(in english) EDGAR ALLAN POE USA 1809 - 1849

The little Edgar was born the 19 th of january, 1809, in Boston. His father died one year later of alcohol abuse, and his mother died of pneumonia in 1811. Orphan at 2 years old, he has a brother who died at the age of 24, alcoholic and tubercular, and a sister who caught at 12 years old a disease that made of her a mentaly alienate all her life long.


He is collected by a rich couple of tobacco wholesalers, in Richmond, where he spend a happy childhood. The family moves in 1815 towards London, where Edgar studies litterature. In 1820, the tobacco rate drops and the familly have to come back in Ricmond. Edgar follows his studies in the best private schools of Richmond and write in 1825 his first poems, all lost at present. He is very influenced by Lord Byron at that period.


Relations between the young Edgar and his adoptive father become tense because Edgar's dream is to live from poetry, whereas his parents would like him to become a merchant. Aged of 26, Edgar rushes to Boston and stays 5 years as artillertman in the Army. Hepublishes at that moment a poem compilation called "a Bostonian", and sold only 50 copies of it. Edgar becomes sergent major but is bored with army.


In 1829, Edgar's adoptive mother dies. He makes peace with his father who helps him to quit the Army, but a money trouble separate again the two men. Edgar, furious, cancels his inscription to the officer of US army's school and goes to live with his aunt, in Baltimore ( see the house plus the room in which he used to write below ). He publishes a second poem compilation called "Al Areef, Tamerlan and other minus poems" in 1829.

After having send many artworks to different reviews, he is rewarded in 1833 with the first prize of the "Baltimore Saturday visitor" 's concourse.


In 1835, he is hired as director of the literature section of the "Southern literary messenger" and become famous thanks to his "Autobiographies", and contributes to increase the review's notoriety.


He marries Virginia Clemm in 1836 ( see below ), aged of 14. His job doesn't satisfy him because he is not payed enough and is tired of reproaches made by his boss, afraid of the increasing influence of Edgar in the review's staff.

At the age of 30, he becomes vice redactor in chief in the "Burton's gentlemen magazine", where he gets on well with the manager. "The fall of the Usher's house" is published for the first time. But the publishing in volumes of the "Contes du Grotesque"has no success.


He quits in the same year this review and tries to create his own review, "The pen magazine", but the project is abandonned.


"The Burton's gentlemen magazine" is bought and re named by a man called Graham, who re-hire Poe and this time, Edgar succeeds in publishing many articles and reviews in the "Graham's gentlemen magazine", and is well paid.


In 1842, whereas she sings for friends, Virginia Poe is victim of an hemorrhage and stay ill during many months. At that period, Poe meets Dickens who promised him to find an editor in Great Britain. In may, Poe leaves the " Graham's gentlemen magazine" and tries again to create his own review. He comes back in Philadelphia, and lives poorly, with very badly paid articles.


In 1844, he accepts a job in the "New York Mirror", runned by one of his friend, and in 1845, the novel "The raven" is published in the Evening Mirror and it's a huge success. This event relaunches Poe's carrieer as a writter, and the famous New York's editors Wiley & Putnam publishes a compilation of his "Contes", then a poem compilation.


Hired next by the "Broadway journal", Edgar eliminates one of the two shareholders of the review, and the second gives him his shares. Edgar's dream comes true : He ownes his own review. Unfortunately, it makes bankrupt in 1946.


In may, Virginia is more and more seriously ill, and the couple moves to Fordham, a Bronx area. The tower of the university ( see below ) gives to Poe the idea of the "Bells" Poems.


Edgar becomes severely ill , and, being unable to write, falls in the complete poorness.


In 1847, Virginia dies at the age of 24. Edgar becomes at that period fond of feminine poems and corrects numerous texts for Mrs Lewis, Mrs Locke Richmond and Mrs Whitman.


In 1848, he absorbs ( we don't know in which circumstances ) a strong dose of Laudanum and nearly dies. Used to drink since his wife is ill, he is often victim of ethylism crisis.

In Novembre, he asks Mrs Whitman if she would agree to marry him, and she is ok, but only if he stops drinking. In december he gives his famous lecture about the Poetic principe.


The 25 th of december, Mrs Whitman receives an anonymous letter telling that Edgar has immoral relations with one of her friend, and that he spend the night before drinking in a tavern. She leaves him at once.


Edgar comes back to Forham and launch again his project of magazine. He leaves New York in 1849 and lives in Richmond, where he finds Mrs Royster Sheton, a poetesse, he thinks about marrying her.


The 27 th of september, he leaves Richmond to arrive in Baltimore the day after. Nobody knows where he was for 3 days, and the 4 th day, the manager of a tavern in Baltimore write to his doctor and to his uncle, asking them to come and fetch Mr Poe, which is drunk. He is brought unconscious to the Washington College Hospital , and gives unlogical answers to questions asked.

He dies officially of a stroke sunday, the 7 th of October 1849 in the night.




He is at first burried in the presbyterian graveyard of Baltimore, then thanks to money collected by the students of the city, is finaly burried in the "Westminster Hall" graveyard, now part of the University of Maryland's Right school ( a huge domain, as you can see below, and a picture of his grave ), in the town of College Park :

Years after, a monument has been build in the former graveyard where he had been burried :


For those who wants to know more :

- The town of Baltimore has a website talking about an Edgar Allan Poe Museum : http://www.ci.baltimore.md.us/government/historic/poehouse.html

- The town of Richmond too has its museum dedicated to Poe : http://www.poemuseum.org/

Charles Baudelaire wrote a bibliography very complete about Poe, and also about the way he was perceived in the USA. These notes are very rich and written in a very clear style :
http://www.ebooksgratuits.com/pdf/poe_sa_vie_son_oeuvre.pdf
Sorry these text is in French, I didn't found it in english, and even don't know if it has been translated in english...