If you’ve ever walked down Whitehead Street in Key West, you know the vibe. It’s humid. The air smells like salt and hibiscus. And right across from the lighthouse, there’s a limestone house that feels like it’s holding a century of secrets. Most people call it the Hemingway Home, but let’s be real: for a huge chunk of visitors, it’s basically the Key West cat house.
It’s weirdly charming. You’re standing in the former study of a Nobel Prize winner, looking at his Royal typewriter, and suddenly a white-and-ginger tabby jumps onto the desk like he owns the place. Which, honestly, he does. These aren’t just random strays that wandered in for a scrap of Mahi-mahi. They are the descendants of a very specific kitten named Snow White, and they carry a genetic quirk that makes them look like they’re wearing oversized mittens.
Polydactylism. That’s the technical term. Most cats have five toes on their front paws and four on the back. These guys? They can have six or seven.
Ernest Hemingway wasn't even looking for a "cat house" when he moved to the island in the 1930s. He was just a guy who liked deep-sea fishing and writing sentences that hit like a heavyweight boxer. But then a sea captain named Stanley Dexter gave him a white polydactyl kitten. Sailors back then thought extra toes were good luck—better grip on a swaying deck, supposedly. Hemingway, being a bit superstitious himself, was hooked. Decades later, the luck hasn’t run out, even if the house has transitioned from a private residence to one of the most famous museums in the world.
The Reality of Life at the Key West Cat House
Living as a cat in a high-traffic museum sounds like a recipe for a nervous breakdown, but these felines are surprisingly chill. There are roughly 50 to 60 of them on the property at any given time. The staff at the Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum keeps a strict eye on their health, ensuring they’re fed, vaccinated, and given plenty of space to ignore tourists.
It’s a managed colony.
About half of the cats exhibit the physical trait of extra toes, but all of them carry the gene. This means even if a cat looks "normal," its kittens might come out looking like they’re ready to play shortstop for the Marlins. The museum staff names every single one of them after famous people—actors, writers, historical figures. You might find "Audrey Hepburn" napping on a 17th-century Spanish chest or "Harry Truman" stalking a lizard near the pool.
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The pool, by the way, was a massive point of contention. Hemingway’s wife, Pauline, had it built for an astronomical $20,000 while Ernest was away reporting on the Spanish Civil War. In today’s money, that’s over $400,000. When he found out, he allegedly took a penny from his pocket, pressed it into the wet cement, and told her she’d spent his last cent. You can still see that penny today. The cats, naturally, find the pool area a prime spot for sunbathing, though they aren’t much for swimming.
Why the Cats Stay (Legally Speaking)
You’d think a bunch of cats running around a historic site would cause a massive legal headache. It did. For years, the Key West cat house was locked in a battle with the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The USDA argued that because the museum was an animal exhibition (like a circus or a zoo) and they were "displaying" the cats for profit, they needed a federal license under the Animal Welfare Act. This wasn't just a bit of paperwork. The regulations would have required the museum to cage the cats at night, install elevated resting surfaces, and put up physical barriers between the cats and the public.
Basically, it would have ruined the whole atmosphere.
The museum fought back. They argued the cats were part of the historic fabric of the home. The legal tug-of-war went all the way to a federal appeals court. In 2012, the court actually ruled in favor of the USDA, saying the cats affected interstate commerce because people traveled across state lines to see them. However, a compromise was eventually reached. The museum stays licensed, but the cats get to roam free, provided they stay on the property. A high fence with special "cat-proof" rollers at the top keeps them from wandering into the street, and a local vet comes by weekly to check on the "residents."
Architecture, Salt Air, and Feline Maintenance
The house itself is a masterpiece of Spanish Colonial architecture. Built in 1851 by Asa Tift, it’s made of native limestone quarried right from the site. This creates a natural cooling effect, which is a literal lifesaver in the Florida Keys. Hemingway and Pauline added the wrap-around porches and the heavy French shutters.
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Maintenance is constant. Between the salt air eroding the stone and the cats scratching where they shouldn't, the preservation team has their hands full.
