Edwin Cheney

Who was Edwin Cheney?

Edwin Henry Cheney was an electrical engineer from Oak Park, Illinois, USA.

Cheney commissioned Frank Lloyd Wright to build his family a house in Oak Park. Wright engaged in a love affair with Edwin's wife Mamah, with whom he went to Europe. Upon their return, Mamah moved into Taliesin, the new house Wright was building for them, while it was still under construction. For reasons unknown at the time, Julian Carlton, a domestic servant, killed Mamah and her two children, John and Martha, who happened to be visiting. Four others were also murdered during this event, and Carlton, following ingestion of acid in an apparent suicide attempt, died before being tried.

Edwin Cheney later remarried and moved to Webster Groves, Missouri. The Edwin H. Cheney House is used as a bed & breakfast.

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. Music by Daron Hagen and lyrics by Paul Muldoon.