On August 15, 1914 Mamah Borthwick Cheney, her two young children, Martha aged 9 and John aged 11, and four workmen were brutally murdered at Taliesin, the Wisconsin home that Frank Lloyd Wright had built for himself and Mamah. Julian Carlton, a 30-year old servant from Barbados, locked all the exits, set fire to the home, and then waited, ax in hand, for the terrified people to try to escape. Two others were able to escape alive, but wounded, to run for help. Wright was in Chicago at the time working on the construction of the Midway Gardens.
Mamah was quite an accomplished woman. She had earned a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Michigan, spoke six languages and was an advocate of women's rights. In 1903, her then husband, Edwin Cheney, a successful electrical engineer, commissioned Wright to build them a house in Oak Park. Mamah and Frank were instantly attracted to one another and their resulting affair was the scandal of the age. Mamah and Edwin eventually divorced in 1911.
Recommended sites:
Taliesin
THE MASTER BUILDERS By KEN BURNS (VANITY FAIR - NOVEMBER 1998)
Mystery of the murders at Taliesin
Taliesin (Wikipedia)
8 comments:
Well, I was already drawn to your description of Nancy Horan's novel, but after reading this I am even more keen...
...Even more keen to read the novel, I mean. Thanks.
Glad to see you back blogging, Sharon.
jeez i didn't know any of that :-O
bellanta: Thanks so much for stopping by. "Loving Frank" focuses more on Mamah and is an interesting summer read. My only real criticism of the novel is that one would expect more passion in the story of such a passionate affair. But, don't let me put you off. Mamah was an incredible, intelligent, complicated, thoughtful woman and deserves attention in her own right. (Bit of a pun there...)
penand spindle: Yep, I'm still here. I need to do a lot of catch up before I'm really back; I have missed a lot!
jonathan: Yes, it's quite a story. You might be interested in the book "Death in a Prairie House" by William R. Drennan that I mentioned in the Post, "Just Wright for Summer Reading." Also, if you have access to the Chicago Tribune archives, look up the story of the murder. It should also be noted that Frank and Mamah had been villified in the press for their affair.
Never have I been more repulsed by two people in an excellent story. The selfishness of both Cheney and Wright was both selfish and ultimately tragic for all involved.
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