Marguerite spent the next few weeks enjoying the comfortable accommodations at Miss Molly’s in what was later renamed her “ Marguerite Henry Room” and building a life long friendship with the Beebe family. It had to be about this family on this farm and no other pony but this little newborn named Misty. It was as if the story was going to write itself. She said “It was a moment to laugh and cry and pray over, especially if you’d wanted a pony your whole life.” Yes, love at first sight.Īuthor Marguerite Henry with the real-life Misty of Chincoteague. She instantly fell in love with what she called a filly that looked like a rumpled bath mat. There were lots of ponies at the Ranch but Marguerite was drawn to a newborn foal lying between her mother’s protective legs. Henry felt right at home at the Beebe Ranch, Clarence and Ida Beebe were perfectly charming, she also felt an immediate connection when she met Paul and Maureen, the grandchildren living at the farm. A Chincoteague Love Story: Marguerite meets Misty

Clarence was a stockman, he raised Chincoteague Ponies, and he was involved in the Fire Dept and the roundup. Miss Molly told Marguerite that if she wanted to learn about the ponies, there would be no better person to speak to than Clarence “Grandpa” Beebe. She would often spend afternoons on the porch of the inn with Miss Molly and Captain Jack, discussing ideas for the book and getting some much needed advice. Lucky for her, and us all, she picked Miss Molly’s Inn as her home away from home while gathering her ideas for her book. You see, Marguerite Henry came to Chincoteague in 1946, with only a little information about the island and an event called Pony Penning.

Marguerite knew from the moment she saw the new born foal, that the book she was about to write needed to be about Misty, no other pony would do. Well, that is just how Marguerite Henry felt the first time she saw Misty. I’m sure you have heard of love at first sight, or maybe you are lucky enough to have felt that way in your own life. What you might not know is that the author, Marguerite Henry, wrote parts of the book right here on the island and that she was staying at Miss Molly’s Inn at the time. As a visitor to Chincoteague, you’re likely aware of the “Misty of Chincoteague” children’s book.

Author of misty of chincoteague