Explore the real-world places that appear in Southernmost by Silas House. Each location on the map shows what happens there in the novel, the real history of the place, and what's there today. Featured locations include Southernmost Point Buoy, Mallory Square, Duval Street, Key West Harbor Walk, Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park and 6 more.
South Street & Whitehead Street — the continental U.S. endpoint
Key West is the destination of Asher Sharp's flight south with his young son Parker. Asher, the Tennessee preacher who has lost everything after defending two gay men, hopes to find his estranged brother Luke here. The southernmost tip of the country stands for the end of the road and the place where Asher must face who he is.
The concrete buoy marker was installed in 1983 by the city of Key West to mark the southernmost point of the continental United States. It replaced earlier painted signs and has become the island's most photographed landmark.
The large painted buoy draws long lines of visitors taking photos, especially at sunrise. It sits at the end of Whitehead Street, a short walk from Cuba-facing shoreline.
Visit: Southernmost Point Buoy (monument)
Mallory Square Dock — sunset gathering place
As Asher and Parker settle into Key West, they encounter the island's open, eccentric community. Gathering places like the waterfront at sunset show Asher a culture of acceptance very different from his Tennessee congregation. The scenes reflect the freedom he finds as he searches for Luke.
Mallory Square was a busy wharf for wrecking and shipping in the 19th century. The sunset celebration tradition began in the 1960s with street performers and artists.
Every evening crowds gather for the Sunset Celebration, with performers, vendors, and cruise visitors. The square is also next to the Key West Aquarium and Custom House museum.
Visit: Mallory Square (landmark)
Old Town — the island's main thoroughfare
Duval Street is the lively center of Key West life, where Asher walks with Parker amid bars, shops, and colorful crowds. For a man raised in conservative East Tennessee, the openness of gay couples and street life is both startling and healing. He searches the faces for any sign of Luke.
Duval Street runs about a mile from the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic, and was the commercial spine of Key West since the 19th century. It became a hub of the island's LGBTQ and bohemian culture in the late 20th century.
Lined with restaurants, bars, galleries, and shops, Duval remains the center of Key West nightlife. It is walkable and popular with tourists.
Visit: Duval Street (landmark)
Historic Seaport — working waterfront
The waterfront and marinas form a backdrop for Asher's attempts to build a new life on the island, where he takes odd jobs and Parker discovers the sea. The water recalls the Tennessee flood that began his downfall, but here it brings a measure of peace.
The Key West Historic Seaport, formerly Key West Bight, was a hub for sponge, shrimp, and fishing fleets. It was redeveloped in the 1990s into a promenade.
The harbor walk is lined with restaurants, charter boat operators, and bars. Visitors can book snorkel, sailing, and fishing trips.
Visit: Key West Historic Seaport (landmark)
Southard Street — beach on the island's southwestern tip
Beaches and quiet shoreline spots let Asher and Parker rest from the road and the fear of being caught. Here Asher reflects on the son he took and on the family and church he left behind. The shoreline is the setting for tender father-son moments.
Construction on the fort began in 1845 and it played a role in the Civil War, when it helped keep Key West in Union hands. It was later a Spanish-American War installation and was opened as a state park in 1976.
The park offers the best beach in Key West, snorkeling, picnic areas, and guided tours of the fort. It is a popular sunset spot.
Visit: Fort Zachary Taylor Historic State Park (park)
Margaret Street — the island's famous above-ground tombs
Death and memory haunt Asher's story, and Key West's unusual cemetery reflects the island's own mix of folklore and humor. His wandering through the town brings him to reflect on family, loss, and the brother he abandoned. The island setting confronts him with questions of mortality and forgiveness.
The cemetery was established in 1847 after a hurricane washed the old graveyard out to sea. It is known for above-ground burials and witty epitaphs such as "I told you I was sick."
The 19-acre cemetery is open to the public and offers guided tours. Visitors come to see the quirky gravestones and historic burials.
Visit: Key West Cemetery (historic site)
Whitehead Street — literary landmark
Key West's literary and artistic heritage forms part of the island's welcoming atmosphere, and the town's tolerance for outsiders is what draws Luke and others to it. Asher, looking for his brother, moves through this community of artists, drifters, and exiles.
The Spanish Colonial house was built in 1851 and Ernest Hemingway lived there from 1931 to 1939, writing parts of A Farewell to Arms and To Have and Have Not. It was converted to a museum in 1964.
The museum is famous for its polydactyl cats descended from Hemingway's pets. Guided tours explore the house and gardens.
Visit: Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum (museum)
Eaton Street area — inclusive faith community
Faith is central to Asher's story. Once a fiery evangelical preacher, he has to reimagine what faith means after his congregation rejects him for sheltering gay men. Encountering welcoming religious communities in Key West contrasts with the judgment he fled in Tennessee.
Key West has a long tradition of diverse congregations and became a refuge for LGBTQ residents from the 1970s onward. Inclusive churches have been part of its civic life.
Several churches in Old Town offer services welcoming to LGBTQ worshippers. They are active community centers.
U.S. Route 1 — the road south through the Keys
Asher drives Parker down the long causeway of the Keys, the last stretch of their flight from Tennessee. The bridges over open water mark a threshold between his old life and the unknown, with fear of pursuit giving way to hope of finding Luke.
The Overseas Highway was built in 1938 over the roadbed of Henry Flagler's Over-Sea Railroad, which was damaged by the 1935 Labor Day hurricane. The current Seven Mile Bridge opened in 1982.
The bridge is a scenic stretch of U.S. 1 connecting Marathon and the Lower Keys. The old bridge alongside is a pedestrian and fishing area.
Visit: Seven Mile Bridge (landmark)
Whitehead Street — historic beacon
Lights and signals recur as the novel's imagery of guidance. As Asher wanders the island with Parker, looking for any sign of his brother, he seeks a beacon of his own to help him find where he belongs.
The lighthouse was built in 1848 after an earlier tower was destroyed by the 1846 hurricane. It served until 1969 and was restored as a museum.
Visitors can climb the 88 steps to the top for views across the island. The keeper's quarters house exhibits about maritime history.
Visit: Key West Lighthouse and Keeper's Quarters Museum (museum)
Home region of Asher Sharp's church and the flood
The story begins in rural Tennessee, where a devastating flood destroys homes and Asher Sharp, the preacher at a local evangelical church, shelters two gay men. His wife Lacey and his congregation turn against him, and a court takes custody of his son Parker. This is the wound that sends Asher fleeing south.
The Cumberland Plateau region of Tennessee is rural Appalachian country with a strong tradition of evangelical Christianity. Flooding in the region's rivers and hollows has caused repeated disasters, including major floods in 2010.
The area is known for state parks, small towns, and outdoor recreation. Churches remain central to community life.
More by Silas House: All Silas House books
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