side of the veil?

Andrew's monument with JoAnne in front of it is so timeless. I feel like I am back there. These are just wonderful. I am always eager for more. I never get enough ! (of the story that is ! hee hee)

Yes, I too love this photo. The sun was just right as it was setting- this is before our trip to Maplecroft. I had to ask her to walk back and freeze in that position. I have quite a collection of "Somewhere in Time" Fall River photos.

All the pics look great! Except for mine. The ones with Bob Shaw and the one with the ring are the worst shots of me that I have ever seen.
Thats why I try to avoid pctures when I can. Not to crazy about my face.
Other than that everyone looks great. My co worker and grand parents saw me under the sheet in the paper and saw all of us on the news.
Are we all ready to make the new Lizzie movie? LOL

Jeff- have you got any others? These are the only ones I have of you individually - I have the one of all of us at Maplecroft. You have on the Hawaiian shirt! And actually-I think you look great by the way! I am still trying to find the angles where I look thinner and younger- am still looking . . . .-in vain.

Jeff, Shelley and all the rest........you all look great and I wouldn't change any of you for anything in the world.

Shelley, on the disk I sent is a picture of Jeff that is fantastic. I sent it to Jeff but there are gremlins in the emails between us. It's the one of him leaning on the headstone.
Stop it Jeff--we are all our own worse critic. I wouldn't change you for anything, you're one of the nicest guy's I've met; of coure that could go for all the gentlemen Muttoneaters.

And yes, it's out now---Dr. Dolan & I have been "kanoodling" for close to 37 years. Boy!! we keep secrets well!

Yes, and now we all know the REAL reason Lizzie was giggling at the top of the stairs Thursday morning. Does Mrs. Dolan know?

Barbara and Lorraine's photo disks arrived today with some really great photos! I will make a slide show later. Here are 3 of my favorites from Nadzieja.

Ellen Borden at Maplecroft

Group shot at Maplecroft

Max in the Moonlight

Neat-o ! Maplecroft assembly, and a spooky cat. Nothing beats going the xtra mile.