By Jeff Smith and Lissa Edwards
Excerpt from the September issue of Traverse, Northern Michigan's Magazine published on MyNorth.com, September 13, 2017
There would be other loves—Paris bistros, Cuban cats and cigars, marlin off the Florida Keys, Montana’s heavenly skies. But before all of that, Ernest Hemingway was infatuated with Northern Michigan. He married his first wife, Hadley, here almost a century ago. That event, set in the village of Horton Bay on Lake Charlevoix, closed the Northern Michigan chapter of Hemingway’s life. But by then the landscapes, landmarks and characters of our region had so infused his imagination that they came pouring out in the now legendary stories he wrote in Paris, where he and Hadley moved soon after their wedding. Most notably, Paris is where Nick Adams came to life—that quintessential Northern Michigan summer boy that stars in many of Hemingway’s stories.
So many of the landmarks that he quilted into those stories still exist, that to see them is to feel the writer’s very presence. Hemingway junkies are all but guaranteed spine tingles. And even if you don’t care a hoot whether your writing is crisp and verb-filled (Hemingway) or cloying and flowery (virtually every writer before him) you’ll be inspired by the landscape, pubs and eateries along this trail. Brush up on your Hemingway 101 and follow along as we introduce you to Hemingway’s Northern Michigan years.
The lemon yellow Stafford’s Perry Hotel, on the corner of Bay and Lewis Streets was built in 1899—the same year Hemingway was born. He stayed here when he was 17, after a hiking and camping trip. Relax in one of the 75 guest rooms and you’ll know how young Ernie felt when he returned to civilization after his trip.
Sumner Road public access on Walloon Lake: As a teenager, Hemingway rowed from Windermere, across Walloon Lake to the end of Sumner Road. A mile-and-a-half-walk landed him in the hamlet of Horton Bay where he had a number of friends and adventures that would figure heavily into his stories. Years later he would pen a scene in his story “Wedding Day,” in which Nick Adams and his bride, Helen, launched here to row across the lake to a honeymoon cottage after their wedding. Not coincidentally, this is also where real-life Ernest and his bride Hadley rowed away to spend their honeymoon night across the lake at Windermere after their wedding.
Horton Bay General Store: This 19th-century white clapboard building in the middle of town makes an appearance in both “Up in Michigan,” and “The Last Good Country.” Take a seat on the front porch like Hemingway often did. Better yet, nowadays you can do what he didn’t do: stay in the B&B above the store, have a drink in the tavern in back, and enjoy breakfasts, lunches and special tapas dinner.
Pinehurst and Shangri-La: These two privately owned cottages on Lake Street are what is left of the Dilworth Resort where Hemingway bunked (in the back of Pinehurst) when he was in the village. The Dilworths hosted a wedding breakfast for the newly married Hemingways in Pinehurst. The Dilworth Resort makes an appearance in “Summer People,” and “Up in Michigan.”
Public access on Lake Charlevoix: Continue down Lake Street to where it ends at Lake Charlevoix and you’ll know the setting Hemingway was imagining when he wrote “The End of Something,” “Summer People,” “On Writing,” and “Up in Michigan.”
City Park Grill: Lore has it that the aspiring writer liked the second seat from the end of the bar. Great food and live music means it’s still a fun place. 432 East Lake Street.
Little Traverse Historical Museum: To get your Hemingway bearings, stop in at this train station-turned-museum. Not only does it have a fascinating and permanent Hemingway exhibit but the writer also mentioned it in “The Indians Moved Away.”
The Carnegie Building: Once the Petoskey Public Library, this building was a favorite place of Hemingway’s when he was living in Petoskey during the winter of 1919–20. In December of 1919 he spoke here to the Ladies Aid Society about his experiences in World War I—memories that became the basis of his epic “A Farewell to Arms.”
Event: Michigan Hemingway Society Annual Conference, October 6–8, Terrace Inn, Petoskey.
Must-Read books by Hemingway
The Nick Adams Stories // The Torrents of Spring // For Whom the Bell Tolls
Also read: Picturing Hemingway’s Michigan by Michael R. Federspiel
Jeff Smith is editor of Traverse Magazine, smith@traversemagazine.com.
Elizabeth Edwards is managing editor of Traverse Magazine, lissa@traversemagazine.com.