Frances Ellen Work

Frances Ellen Work (October 27 or 28, 1857 – January 26, 1947) was an American heiress and socialite.

Early life Frances was born in New York City on October 27 or 28, 1857. She was a daughter of Franklin H. Work, a well-known stockbroker and protégé of Cornelius Vanderbilt, and his wife, Ellen Wood. Her sister Lucy Bond Work was married to Peter Cooper Hewitt. She also had a brother, the horseman and road driver George Paul Work, who died from consumption in Davos, Switzerland.

Society life In 1892, Frances was included in Ward McAllister's "Four Hundred", purported to be an index of New York's best families, published in The New York Times. Conveniently, 400 was the number of people that could fit into Caroline Astor's ballroom.

Work was a prominent figure in the New York City and Newport, Rhode Island, social sets, and was friends with Mrs. Reginald Vanderbilt. In his will, Mr. Work stipulated that no part of his estate was to go to his "erstwhile son-in-law, James Boothby Burke Roche." He was the son of Edmond Roche, 1st Baron Fermoy, and his wife, Elizabeth Caroline Boothby.

In 1890, Work divorced Roche, claiming desertion, before he had succeeded to the barony. The divorce was awarded on March 3, 1891. Her lawyer was Thomas F. Bayard, former United States Secretary of State. In 1899, her ex-husband, then a UK Member of Parliament, sued Work with a writ of habeas corpus to produce their daughter, Cynthia, in court. Roche claimed Work was depriving "the child of her liberty." The case was settled out of court shortly thereafter. Until 1920, sons Maurice and Francis used the surname Work.

Aurél Bátonyi On August 4, 1905, Work married Aurél de Bátonyi, a Hungarian-born riding master who claimed on his 1895 naturalization application to be an Austro-Hungarian count. The couple met in 1903, and they were quite happy together. Work encouraged Bátonyi to propose marriage, however Bátonyi was reluctant. Once they wed, Work did not inform her father, who was supporting her financially, until sometime in early-1906. Work's father did not trust Bátonyi, and he encouraged newspapers and society tabloids to publish suggestions that Bátonyi's real name was Arthur Cohn, and suggestions that Bátonyi's claim of nobiliary rank was fraudulent. However, the marriage remained successful.

Work sued Bátonyi for divorce in October 1907, allegedly due her father's threat to disinherit her if she continued in marriage with her "new husband". The registration expired on November 14, 1915, without any amendments.

Work's financial support of Bátonyi ceased in 1914 due to no contact.

Death Work died at her residence at 1020 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, New York, at the age of 89 on January 26, 1947. Her great-great-grandchildren include the British princes William and Harry, and the American actor Oliver Platt.