Fun Facts Friday: Louis Bromfield

Louis Bromfield (27 December, 1896 – 18 March, 1956) was an American author, scientist, and conservationist who won the Pulitzer Prize.

Best man Louis Bromfield (center) at the wedding of Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall 

Books by Louis Bromfield*

1. Mr. Bromfield was born in Mansfield, OH as Louis Brumfield. He decided to change the spelling of his last name after it was misspelled on one of his early works.
2. Mr. Bromfield studied agriculture at Cornell University, then transferred to Columbia University to study Journalism.
3. He left Columbia before he was in for year to server in World War I, Mr. Bromfield served with the American Field Service.
4. He was awarded the Croix de Guerre and the Legion of Honor.
5. After the war, Mr. Bromfield landed a job as a reporter in New York City.
6. The Green Bay Tree, his first novel, was an instant hit. In 1927 Mr. Bromfield won the Pulitzer Prize for his novel Early Autumn. In fact, all of his books, thirty in all, were best sellers and several were made into movies.
7. He lived all his life near Mansfield, and made his home at the 1,000 acre Malabar Farm.
8. Malabar Farm was the location for the wedding of Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall, where Mr. Bromfield was the best man.
9. Malabar Farm is now a state park which operates under the author’s management philosophy.
10. The author was elected to the Ohio Agricultural Hall of Fame after he passed away, and a bust is placed in a lobby named for him in the Ohio Department of Agriculture’s headquarters.

Books by Louis Bromfield*

Zohar – Man of la Book
*Ama­zon links point to an affil­i­ate account