Frank Lloyd Wright (1867 - 1959)

Born 8 Jun 1867 in Richland Center, Richland, Wisconsin, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Catherine Lee (Tobin) Wright — married 1 Jun 1889 (to 1922) in Chicago, Cook, Illinois, United States

Husband of Maude Miriam (Hicks) Wright — married 19 Nov 1923 (to 27 Aug 1927) in Spring Green, Sauk, Wisconsin, United States

Husband of Olga Ivanovna (Lazović) Wright — married 25 Aug 1928 in Rancho Santa Fe, La Jolla, San Diego, California, United States

Descendants

Died 9 Apr 1959 at age 91 in Phoenix, Maricopa, Arizona, United States

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Biography

Frank Wright is Notable.

Frank Lloyd Wright (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, interior designer, writer and educator, who designed more than 1000 structures and completed 532 works. Wright believed in designing structures which were in harmony with humanity and its environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture. This philosophy was best exemplified by his design for Fallingwater (1935), which has been called "the best all-time work of American architecture".[1] Wright was a leader of the Prairie School movement of architecture and developed the concept of the Usonian home, his unique vision for urban planning in the United States.

His work includes original and innovative examples of many different building types, including offices, churches, schools, skyscrapers, hotels, and museums. Wright also designed many of the interior elements of his buildings, such as the furniture and stained glass. Wright authored 20 books and many articles and was a popular lecturer in the United States and in Europe. His colorful personal life often made headlines, most notably for the 1914 fire and murders at his Taliesin studio. Already well known during his lifetime, Wright was recognized in 1991 by the American Institute of Architects as "the greatest American architect of all time."

Frank Lloyd Wright was married three times and fathered seven children, four sons and three daughters. He also adopted Svetlana Milanoff, the daughter of his third wife, Olgivanna Lloyd Wright.[77]

His wives were:

1. Catherine "Kitty" (Tobin) Wright (1871–1959); social worker, socialite (married in June 1889; divorced November 1922)
2. Maude "Miriam" (Noel) Wright (1869–1930), artist (married in November 1923; divorced August 1927)
3. Olga Ivanovna "Olgivanna" (Lazovich Milanoff) Lloyd Wright (1897–1985), dancer and writer (married in August 1928)

One of Wright's sons, Frank Lloyd Wright, Jr., known as Lloyd Wright, was also a notable architect in Los Angeles. Lloyd Wright's son (and Wright's grandson), Eric Lloyd Wright, is currently an architect in Malibu, California, where he has a practice of mostly residences, but also civic and commercial buildings.

Another son and architect, John Lloyd Wright, invented Lincoln Logs in 1918, and practiced extensively in the San Diego area. John's daughter, Elizabeth Wright Ingraham, was an architect in Colorado Springs, Colorado and died September 15, 2013 of congestive heart failure. She is the mother of Christine, an interior designer in Connecticut, and Catherine, an architecture professor at the Pratt Institute.[78]

Wright designed a house for David Samuel Wright, his son by his first marriage to Catherine, and David's wife, Gladys.[79][80]

The Oscar-winning actress Anne Baxter was Wright's granddaughter. Baxter was the daughter of Catherine Baxter, a child born of Wright's first marriage. Baxter's daughter, Melissa Galt, currently lives and works in Atlanta as an interior designer.[78]

His step-daughter Svetlana (daughter of Olgivanna) and her son Daniel died in an automobile accident in 1946. Her widower, William Wesley Peters, was later briefly married to Svetlana Alliluyeva, the youngest child and only daughter of Joseph Stalin. They divorced after she could not adjust to the communal lifestyle of the Wright communities, which she compared to life in the Soviet Union under her father, and because of the constant interference of Wright's widow. Peters served as Chairman of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation from 1985 to 1991.

A great-grandson of Wright, S. Lloyd Natof, currently lives and works in Chicago as a master woodworker who specializes in the design and creation of custom wood furniture.[81]

Frank Lloyd Wright was born in 1867 in Richland Center, Wisconsin, the son of William Carey Wright (1825 - 1904) and Anna Lloyd (Jones) Wright (1838 - 1923).

Frank married first Catherine Lee "Kitty" (Tobin) Wright (1871-1959) on 1 Jun 1889 in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois.^[1] Their children were:

1. Frank Lloyd Wright, Jr. (1890–1978)
2. John Lloyd Wright (1892–1972)
3. Catherine Dorothy Wright (1894–1979)
4. David Samuel Wright (1896–1997)
5. Frances Lloyd Wright (1898–1959)
6. Robert Llewellyn Wright (1903–1986)

Frank married second Maude Miriam (Hicks) Wright (1869-1930) on 19 November 1923 in Illinois. They had no children.

