Ethan Frome is a character from the 1911 novel of the same name by Edith Wharton. He is a poor farmer living in a small New England town who is trapped in a loveless marriage and has an affair with his wife's cousin. His last name, Frome, is a five-letter word that was used as one of the crossword solutions. Ethan ALLEN is another five-letter word that was used as a solution for the same crossword. He was an American Revolutionary War hero and leader of the Green Mountain Boys, a militia group that fought for the independence of Vermont.