“Moon Lake” was first published by itself in 1949 in an issue of the Sewanee Review literary magazine [1]. Later that same year, “Moon Lake” was revised and published as a part of Welty’s collection titled The Golden Apples [2]. The Golden Apples is a unique collection of stories. While every story is independent, there are different characters, places, and themes that tell parts of the collective history for the fictional town of Morgana.

Morgana, Mississippi is modeled after the traditions and cultures of small Southern towns, which Welty was quite familiar with. Born and raised in Jackson, Misssissippi, many of Welty’s writings explore numerous aspects of Southern life. In One Writer’s Beginnings, Suzanne Marrs writes that “when [Welty] turned seriously to writing, she drew upon her imagination to transform the world of Mississippi into her own fictional world — one removed from the randomness of daily experience, a world that would be shaped by and centered upon issues she deemed crucial” (16). According to Marrs, “Welty is concerned with Mississippi small towns, with their traditional virtues and limitations, and with their slowly evolving nature,” as well as issues of race and gender (99). 

Welty’s work on The Golden Apples began after World War II, in 1945. However, in 1946, Welty had extended stays in San Francisco to visit close friend John Robinson. It was here that “Moon Lake” was written, at least in part (Marrs 107). While writing the stories that would make up the collection, it was not until many of them were written or planned that Welty decided they fit well together (Marrs 109-110).