[6][7] Bothwell was married to sculptor Donal Hord in 1932 but divorced shortly after likely due to her independence in traveling and difference of opinion on "domestic duties".

Her destination, Samoa, was influenced by watching the film Moana and a desire to live cheaply after a change in her financial situation.

[5] She spent 1928 and 1929 living and working in Samoa where she learned the language, and was appointed taupo, adopted daughter of a Samoan village chief.

[9] She spent another two years in Europe before resettling in San Diego in 1932, where she married her childhood friend, sculptor Donal Hord.

[6][13][14] Bothwell received many honors in her lifetime, including an Abraham Rosenberg Fellowship, the 1979 San Francisco Women in the Arts Award and two Pollock-Krasner grants for 1998–2000.