Mamah Borthwick

Mamah Bouton Borthwick
Mamah Borthwick, c. 1911
Born	Martha Bouton Borthwick (1869-06-19)June 19, 1869 Boone, Iowa, U.S.
Died	August 15, 1914(1914-08-15) (aged 45) Spring Green, Wisconsin, U.S.
Cause of death	Murder
Other names	Mamah Borthwick
Spouse	Edwin Cheney
Partner	Frank Lloyd Wright
Children	2

Martha Bouton "Mamah" Borthwick (June 19, 1869 – August 15, 1914) was an American translator who had a romantic relationship with architect Frank Lloyd Wright, which ended when she was murdered.^[1] She and Wright were instrumental in bringing the ideas and writings of Swedish feminist Ellen Key to American audiences. Wright built his famous settlement called Taliesin in Wisconsin for her, in part, to shield her from aggressive reporters and the negative public sentiment surrounding their non-married status. Both had left their spouses and children in 1909 in order to live together and were the subject of relentless public censure. In 1914, a disturbed member of the staff at Taliesin suddenly went on a murder-suicide spree at the estate killing Borthwick, two of her children and others. Wright was away at the time.