Mamah Borthwick
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Martha "Mamah" Borthwick (b. June 1869 - d. August 15, 1914) was most noted for an affair with Frank Lloyd Wright, that ended only when she was murdered.
She got her BA at the University of Michigan, and later worked as a librarian in Port Huron, Michigan. In 1899, Borthwick married Edwin Cheney (b. June 13, 1869 - d. ???), an electrical engineer from Oak Park, Illinois, USA. They had two children: John (1902) and Martha (1905).
Mamah met Frank Lloyd Wright's wife at the time, Catherine, through a social club. Soon after, Edwin commissioned Wright to design them a home, now known as the Cheney House, and, as of 2005, housing a bed & breakfast.
In 1909, Mamah (now formally known as Martha Borthwick Cheney, although she stopped using her husband's name after they were divorced in 1911 after returning from Europe) and Frank left their respective spouses and traveled to Europe, settling in Italy for about a year. (Some historians believe they had secretly been romantically involved as far back as 1905.) Upon their return, most of the people in their previous social circle considered their open closeness to be quite scandalous, especially since Catherine had refused to agree to a divorce (and wouldn't until 1922). The editor of the local newspaper in Spring Green condemned Wright for bringing scandal to the village; even big city Chicago papers joined in the criticism, implying he would soon be arrested for immorality, despite statements from the local sheriff that he couldn't prove the couple was doing anything wrong. The scandal affected Wright's career for several years; he was commissioned with only half as many projects as he had typically received before. He didn't get his next big project, the Imperial Hotel, until 1916.
On August 15, 1914, a dispute with one of Wright's recently hired domestic workers led the worker to murder Mamah, both her children, three of Wright's associates, and a son of one of the associates. He set fire to one wing of Wright's house, Taliesin, and murdered the seven people with an ax while it burned. At the time, Wright was overseeing work on Midway Gardens in Chicago, Illinois. Taliesin is in Spring Green, Wisconsin.
An opera, Shining Brow, covers the story of the Cheneys and Wrights, from when they meet in Wright's office, through the aftermath of Mamah's death. The music is by American composer Daron Hagen and the libretto is by Paul Muldoon.
