The history of this city begins with the Romans who would use the city for its hot springs, which were an extremely important part of Roman life. Not only were these hot springs a center for healing and cleanliness, but they were also used for entertainment and worship. They were even used as places to serve food and alcoholic drinks on special occasions.

During the Middle Ages, Bath was used as a center for wool production and milling. This was fairly common for western England at the time as wool had become the most common textile used to make clothing.

Although the baths or hot springs were still around during this period, they weren’t well maintained. However, throughout the town’s history, the baths themselves were believed to have health and healing benefits (even to this day). Whether you were bathing in or drinking the sulfurous waters, they were said to have been the cure of nerves, gout, etc.

Jane Austen made her stay in Bath from 1801-1806, though she had previously stayed in the city for a month. The family’s stay in the city was a plan of retirement for her father, who ended up dying during their stay in January of 1805. The family remained in the city for roughly a year after her father’s death, before leaving the city of Bath in the summer of 1806. Although it was clearly a major source of inspiration for the writing, she wasn’t exactly happy during her stay. Later after leaving the city, she wrote to her sister Cassandra stating, “It will be two years tomorrow since we left Bath for Clifton, with what happy feelings of escape.”

On the same subject, Margaret Ward of The Irish Times wrote, “Although Austen enjoyed her early visits to Bath she was not at all happy when her father moved the family there, and she often satirized its social scene of balls, promenades and assemblies.” When they first moved to Bath, Austen and her family stayed on Gay Street which is located near the center of the city. However, they later took up in less luxurious lodgings as the family’s financial situation had declined. This was a theme that pervaded in one of the novels that the city inspired, Persuasion.

Although Austen herself may not have loved her time there, it did provide the perfect place of inspiration for her writing. It was a town entirely devoted to socializing pursuits and creating arrangements such as marriages- subject matter that Austen herself was most adept at crafting in her own writing.

The town of Bath continues to tout its relationship with Jane Austen to this day, holding events in her honor such as the Jane Austen Ball and the Jane Austen Festival, both of which encourage patrons to come dressed in 19th century period costumes.

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Whitby Abbey: Dracula

Located in Yorkshire, England (yes, not the infamous Transylvania) is the Whitby Abbey which provided the inspiration for the classic novel Dracula. Bram Stoker was visiting Yorkshire in 1890 when he stumbled upon the crumbling ruins of the 7th Century Christian Monastery and he found the gothic architecture so haunting that it inspired this classic tale. The structure still stands today and as the fog sets into the town looming below and the waves of the North Sea crash against the shore… well, one can see why he chose it.

Top Withens: Wuthering Heights

This decaying farmhouse in West Yorkshire, England is said to have provided some inspiration for the novel Wuthering Heights. Although physically the farmhouse doesn’t bear much resemblance to the family home in Emily Bronte’s novel, there is a plaque affixed to the ruins indicating that the farmhouse bears an association with the book. This countryside is said to have inspired many writers also including Bram Stoker.

Mark Twain Cave: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

In Mark Twain’s hometown of Hannibal, Missouri there is a small cave that provided the inspiration for McDougal’s Cave from the novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Formerly known as the McDowell Cave, the location was renamed in honor of the renowned author after it provided inspiration for a pivotal location in his book.

Bath, England: Persuasion

Jane Austen resided in Bath, England from 1801 to 1806 and this town became the inspiration and setting for her novel Persuasion. Not only was the town the center of fashion and nobility in the early 19th century, but it also became the location where her characters socialized, attended balls, and attempted to arrange marriages. Many of Bath’s addresses are included in the novel and Bath itself still honors Austen with events like the Jane Austen Ball and the Jane Austen Festival.

Sands Point, NY: The Great Gatsby

Sands Point, NY, a small village along the north shore of Long Island, provided the inspiration for Easter Egg in the famous F. Scott Fitzgerald novel, The Great Gatsby. The area is home to a French Normandy-style mansion, which was once owned by Fitzgerald’s friend Mary Harriman Rumsey, is said to have inspired the lavish mansion parties featured in the story.

Stanley Hotel: The Shining

Stephen King’s inspiration for his haunting novel The Shining came in the form of a precarious hotel in Estes Park, Colorado. A member of the Dorrance family recently visited The Stanley Hotel and thought it best to share the story with fellow writers: “Finding inspiration for a story that will capture an audience’s attention can be a writer’s biggest battle. Inspiration will not find you, you have to go out into the world and find it yourself. A change in scenery and pressure will likely be the key to creating an award-winning story. In Stephen King’s case, he drove north for a few hours, climbing treacherous winding roads leading to an eerie place named the Stanley Hotel. Not only did the ghostly hotel, surrounded by the steep mountains of Colorado, fuel his inspiration, but the pressure to perform had him on edge to create a masterpiece. He was under a self-imposed deadline due to the fact that he had to pay for his room each additional night in which he did not find the right idea. The fact is, that this combination of stress and inspirational atmosphere was the perfect concoction in order for him to create one of the most notable novels in history.”

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