Frank married third Olga Ivanovna (Lloyd) Wright (1898-1985) on 25 Aug 1929. Their children were:

1. Svetlanna Hinzenberg Wright (1917–1946)
2. Private

Frank Lloyd Wright died in 1959 in Phoenix, Arizona and was buried at Taliesin West, Scottsdale, Maricopa County, Arizona.^[2][3]

Notes

Notable architect. He designed office, hotel and museum buildings, as well as dwellings for rich and poor, that were constructed across America and internationally, some of which were controversial and impractical (such as New York's Guggenheim Museum, which because of its futuristic design of curves and sweeps does not allow for space to exhibit paintings). The main concentration of his structures are located in Oak Park, Illinois, while other commissions were completed years after his death such as the stunning lakefront Monono Terrace Community and Convention Center located in Madison, Wisconsin. Born in Richland Center, Wisconsin, his father deserted the family and left them to fend for themselves much as Frank himself did when he simply abandoned his first wife and four children and moved in with his neighbor Margaret (Mamah) Cheney. She became the tragedy of his life when murdered along with her two children and two others by the family servant at his residence, who then set fire to the dwelling in a dispute over his salary. He resided summers in Wisconsin and winters at his estate in Arizona. In the Spring of 1959, intestinal blockage surgery failed and Frank Lloyd Wright died at the age of ninety-one. The body was returned to his 1,600 acre estate at Spring Green, Wisconsin. After a service, a horse and wagon carried his body from Unity Chapel to where the graves of many members of the Wright family (his mother, his mistress Mamah and her two children) are interred. His first wife, Kitty had died at age 92 a few weeks before. However, after the death of Olgivanna Wright, his last wife, his body was disinterred, his remains cremated and his ashes mixed with Olivanna's and then divided: some spread over the Arizona desert and the rest interred on the Wright estate. (bio by: Donald Greyfield)

In 1987 a biographer of Wright suggested that he may have been christened as "Frank Lincoln Wright" or "Franklin Lincoln Wright" but these assertions were not supported by any evidence.^[4]

When the government wanted to sell Ellis Island, there were many different ideas on what to do with it. Frank had a grand plan to make it into a futuristic city.

Census

W. C. Wright 54 yrs, music teacher, wife Anna L. 40 yrs, George 22 yrs, Frank 13 yrs, Jennie 11 yrs, Margret 3 yrs, Jenny L. Jones 30 yrs, resided in 1880 in Madison, Dane, Wisconsin, United States.^[5]

Frank Loyd Wright 32 yrs architect, wife Catherie 29 yrs, Lloyd 10 yrs, John 8 yrs, Cathrine 6 yrs, David 4 yrs, Frances 2 yrs, servant Alma Haggestrom 21 yrs, resided in 1900 in Cicero, Cook, Illinois ^[6]

Frank L. Wright 44 yrs, architect, wife Katherine L. 39 yrs, Frank L. Jr 20 yrs, John K. 18 yrs, Katherine 16 yrs, David S. 14 yrs, Frances B. 11 yrs, Robert L. 6 yrs, resided in 1910 in Oak Park, Cook, Illinois.^[7]

Frank L. Wright 52 yrs architect, William E. Smith 28 yrs student, architect, Allen Brunker 61 yrs, hired man resided in 1920 in Wyoming, Iowa, Wisconsin. ^[8]

Frank Loyd Wright 60 yrs, architect, wife Olgivanna 32 yrs, Iovanna 4 yrs, Svetlanna 12 yrs, resided in 1930 in Wyoming, Iowa, Wisconsin. ^[9]

Frank Lloyd Wright 70 yrs, architect, wife Olgivanna 43 yrs, Iovanna 14 yrs, resided in 1940 in Wyoming, Iowa, Wisconsin. ^[10]

Sources

1. ↑ "Illinois, Cook County Marriages, 1871-1920," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/N7XW-59Z : 10 March 2018), Frank Lloyd Wright and Catharina S. C. Tobin, 01 Jun 1889; citing Chicago, Cook, Illinois, 139955, Cook County Courthouse, Chicago; FHL microfilm 1,030,182.
2. ↑ "United States, GenealogyBank Historical Newspaper Obituaries, 1815-2011", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q5MY-422Q : 18 July 2020), Frank Lloyd Wright, 1959.
3. ↑ Find a Grave, database and images: accessed 05 January 2022), memorial page for Frank Lloyd Wright (8 Jun 1867–9 Apr 1959), Find A Grave: Memorial #1129, citing Taliesin West Burial Site, Scottsdale, Maricopa County, Arizona, USA ; Maintained by Find a Grave.
4. ↑ Frank Lloyd Wright, Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Lloyd_Wright#Ancestry
5. ↑ "United States Census, 1880," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9YBG-9WL4?cc=1417683&wc=X45L-HZ9%3A1589394822%2C1589416007%2C1589395661%2C1589395367 : 24 December 2015), Wisconsin > Dane > Madison > ED 74 > image 6 of 41; citing NARA microfilm publication T9, (National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C., n.d.)
6. ↑ "United States Census, 1900," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-6QN7-NWJ?cc=1325221&wc=9B71-2NP%3A1030552601%2C1031967101%2C1035352401 : 5 August 2014), Illinois > Cook > ED 1146 Cicero Township Cicero town > image 40 of 58; citing NARA microfilm publication T623 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
7. ↑ "United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GRNJ-WF5?cc=1727033&wc=QZZQ-35C%3A133640201%2C135332401%2C139574701%2C1589088854 : 23 June 2017), Illinois > Cook > Oak Park > ED 71 > image 24 of 38; citing NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
8. ↑ "United States Census, 1920," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9RJT-4H7?cc=1488411&wc=QZJB-7HR%3A1037438101%2C1037998801%2C1036533701%2C1589332576 : 14 September 2019), Wisconsin > Iowa > Wyoming > ED 170 > image 13 of 15; citing NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
9. ↑ "United States Census, 1930," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GRZN-F2V?cc=1810731&wc=QZFW-6CW%3A648804601%2C650346101%2C648832301%2C1589282428 : 8 December 2015), Wisconsin > Iowa > Wyoming > ED 28 > image 12 of 16; citing NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002).
10. ↑ "United States Census, 1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89M1-C76M?cc=2000219&wc=QZXB-XDG%3A795536601%2C794935401%2C795709301%2C795709302 : accessed 18 June 2022), Wisconsin > Iowa > Wyoming Town > 25-30 Wyoming Town > image 17 of 18; citing Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 - 2007, RG 29. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012.

