The Need
As Frederic Svoboda said in the essay published in the exhibit catalog Hemingway in Michigan: Michigan in Hemingway,
that accompanied the exhibit of the same name in the Clarke Historical
Library, "In important ways, Ernest Hemingway grew up in Michigan in
the first two decades of the twentieth century. Although his later life
took him into to great world far from 'Windemere,' his parents' summer
cottage on Walloon Lake, significant parts of his best writing never
really left Michigan behind. ... As he wrote, Hemingway transformed his
experiences on Walloon Lake and nearby into stories not precisely
identical to the actual life he lived there. But what emerged in words
evokes the spirit of northern Michigan then and now: its land, its
lakes, its fish and wildlife, and particularly its people."
Ernest Hemingway's life in Michigan as well as the
Michigan in which he lived are not sufficiently well-documented to meet
the needs of Hemingway scholars or the Michigan local historians. Much
is known, but there is also much to learn about the boy, his life, and
his summer haunts.
The Opportunity
The Clarke Historical Library of Central Michigan
University holds a substantial collection of material relating to
Ernest Hemingway's life in Michigan, the area in which he grew, and the
writings that resulted from this experience. The library hopes to
expand this collection over time but the often prohibitively high cost
of obtaining Hemingway material limits this goal.
The Clarke Historical Library also holds one of the
state's premier collections of Michigan local history material. This
collection of material tells us much about northern Michigan between
1900 and 1920, the years Ernest Hemingway frequented its streams and
forests. Much documentation, however, remains to be collected and
preserved.
The Endowment
The Michigan Hemingway Endowment was founded to help
offset some of the costs associated with collecting material by or
about Ernest Hemingway. Although the Library seeks out gifts to
document both Hemingway and northern Michigan, the fund recognizes that
in many cases material must be obtained by purchase.
Additional uses for the Hemingway Endowment include the
preservation of Hemingway-related material in the Clarke collection and
educational efforts to help better explain the influence of northern
Michigan on Hemingway and the place of Michigan in Hemingway's works.
Making a Gift
Gifts to the endowment may be made through a tax
deductible contribution to the Clarke Historical Library. Please
specify that the contribution is for the Michigan Hemingway Endowment.
Gifts may be mailed to:
Clarke Historical Library
Central Michigan University
Mount Pleasant, MI 48859
For more information about the endowment please contact the Clarke Library at 989.774.3352 or through email at clarke@cmich.edu. Please include the phrase "Michigan Hemingway Endowment" in the subject line.
The Michigan Hemingway Society and the Library
The Clarke Library serves as the archives of the
Michigan Hemingway Society, an organization dedicated to preserving
Hemingway's legacy.