Introduction

A large part of Ernest Hemingway’s childhood involved his family’s annual summer trip to their cottage on Walloon Lake in Michigan. However, significant complications in travel were present in the 1900's compared to today. So how did they get there?

Every year, the Hemingway family would begin their journey by traveling to Chicago by train from their home in Oak Park, Illinois (Baker 7). The family would then haul themselves as well as their awkward luggage trunks loaded with a large number of clothes, personal items, and books, onto a Lake Michigan steamer destined for Harbor Springs. On their first trip in 1898, the Hemingways took the SS Manitou (Federspiel 34). Once in Harbor Springs, the family boarded another train to Petoskey, followed by yet another small branch line to Walloon Lake, where a small, two-decker wood-burning steamer named The Tourist toted them for the final phase of the journey to their cottage on Walloon Lake (Mellow 14). This routine became a regular part of the Hemingways’ lives as they made their way to their home away from home each summer.

The S.S. Manitou

Though the Hemingways did not travel specifically on the Manitou every summer, they still used similar steamship transportation. It is known that the Hemingways indeed traveled on the Manitou more than once - including the summer of 1917 in which only the daughters traveled since the rest of the family took Dr. Hemingway’s Model T (Mellow 35) – and the other trips were taken by similar steamships. It can reasonably be concluded that the family’s experiences on other ships were similar to the ones on the Manitou.

Often referred to as the “Greyhound of the Great Lakes,” the Manitou existed as one of the fastest and most elegant steamships of its time (Mayo 55). The Chicago Shipbuilding Company successfully launched the Manitou, which belonged to the Lake Michigan and Lake Superior line, on May 20, 1893. Despite the difficulty of the sideways launch, a more graceful and beautiful effect resulted, where all present hailed it as one of the most successful lake launches of its time. A beautiful young woman named Miss Florence Higinbotham, who happened to be the daughter of President Higinbotham of the World’s Fair, christened the Manitou by breaking a wine bottle on the bow of the ship while exclaiming “I christen thee Manitou,” (CT 21 May 1893 1). Unlike any lake steamer of its time, this ship could be compared to an ocean vessel in all aspects but size. Upon inspection during its open house, tourists and passengers alike praised the Manitou as being the most magnificent vessel on the lakes (CT 04 July 1893 8). Everyone revered the Manitou for its grace, elegance, and luxury!

The cost of a ticket aboard the Manitou from Chicago to Mackinaw, at least in 1903, amounted to $7 per passenger going and one-third fare returning (Mayo 55). This ticket would prove to be worth its price. The Manitou could comfortably house 400 first class passengers, had a magnificent dining room, saloon, gentlemen’s room, and ladies’ room. Once aboard, passengers could also enjoy the amenities of running water, a nice bed, food, a saloon, smoking, and a promenade area for walking as well as social activities on the hurricane deck (CT 20 Feb 1893 12). Its first trip averaged a speed of 15.25 mph, a rate quite fast at that time (CT 04 July 1893 8). However, even at such a speed, it still took over a day’s journey to make it from Chicago to Harbor Springs (Federspiel 34). It originally traveled all the way to Sault Ste Marie, but the length of the voyage lessened to just Mackinaw City to allow 3 round trips per week since most passengers stopped in Mackinaw. Also, just 2 years after its construction, new and additional boilers were installed on the Manitou which increased its top speed from 16 to 18 mph (CT 22 June 1985 2). Some of its regular stops included the cities of Frankfort, Charlevoix, Petoskey, Harbor Springs (the Hemingway’s stop), Bay View, and Mackinaw City (CT 18 April 1921 28, CT 03 July 1906 11).

The SS Manitou was indeed a great ship which carried many passengers in its time. The Hemingways rode on this ship and others like it every summer as part of their journey to their cottage. Due to the Manitou’s great luxury as well as numerous successful trips, the Hemingway family no doubt enjoyed this part of their journey. Though cumbersome to transport luggage to and from the trains and ships, the Manitou provided one long break where the family could relax because of the ship’s first class nature and amazing amenities. The family could simply enjoy themselves while looking forward to the joy and peace to come.

