This week’s history blog post went in a little early. A question regarding Pat Conroy and his time spent at his publisher’s cottage writing The Great Santini made me realize I had not shared this story yet on pasttensega.com. Return each Monday morning for another article.

In November of 2013, Pat Conroy appeared at Marcus Jewish Community Center as part of their Book Festival.  He was promoting his new book, “Death of Santini.”   I intentionally attended the event as a fan of his writing and with an important question for the famous author. 

On the property of Life Center Ministries is a historic home that originally belonged to the Ware family.  You can best see the small home by pulling into the church parking lot.  The property was purchased by publisher Norman Berg in 1938 to use for hunting.  He was the Southeast representative for MacMillan Publishers.  He later sold all but five acres, remodeled the barn, and made that his home.  He used the old Ware home as a guest house, letting authors stay there when a quiet place in the country would help them with their writing. 

In Pat Conroy’s “My Reading Life,” he talks about his favorite books and the time in his life that he discovered them.  He recounts the story of Norman Berg inviting him to stay at the cottage on his property, which Berg called Sellanraa.  Conroy wanted to pay his publisher for the time he spent there, but Berg replied, “Complete your novel and that will be payment enough.”

 “The Great Santini” is based on Conroy’s life growing up with his tyrannical father and became a movie in 1979 starring Robert Duvall in the role of the father.  Conroy wrote “Death of Santini” many years later to explain more about his relationship with his father and how it changed over the years.   

Following Pat Conroy’s presentation at MJCC, I took my place in a long line along with many other fans to get his autograph on a couple of books.  As I approached the table and presented my two books, I asked “Is it true that you wrote some of ‘The Great Santini’ in an old historic home near here that was owned by Norman Berg?”  Pat Conroy looked directly at me and responded, “I wrote most of ‘The Great Santini’ in that house.” 

 The home is already historic based on when it was built and the early Ware family story, but this later ownership by Norman Berg and knowing that famous authors considered the home a sanctuary for writing adds extra historical significance. 

The history told is that Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings and Margaret Mitchell also spent time in the cottage.  There are many letters on record between Rawlings (author of “The Yearling”) and Berg.  Also, Conroy mentions their relationship in “My Reading Life,” so it seems likely she stayed there at some point.  As to the story of Margaret Mitchell staying there, Norman Berg was involved in the publication of “Gone with the Wind” and they were definitely acquainted.  There is a reference to Berg reading her manuscript while camping.  Could he have been camping on his own hunting property? 

I have not been able to verify the Margaret Mitchell part of the story, but was able to get confirmation from Pat Conroy. Conroy died March 4, 2016 at the age of 70 in Beaufort, South Carolina.