The Pierce Family: Spring Break

Some of Noah's favorite books are the Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales books so when I saw that Nathan Hale's schoolhouse was close to our hotel, we decided to start our day off there. Noah was thrilled!

Our next stop was supposed to be Plymouth but as we were on our way there, Savannah was reading an article about the most haunted sites in the United States. One of those places was the Lizzie Borden house and it just happened to be in Fall River, Massachusetts! I had told David that I was going to try to be more spontaneous on this trip and what's more spontaneous (for me) then taking a slight detour to check out this scary house? As we got off the exit at Fall River, we noticed Battleship Cove so we decided to stop there first.

It was super cool to check out all the WWII naval vessels housed there and to see the main one, the USS Massachusetts. We decide to forego paying to get up close and personal with the ship and finished up our visit in the gift shop. It was so cold and rainy outside that we just needed a few minutes to warm up.

Off to Lizzie Borden's house!

A few little goodies in the gift shop, ha ha!

When I was a teenager I had seen the movie about Lizzie Borden starring the Bewitched actress, Elizabeth Montgomery, as the axe-wielding murderess. I didn't remember much about it other than that catchy little poem: "Lizzie Borden took an axe, And gave her mother forty whacks. When she saw what she had done, She gave her father forty-one." David opted to sit in the car but the rest of us were ready to solve the case! Time to start the tour!

Our tour guide was awesome, giving us both the historical facts as well as throwing in a bit of the paranormal.

While we were in this room, hearing a bunch of facts, this door, which had been firmly shut, opened. Oh yes, we were definitely a bit creeped out!

Lizzie gave lots of contradictory evidence and one of her stories was that she was doing some ironing here in this very room the morning of the murders. In the cabinet behind Savannah and Noah were some creepy pictures and skulls. Eek!

Apparently every person who knows their paranormal stuff who has seen this ouija board says it is completely evil so I guess they've decided this corner is a good place to keep it. Call me crazy but I probably would have tossed it a long time ago.

Some pictures of good 'ole Lizzie, still sitting on the mantel in the room where her father was murdered.

Her father, Andrew, was found dead on this couch, struck 10 or 11 times with a hatchet type of weapon. His wounds were still bleeding when he was "found" by Lizzie. While we were standing there, our tour guide did some lightning rod thing to see if there was a spirit in the room which of course there was. She told us that Abby and Andrew both liked to hang out in the house, especially this room, but that Lizzie is never at the house.

Into the hallway...

and up the stairs.

This is the view into the room where Abby was murdered and anyone walking up the stairs would have seen her dead body lying on the floor. There was absolutely no way Lizzie couldn't have seen the body though she claims she didn't.

The crime scene photo of Abby. Abby was facing her attacker but turned and fell after she was hit. When she fell, her dress rode up a little too high so the policemen actually pulled her dress down before taking the picture. Her underclothing was still bunched up underneath thus making her look like she's kneeling.

Can't imagine waking up to that doll staring at me.

This was Lizzie's father's room. Although neither murder happened here, this is the room where I absolutely, without a doubt, felt a presence. A not so great presence. It was not a good feeling and it definitely gave me the heeby-jeebies.

Apparently people leave him change because Andrew was a bit of a tight wad.

Attics are always a bit creepy but this one wasn't so bad. People have said they have heard children laughing and playing up there but we didn't have any weird experiences.

This was the door over the attic stairs. I think that got to me more than the attic itself.

The tour was great and we learned a ton. After hearing the facts, all of us are convinced that Lizzie did it!

Next up - Plymouth!!

I absolutely LOVED Plymouth and would have loved to spend more time exploring this cute little town. Unfortunately it was FREEZING!!! The wind was blowing like crazy and it was that biting cold that goes right to your bones kind of wind. We hurried from place to place, stopping just long enough to read a few things and grab a few pictures. We'll definitely have to go back when it's a little warmer.

Every comment I read about visiting Plymouth mentioned how underwhelming seeing Plymouth Rock was. Okay, yes, it's not this huge amazing rock but I have to say that it was one of my favorite things to see, maybe just because of the history it represents. Call me crazy but I felt it was totally worth it to stop here and witness where a huge part of our country's history began.

A stop at one of the gift shops to warm up. I definitely should have bought this little gem!

The Howland House was built in 1667 by Jacob Mitchell, the son of Pilgrim Experience Mitchell. It was then purchased by Jabez Howland, son of Mayflower passengers John and Elizabeth Howland, two of the original Pilgrims. So, one of the oldest houses in the United States!

After lunch we made a quick pit stop at the National Monument to the Forefathers. While David and Noah stayed in the warm car, Savannah and I braved the elements to grab a few pictures of this monument commemorating the Mayflower Pilgrims.

Next stop - Quincy, Massachusetts to see the birthplaces of John Adams and his son, John Quincy Adams. This early in the year the homes are not open for tours but at least we got to see them.