Traveling by Model T

In the summer of 1917, Dr. Hemingway, his wife Grace, and their two sons, Ernest and Leicester, travelled to their cottage in their Model T Ford automobile. Dr. Hemingway enjoyed the outdoors and wanted an adventure. Though this journey may not seem significant, it must be noted that paved roads and highways were not yet prevalent. The more than 450 mile long trip would take days to complete, would include detours, unpaved and unmarked roads, and mechanical problems, so it would become a trip that Dr. Hemingway would not repeat (Buske 19).

Roads were not very well known to tourists nor were they very stable. Not until 1922 did the Michigan Pike, also called M-11, a main road from Indiana to Mackinaw along Michigan’s west coast, reach completion with paved portions, solid gravel portions, and without detours. Drivers designated one stretch of road outside of South Haven the worst road in the world (one that the Hemingways may very well have taken in 1917), but now that same stretch could possibly be termed the best road in the world due to its new concrete structure. With the completion of the Michigan Pike, the state speed limit increased to 35 mph, and tourists could travel to Mackinaw through cities such as Benton Harbor, South Haven, Holland, Hart, Pentwater, Manistee, Traverse City, Charlevoix, and Bay View, without complication (CT 07 May 1922 G3). If only the Hemingways’ Model T trip had been 5 years later!

Despite the incomplete state of the Michigan Pike, the Hemingways were still able to complete the trip, though not as easily as if there were better roads. Dr. Hemingway carefully planned out the trip, and according to his personal diary, packed food to eat at stops on the road, tools, spare tires, and a saw for cutting branches to place under the tires in case they were to get stuck on a road. The outside of the car, including the running boards, and the backseat housed all this gear and luggage. Since minimal space existed in the car due to the supplies, young Leicester sat on Grace’s lap for most of the trip (Buske 19). Some of the stops included Watervliet, Muskegon, Whitehall, Hart, Scottville, and Ironton, all before reaching their destination at Walloon Lake. Car trouble along the way included a large consumption of oil, a flat tire, and a broken spring, which caused significant delays and likely unpleasant tension. Nevertheless, the family eventually made it safely to their home away from home (Buske 20). Since the Hemingway family never made this trip by car again, it is safe to say that they preferred the ease and comfort of taking a steamship such as the Manitou across Lake Michigan.

Works Cited

Following Articles Taken From The Chicago Tribune:

Anonymous. ""Manitou" Rapidly Taking Shape." Chicago Daily Tribune 20 Feb 1893: 12.

---. "Afloat on the Lake." Chicago Daily Tribune 21 May 1893: 1.

---. "Display Ad 20." Chicago Daily Tribune 18 April 1921: 28.

---. "First Lake Excursions this Year." Chicago Daily Tribune 22 June 1895: 2.

---. "Michigan Pike Now Good Hard Road Clear to Mackinac." Chicago Daily Tribune 07 May 1922: G3.

---. "Open House on a New Steel Steamship." Chicago Daily Tribune 04 July 1893: 8.

---. "Other 7." Chicago Daily Tribune 03 July 1906: 11.

Baker, Carlos. Ernest Hemingway; A Life Story. 697. Scribner, 1969.

Buske, Morris. "Dad, are we there Yet?" Michigan History Magazine 83.2 (1999): 16. GALE. 18 May 2009.

Federspiel, Michael. "Up North with the Hemingways." Michigan History Magazine 91.5 (2007): 32. .

Kennedy, Robert H. S.S. Manitou on Lake Michigan, 1917. Chicago Public Library Special Collections and Preservation Division, 1917. 17 May 2009 <http://digital.chipublib.org/u?/cfd,60>.

Mayo, Caswell A., Ph.G., and Thomas J. Keenan, eds. American Druggist and Pharmaceutical Record. Vol. 43. New York: American Druggist Publishing Co., 1903.

Mellow, James R. Hemingway: A Life without Consequences. Da Capo Press, 1993.