Cuba
Ernest Hemingway lived in the Finca Vigía (Lookout Farm) in San Francisco de Paula, Cuba from 1939 to 1960. He lived there with third wife Martha Gellhorn (who originally discovered the property) and later with fourth wife Mary Welsh. The Finca Vigía, by most accounts, was Hemingway's favorite residence and the place where he felt the most happiness and peace. The home is now a museum and currently owned by the Cuban government.
While living in Cuba, Hemingway wrote much of For Whom the Bell Tolls. He also wrote The Old Man and the Sea and Islands in the Stream, which was published posthumously. Favorite Hemingway haunts in Cuba included the Ambos Mundos Hotel and the Bodeguita del Medio and Floridita bars.
The Finca Vigía is a treasure trove for Hemingway scholars and aficionados, as it contains 9000 books and thousands of letters, photographs, and documents. Hemingway's beloved boat, the Pilar also resides on the property.
The Finca Vigía Foundation (formerly the Hemingway Preservation Foundation) was formed in 2002 to "work collaboratively with Cuban colleagues to restore and preserve Ernest Hemingway's home, Finca Vigía." In 2005, the National Trust for Historic Preservation named the Finca Vigía one of the eleven most endangered historic places. In 2007, it was reported that the Finca Vigía had been almost fully restored. Work still needs to be done, however, on the grounds and on the Pilar.
