In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

Acknowledgments This project began after a conversation with Tim and Ginny Bliss, who told me about the connection between Robert W. Bates and Ernest Hemingway. Tim and Ginny shared with me stories of the famous writer that had become part of local lore, stories known mostly to Bates’s descendants and some farmers in central California where Bates eventually settled after volunteering with the American Red Cross in World War I. Thanks to Tim and Ginny for telling me about Bates and those who knew him, and, along with the Bliss’s children, Tory and Teddy, thanks for the numerous ways they have supported me ever since. Many special thanks go to Bates’s grandson John Evans for his hospitality in inviting me into his home so I could learn more about his grandfather . I am also grateful for his willingness to share his grandfather’s papers with me and his permission to publish excerpts. Pat Evans’s kindness and helpfulness is also much appreciated, as is the assistance I received from the Evans’s daughters, Juliette, Kathryn, and Suzanne. Likewise, my research for this project benefited greatly from conversations with R. W. Bates Jr., Julia Bates, Stephen Bates, George Bliss, Tony and Johnny Brown, Juliette Grey, and Robbie Hutto. I am also indebted to the many scholars whose influence and advice significantly shaped this study. Much gratitude goes to James Nagel, whose mentorship, expertise, encouragement, and continued guidance have been essential in helping me complete this book. Many thanks also to H. R. Stoneback for inspiring me to take on the project in the first place and his invaluable advice and support over the years. I would also like to express my appreciation to Richard Davison, Allen Josephs, Donald Junkins, Robert W. Lewis, Jim Meredith, Linda Miller, and Rena Sanderson for supporting my work. Thanks as well to Richard Menke, Hugh Ruppersburg, Robert Trogdon, and Steven Trout for their helpful comments in guiding my revisions. For additional valuable insights and suggestions, I am also grateful to Doug Anderson, Nicole Camastra, Bob ix Clark, Marinella Garatti, Angela Green, Mary Holland, Dan Kempton, Hubert McAlexander, Brad McDuffie, Patrick McGinn, Gwen Nagel, Tom Olsen, Alan Przybyla, and Alex Shakespeare. I greatly appreciate funding from The Hemingway Foundation and Society, The Jane and Harry Willson Center for Humanities and Arts, The University of Georgia Department of English, and The University of Georgia Graduate School. I would also like to acknowledge help from librarians at the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas at Austin , the Hemingway Collection at the John F. Kennedy Library, the Firestone Library at Princeton University, the Library of Congress, the Lilly Library at Indiana University, and the National Archives at College Park. Likewise, I am grateful for assistance provided by staff at the interlibrary loan departments at the Sojourner Truth Library at SUNY New Paltz and the Main Library at the University of Georgia. Many thanks as well to Sandra Stelts at the Special Collections Library at Pennsylvania State University for help transcribing letters, to Charles Machon for sharing his knowledge of the Missouri National Guard, and to Don Vogel for locating articles that appeared in Hemingway’s high school newspaper. Much gratitude goes to the Hemingway Foundation for permission to quote Ernest Hemingway’s letters and to Kirk Curnutt and Sandra Spanier for help with permissions requests. I would also like to express my appreciation to everyone at the Kent State University Press who worked on this book, especially Joyce Harrison for her encouragement and expert advice. Many others helped with this project in immeasurable ways, and I would especially like to acknowledge interest and support from Mark Bellomo, Larry Cappelletti, Dan, Kim, Jake, and Justin Ellithorpe, David Hyman, John Langan, Carl McGrath, Paul and Debra Meehan, Ed Meisel, Len Monachello, Ivan Scrivner, Brad Sikes, Josh Sternlicht, Sparrow Stoneback, Brandt Temple, Roger and Anne Thomas, Thomas Vigliotta, and Ryan Vogel. Much heartfelt gratitude also goes to Mary Ashby Brown for her invaluable advice and enthusiasm as I worked to bring the volume to press. Finally, I would like to express my deepest thanks to my family—especially Lori, Stas, and my parents, Kathy and Stan, to whom this book is dedicated. x ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...

Share