• Wikidata: Item Q5604

• http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=dowfam3&id=I141614

• Wikipedia article on Frank Lloyd Wright

• Secrest, Meryle (1998). Frank Lloyd Wright: A Biography. University of Chicago Press. p. 58.

• Alofsin, Anthony (1993). Frank Lloyd Wright--the Lost Years, 1910–1922: A Study of Influence. University of Chicago Press. p. 359. ISBN 0-226-01366-9; Hersey, George (2000). Architecture and Geometry in the Age of the Baroque. University of Chicago Press. p. 205.

• An Autobiography, by Frank Lloyd Wright, Duell, Sloan and Pearce, New York City, 1943, p. 51

• Frank Lloyd Wright: A Biography, by Meryle Secrest, University of Chicago Press, 1992, p. 72, 82

• Wright, Frank Lloyd (2005). Frank Lloyd Wright: An Autobiography. Petaluma, CA: Pomegranate Communications. pp. 60–63. ISBN 0-7649-3243-8.

• "Illinois, Cook County, Birth Certificates, 1871-1940," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NQYC-8DH : 18 May 2016), Frank Lloyd Wright in entry for Lloyd Wright, 31 Mar 1890; Chicago, Cook, Illinois, United States, reference/certificate cn 12390, Cook County Clerk, Cook County Courthouse, Chicago; FHL microfilm 1,287,791.

• "United States Passport Applications, 1795-1925," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVJG-2CMP : 16 March 2018), Frank Lloyd Wright, 1919; citing Passport Application, Wisconsin, United States, source certificate #146806, Passport Applications, January 2, 1906 - March 31, 1925, Roll 1004, NARA microfilm publications M1490 and M1372 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

• Famous Phis: Frank Lloyd Wright, Wisconsin 1889

• Frank Lloyd Wright changed the way we build and the way we live: https://franklloydwright.org/

• Affleck House designed by Frank Lloyd Wright reopens for tours in May, Maureen Feighan, The Detroit News, Published 7:57 p.m. ET April 18, 2019 | Updated 2:27 p.m. ET April 19, 2019: https://www.detroitnews.com/story/life/home-garden/2019/04/18/frank-lloyd-wright-affleck-house/3370629002/

• Owner of Frank Lloyd Wright estate in Orinda fails to respond to lawsuit: Architect’s foundation alleges he violated trademark and is seeking damages, East Bay Times: https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2019/04/19/frank-lloyd-wright-estate-owner-fails-to-respond-to-lawsuit/

• Visit or stay in some of Frank Lloyd Wright’s homes in Michigan, Maureen Feighan, The Detroit News, Published 9:02 p.m. ET April 18, 2019 | Updated 2:28 p.m. ET April 19, 2019: https://ux.detroitnews.com/story/life/home-garden/2019/04/18/frank-lloyd-wright-michigan-tours/3507743002/

• Frank Lloyd Wright: Architect (1867-1959), Biography: https://www.biography.com/artist/frank-lloyd-wright

• Frank Lloyd Wright: American Architect, Encyclopedia Britannica, WRITTEN by Edgar Kaufmann, LAST UPDATED: Apr 5, 2019: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Frank-Lloyd-Wright

• Fallingwater: https://fallingwater.org/

• Frank Lloyd Wright’s masterpiece house above the waterfall, Fallingwater: http://www.wright-house.com/frank-lloyd-wright/fallingwater.html

• Frank Lloyd Wright: Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art: https://crystalbridges.org/frank-lloyd-wright/

• Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio, Frank Lloyd Wright Trust: https://flwright.org/visit/homeandstudio

• Future of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Dallas Theater and more from Robert Wilonsky this week: https://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/commentary/2019/04/16/future-frank-lloyd-wrights-dallas-theater-robert-wilonsky-week