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Bridget Sullivan

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Personal Assistant

The Resume

    (circa 1869-March 25, 1948)
    Born in County Cork, Ireland
    Maid for Andrew Borden
    Was washing windows when Andrew and his wife Abby were murdered
    Witness at the trial of Lizzie Borden

Why she might be annoying:

    She tends to be the ‘Lizzie was innocent’ school’s favorite choice for the real killer (if only because she was the only other person known to be on the scene when the murders took place).
    The police let her carry a ‘bundle’ out of the Borden house without searching it, giving her an opportunity to dispose of evidence (whether she was the real killer or had been convinced by Lizzie to serve as an accomplice after the murders).
    When someone went to get a sheet to cover Andrew Borden’s body, she said, ‘We’ll need two,’ suggesting that she knew about Abby’s death before the body had officially been found.
    She disappeared for several years after the trial.
    According to rumor, she returned to Ireland, with the trip being funded by Lizzie.
    Relatives said she was stern with ‘no sense of humor.’
    Her year of birth is listed as 1869 on her tombstone, but was reported as 1871 on her marriage license, while at Lizzie’s 1893 trial she testified to being 25 years old, suggesting a birth year of 1868.

Why she might not be annoying:

    The Bordens all called her Maggie, the name of their previous maid.
    The motive usually suggested for her murdering the Bordens – resentment at having to clean the windows on a hot day after having been ill that morning – seems adequate for giving notice but not for repeatedly taking an axe to two people.
    Recognizing this, some authors have suggested (albeit without any evidence) that she and Lizzie had been conducting a lesbian affair and she (or maybe Lizzie) killed Andrew and Abby when they found out.
    She declined to say anything incriminating about Lizzie during her trial.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 3 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 4 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 10 Votes: 70.0% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 5 Votes: 80.0% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 14 Votes: 57.14% Annoying