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Killing of Mamah Borthwick and Others at Taliesin

SOLVED1911Taliesin, near Spring Green, Wisconsin3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026
Illustrative

Taliesin is a house-and-studio complex built by architect Frank Lloyd Wright near Spring Green, Wisconsin, beginning in 1911. Wright designed the estate with Mamah Borthwick, with whom he had begun a relationship after both left their marriages. Borthwick lived there amid public scrutiny, as Wright had not yet divorced and Borthwick's former husband retained custody of their two children.

On August 15, 1914, while Wright was away in Chicago, a fire was set at the estate and seven people were killed in an attack on its residents and staff. Julian Carlton, a 31-year-old servant who had been given notice that his employment was ending and who had reportedly been subjected to racial abuse by a member of the estate's staff, was identified as the attacker. Because the case was never tried, the sequence of events was reconstructed from the two survivors and the physical evidence: the attacker used a hatchet against Borthwick and her two children, John (11) and Martha (8), and against several staff, then set fire to the living quarters using gasoline. Those killed were Mamah Borthwick; her children John and Martha; draftsman Emil Brodelle; foreman Thomas Brunker; Ernest Weston, the 13-year-old son of employee William Weston; and gardener David Lindblom, who died several days later. Two draftsmen survived: Herbert Fritz escaped through a window, and William Weston helped extinguish the fire, saving the studio.

Carlton was found to have swallowed acid in an apparent attempt to take his own life and survived. He was arrested the same day and indicted on August 16, 1914, for the murder of Emil Brodelle — the one death directly witnessed by a survivor — and pleaded not guilty. He died in the Dodgeville jail on October 7, 1914, from the effects of the acid, before the case could be heard. Wright buried Borthwick at nearby Unity Chapel and later rebuilt the estate's residential wing, known afterward as Taliesin II.

Key facts

Victims
Thomas Brunker, Ernest Weston, Martha Cheney, David Lindblom, Mamah Borthwick, Emil Brodelle, John Cheney
Date
1911
Location
Taliesin, near Spring Green, Wisconsin
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 1911

    Frank Lloyd Wright and Mamah Borthwick begin developing the Taliesin estate near Spring Green, Wisconsin.

  2. 1914-08-12

    Draftsman Emil Brodelle racially abuses employee Julian Carlton.

  3. 1914-08-15

    Julian Carlton attacks residents and staff at Taliesin with a hatchet and sets fire to the living quarters, killing Mamah Borthwick, her son John, draftsman Emil Brodelle, and wounding others; Carlton attempts suicide and is arrested by Sheriff John Williams.

  4. 1914-08-15

    Martha Cheney, foreman Thomas Brunker, and Ernest Weston die later that day or that night from injuries sustained in the attack.

  5. 1914-08-18

    Gardener David Lindblom dies of injuries sustained in the attack.

  6. 1914-08-16

    Julian Carlton is indicted and charged with the murder of Emil Brodelle; he pleads not guilty.

  7. 1914-10-07

    Julian Carlton dies in his jail cell in Dodgeville, Wisconsin, from esophagitis caused by ingesting hydrochloric acid, before his case could be heard.

  8. 1915

    Reconstruction of Taliesin's residential wing, known as Taliesin II, is completed by spring.

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People

  • Julian Carlton

    CHARGED

    Employee charged with the murder of Emil Brodelle following the August 15, 1914 attack; pleaded not guilty and died in jail before trial.

  • Thomas Brunker

    VICTIM

    Foreman who died from injuries sustained in the attack, later that day or that night.

  • Ernest Weston

    VICTIM

    13-year-old son of William Weston, died from injuries sustained in the attack.

  • Martha Cheney

    VICTIM

    Mamah Borthwick's 8-year-old daughter, pursued and killed in the courtyard during the attack.

  • David Lindblom

    VICTIM

    Gardener who died on August 18, 1914, from injuries sustained in the attack.

  • Mamah Borthwick

    VICTIM

    Killed by a hatchet blow to the head during the August 15, 1914 attack at Taliesin.

  • Emil Brodelle

    VICTIM

    Draftsman mortally wounded by Julian Carlton; the only death directly witnessed by a survivor and the basis of the murder charge against Carlton.

  • John Williams

    LAW ENFORCEMENT

    Sheriff who located and arrested Julian Carlton on the day of the attack.

  • John Cheney

    VICTIM

    Mamah Borthwick's 11-year-old son, killed in his chair during the attack.

Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.

Places

Taliesin, near Spring Green, Wisconsin

43.1415, -90.0709

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
On August 15, 1914, a servant at architect Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin estate near Spring Green, Wisconsin, attacked residents and staff with a hatchet and set fire to the living quarters, killing Wright's partner Mamah Borthwick, her two children, and four others. The accused, Julian Carlton, was indicted but died in jail before he could be tried.
Where did the killing happen?
Taliesin, near Spring Green, Wisconsin.
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved.
More cases in Wisconsin

Sources

  1. PRESSAugust, 1914: Small-town Wisconsin rises to the occasion of the Taliesin mass murderThe Capital Times · 2026-07-11
  2. ENCYCLOPEDICTaliesin (studio)Wikipedia · 2026-07-10
  3. OFFICIAL / AGENCYNational Register of Historic Places Registration: Taliesinnpgallery.nps.gov · 2026-07-10