What’s interesting is how the cats interact with the furniture. Most of the pieces in the house are original or at least period-accurate. Hemingway’s second wife, Pauline, was a woman of incredible taste. She replaced the ceiling fans—which Ernest hated—with expensive chandeliers she brought back from Europe. One of the most famous is the Venetian glass chandelier in the dining room. It’s delicate. It’s priceless. And somehow, the cats have the collective wisdom not to swing from it.
The Cat Cemetery
Behind the main house, there’s a quiet corner that honestly hits you harder than you’d expect. It’s the cat cemetery. Little concrete markers lined up in the dirt, each one inscribed with the name of a cat that once called this place home.
- Kim Novak
- Gertrude Stein
- Willard Scott
- Sophia Loren
It’s a reminder that this isn’t just a tourist trap. It’s a lineage. When a cat passes away, the staff honors them with a burial on the grounds. This tradition has been going on for decades, reinforcing the idea that the cats aren't just "features" of the museum—they are the soul of it. Visitors often leave flowers or coins at the markers. It’s a bit sentimental, sure, but in a place as eccentric as Key West, it fits.
Is it Worth the Trip?
If you hate cats, probably not. You’re going to see them everywhere. They are on the beds (which you can't touch, but they can), under the tropical plants, and occasionally guarding the gift shop.
But if you appreciate the intersection of literary history and quirky animal behavior, the Key West cat house is a pilgrimage. There’s something deeply humanizing about knowing that one of the toughest, most "masculine" writers in the American canon spent his afternoons worrying about a bunch of six-toed kittens. It softens the Hemingway myth. He wasn't just the guy wrestling marlins and running with the bulls; he was the guy who built a special drinking fountain for his cats out of a recycled urinal from Sloppy Joe’s bar.
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Yeah, that’s a real thing. It’s still in the yard. Pauline tiled over it to make it look "classy," but Ernest insisted on keeping it because the cats liked the constant drip of fresh water.
Managing the Feline Legacy
Today, the colony is incredibly stable. They use a "replacement only" policy. They don't just keep adding cats; when the population dips, they allow a litter to be born or bring in another polydactyl to maintain the numbers. Every cat is spayed or neutered once they reach a certain age, except for a select few kept for breeding to ensure the six-toed gene survives.
It's a delicate balance. You can't have 200 cats roaming a small acre of land. The smell alone would be a nightmare in the Florida heat. But walk through the gardens today, and you won't smell a thing. The grounds are immaculate. The cats are groomed. It’s a professional operation that manages to feel like a lazy Sunday afternoon.
If you’re planning to visit, keep a few things in mind. First, don’t pick them up. They’re friendly, but they have boundaries. Second, look at their feet. It sounds weird, but seeing those extra "thumbs" in person is fascinating. It’s a tangible link to a gift given to a writer nearly a century ago.
Actionable Tips for Your Visit
To get the most out of your time at the Hemingway Home, skip the middle of the day. The heat is brutal, and the crowds are thick.
- Go Early: The museum opens at 9:00 AM. Being there first means you get to see the cats during their most active hour before they retreat into the shade for a 16-hour nap.
- Take the Tour: Even if you’re just there for the cats, the guides are fonts of bizarre knowledge. They’ll tell you which cat is currently the "boss" of the garden and which ones have a feud going on.
- Bring Cash: Key West is surprisingly old-school in some places, and while the museum takes cards, having some small bills for local tips or quick snacks nearby is just easier.
- Check the Weather: If a hurricane or tropical storm is brewing, the cats are moved into a reinforced "cat bunker" on the property. They’ve survived every major storm for decades, including Irma, where the staff stayed on-site to make sure every single feline was safe.
- Look for the Penny: Finding the "last cent" embedded by the pool is a fun scavenger hunt item.
The story of the Hemingway cats isn't just about biology or celebrity pets. It’s about how we preserve the small, living pieces of history. The house is a shell, the furniture is wood and fabric, but the cats are a direct, breathing connection to the man who lived there. They are the living ghosts of Old Key West.