Madeline Yale Wynne (September 25, 1847 − January 4, 1918) was an American artist, teacher, writer, and philanthropist.

Life

Madeline was born in

Newport, New York Newport is a town in Herkimer County, New York, United States. The population was 2,302 at the 2010 census. The town, located on the western edge of the county, contains the village of Newport. The town is northeast of Utica. History The fi ...

, the daughter of

Linus Yale, Jr. Linus Yale Jr. (April 4, 1821 – December 25, 1868) was an American mechanical engineer, manufacturer, and co-founder with Henry R. Towne of the Yale Lock Manufacturing Company, which became the premier manufacturer of locks in the United ...

, and Katherine (Catherine) Brooks. Her brothers were John Brooks Yale and Julian Yale, both members of the

Union League The Union Leagues were quasi-secretive men’s clubs established separately, starting in 1862, and continuing throughout the Civil War (1861–1865). The oldest Union League of America council member, an organization originally called "The Leag ...

of New York. Her brother John was married to Marie Louise, daughter of U.S. Secretary

Hugh McCulloch Hugh McCulloch (December 7, 1808 – May 24, 1895) was an American financier who played a central role in financing the American Civil War. He served two non-consecutive terms as U.S. Treasury Secretary under three presidents. He was originally ...

, who was the main financier of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

for

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

. In 1865, when she was 18, Madeline married to

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

Henry Winn, son of Senator Reuben Winn. Henry Winn was a graduate from

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

, then

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

, and had been previously

assistant Attorney General Many of the divisions and offices of the United States Department of Justice are headed by an assistant attorney general. The president of the United States appoints individuals to the position of assistant attorney general with the advice and ...

before being Senator. The couple had two sons—Philip Henry, born January 17, 1868, and Sydney Yale, born September 6, 1870—but the marriage came to an end in 1874. Sydney Yale Wynne (1870-1915), was one of the first Doctors of

West Point, New York West Point is the oldest continuously occupied military post in the United States. Located on the Hudson River in New York, West Point was identified by General George Washington as the most important strategic position in America during the Ame ...

. He graduated from

and was the grandfather of

Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

Theodore Fite, son of Colonel John H. Fite. Following her divorce, she changed the spelling of her last name to Wynne. Having been schooled in the technical arts by her father, Madeline studied painting at the

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston The Museum of Fine Arts (often abbreviated as MFA Boston or MFA) is an art museum in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the 20th-largest art museum in the world, measured by public gallery area. It contains 8,161 paintings and more than 450,000 works ...

during 1877−1878, at the

Art Students League of New York The Art Students League of New York is an art school at 215 West 57th Street in Manhattan, New York City, New York. The League has historically been known for its broad appeal to both amateurs and professional artists. Although artists may stu ...

in early 1880, and later in Europe. During the 1880s, while visiting

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

, she met fellow craftsman Annie Cabot Putnam. The two became lifelong partners, initially sharing a studio in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

. After having been a resident of

Shelburne Falls Shelburne Falls is a historic village in the towns of Shelburne, Massachusetts, Shelburne and Buckland, Massachusetts, Buckland in Franklin County, Massachusetts, Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The village is a census-designated ...

for most of her adult life, in 1885, Madeline began spending her summers with Annie at the village of

Deerfield, Massachusetts Deerfield is a New England town, town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. Settled near the Connecticut River in the 17th century during the colonial era, the population was 5,090 as of the 2020 census. ...

. Assisted by her son Philip, she worked with Annie to restore and refurbish the historic Willard House, which they dubbed the "Manse". This 1768 Georgian mansion was the former home of the Reverend

Samuel Willard Samuel Willard (January 31, 1640 – September 12, 1707) was a New England Puritan clergyman. He was born in Concord, Massachusetts, graduated from Harvard College in 1659, and was minister at Groton from 1663 to 1676, before being driven out by ...

. In 1895, she turned to writing; Madeline's supernatural short story "The Little Room" was published in ''

Harper's Magazine ''Harper's Magazine'' is a monthly magazine of literature, politics, culture, finance, and the arts. Launched in New York City in June 1850, it is the oldest continuously published monthly magazine in the U.S. (''Scientific American'' is older, b ...

'' and was well received. It was later released in a collection of Wynne's short stories called ''The Little Room and Other Stories'', along with ''The Sequel to the Little Room''. (More recently, "The Little Room" appeared in the 2009 horror compendium, '' American Fantastic Tales'', edited by Peter Straub.) She wrote for ''

Atlantic Monthly ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...

'', ''

Harper's Monthly ''Harper's Magazine'' is a monthly magazine of literature, politics, culture, finance, and the arts. Launched in New York City in June 1850, it is the oldest continuously published monthly magazine in the U.S. (''Scientific American'' is older, b ...

'', ''

Home Beautiful Pacific Magazines was a magazine publisher operating in Australia owned by Seven West Media. In March 2020, it was acquired by Bauer Media Australia in April 2020. In June 2020, Mercury Capital acquired Pacific Magazines as part of its purchas ...

'', and various other publications. Madeline helped to found and lead the ''Deerfield Society of Arts and Crafts'' in 1901, which became an umbrella organization for the arts movement in the village. Wynne served as the curator as the movement produced a broad array of artistry, including jewelry, photography, weaving, basketry, rugs, and furniture. She and Annie became very influential in developing arts and crafts in the community, with Madeline organizing tours of the village's craftwork and arranging speaking engagements. The two women were expert metal smiths in their own right.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wynne, Madeline Yale 1847 births 1918 deaths 19th-century American artists American women short story writers 19th-century American women artists 19th-century American women writers 20th-century American artists 20th-century American women writers 20th-century American women artists People from Newport, New York Writers from New York (state) School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts alumni Art Students League of New York alumni 19th-century American short story writers 20th-century American short story writers People from Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts