Page 27 - Fall/Winter Taste Magazine

Previous page; the historical Hemingway House with a
chilled polydactyl cat. This page the Bahama Key West House with a lovely pool and spacious and comfortable rooms. A feathered “native.” The Conch Train and the Grand Cafe’s Mahi Mahi Island Style leaf wrapped
the home into the National Historical Landmark that thousands of tourists usually visit each year. We were so happy to be here and enjoy this famous, iconic place at such a quiet time with very few people around (and everyone required to wear masks).
The large, pale turquoise pool, looked utterly inviting and so cool looking in the heat. Built in1937-38 at the huge cost then, of $20,000, it was the first in-ground pool in Key West, and the only pool within 100 miles! Many of the unique furnishings at the house are European antiques collected during the Hemingway’s times on the con- tinent. The trophy mounts and skins were souvenirs of the Hemingway’s African safaris and numerous hunting expeditions in the American west.
The Director Andrew Morawski was great, very helpful and informative and the staff cheerful and happy to help. The place is run very well and it’s very comfortable and interesting spending time in the cool rooms, with only a limited amount of visitors in at a time during this pandemic. We were delighted that it was air-conditioned!
In addition to many links of the past still preserved here, many are happily living. These are the descendants of Hemingway’s polydactyl cat. The story goes that Hemingway made the acquaintance of a sea captain who owned an unusual six-toed tomcat, which cap- tured Mr.Hemingway's fancy, as well as being his valuable rat catcher on deck, using their six toes like a fist grip! When he left Key West, the captain presented the cat, Snow White, to Hemingway and many of the numerous cats that inhabit the grounds still possess the unusual six toes and are descendents of her!
The Hemingway Home and Museum houses approximately 40-50 polydactyl cats. Cats are normally born with five toes on the front paws and four toes on the back. About half of the cats at the
museum have the trait, but they all carry the polydactyl gene in their DNA, which means they can still mother or father six-toe kittens. Most cats have extra toes on their front feet and sometimes on their back feet as well. We are cat people and just loved seeing them fast asleep ignor- ing everybody, most in hiding ~ king or queen of their domain and very sensibly taking a siesta in the high heat of the day unlike us silly humans suffering out and about in it! Careful routine protections are performed here at the museum by their Veterinarian, Dr.Holly Humphries, who also administers annual vaccinations, and performs routine animal health maintenance. These felines are incredibly well kept and cared for, adding their charm to the estate which is well-worth visiting. Hemingway named all his cats after famous people which is a contin- ued tradition today.
The Naval Air Station Key West is an important year-round training site for naval aviation due to the usually mild weather, which is also the reason Key West was chosen as the site of President Harry S. Truman's winter 'White House.' The Harry S. Truman Little White House in Key West is Florida’s only presidential site and was built in 1890. Truman had poor eyesight preventing him from participating in sports which led him to two of his greatest passions, reading and music. An avid reader, he was proud of the fact that he had read every book in the Independence Public Library! Truman was also a pianist. These two beloved pass-times he very much enjoyed at the Little Truman White House.
On April 12, 1945, less than three months as Vice President, Harry S. Truman was sworn in as the 33rd President of the United States following the unexpected death of President Roosevelt. Truman faced some of the most complex issues ever for any world leader. These included the decision to drop the atomic bomb to end World War II,
Taste Dining & Travel • Fall/Winter • More online at www.tasteweb.net 27