Owner whacks Lizzie Borden museum

SALEM, Mass., Jan. 10 (UPI) -- The owner of a Salem, Mass., museum dedicated to Lizzie Borden said he decided to shut the attraction down due to rent and utility costs.

Leonard Pickel said he decided to shutter the 40 Whacks Museum at the end of December after determining the attraction would not make enough money during the slow winter months to cover the high costs of the facility, The Salem News reported Monday.

"We're disappointed," Pickel said. "We were trying to be different and bring people to Salem."

The museum was originally called The True Story of Lizzie Borden but the name was changed after the Lizzie Borden Bed & Breakfast in Fall River, which occupies the house where the infamous murders took place, filed suit.

Lizzie Borden was charged with the murders of her father and stepmother in 1892 but was acquitted when the case went to trial.

"There was a lot information presented. It was a crash course in what happened," Pickel said. "We tried to get an in with school groups, but we were never able to crack that nut."