At his request, Hemingway's widow transferred ownership of the cottage to his younger sister Madelaine, who used it until her own death.

[4] It later passed to Hemingway's nephew, Ernie Mainland,[5] but he died in 2021 and was survived by his wife Judy and their son Ken.

[5] The main section of the cottage contains the sleeping and living rooms, along with a bathroom and utility closet.

[6] A smaller "annex" building, constructed a few years after the main cottage, stands a few yards away.

[6] Hemingway used the northern Michigan setting in a number of his works,[6] most featuring his character Nick Adams.