30 moments
Birth in Boston
· Boston, Massachusetts, United States
Poe was born in Boston to the actors David Poe Jr. and Eliza Poe. The coordinate is a representative Boston city point; Poe's precise birthplace on Carver Street no longer survives.
Taken into the Allan household
· Richmond, Virginia, United States
After his mother’s death, the young Poe entered the household of John and Frances Allan, beginning his long association with Richmond. The year follows the article's statement that Eliza Poe died a year after Poe's father abandoned the family in 1810.
Grammar school in Irvine
· Irvine, Ayrshire, Scotland, United Kingdom
During the Allan family’s stay in Britain, Poe attended grammar school in Irvine, the Scottish hometown of John Allan.
Boarding school in Chelsea
· Chelsea, London, England, United Kingdom
Poe rejoined the Allan family in London and studied at a boarding school in Chelsea. Coordinate represents Chelsea rather than the unidentified boarding-school building.
Manor House School
· Manor House School, Stoke Newington, London, England, United Kingdom
After leaving Chelsea, Poe attended Reverend John Bransby’s Manor House School in Stoke Newington. The article places this enrollment after summer 1817 but does not provide a more precise date.
Return to Richmond
· Richmond, Virginia, United States
Poe returned with the Allans to Richmond, where he spent his adolescence.
Lafayette visit honor guard
· Richmond, Virginia, United States
Wikimedia Commons · No known copyright restrictions on publication. · file Poe served as lieutenant of Richmond’s youth honor guard during the Marquis de Lafayette’s visit to the city. The source supports the year but not a more precise date.
Student at the University of Virginia
· University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, United States
Wikimedia Commons · Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic · file Poe enrolled at the University of Virginia to study ancient and modern languages.
Thomas Jefferson funeral
· Monticello, Albemarle County, Virginia, United States
A fellow student later reported that Poe attended Thomas Jefferson’s funeral at Monticello while Poe was enrolled at the University of Virginia. The presence claim is a later fellow-student report, and the source gives no exact funeral day.
Travel to Boston
· Boston, Massachusetts, United States
After leaving the University of Virginia, Poe traveled to Boston and supported himself with clerical and newspaper work.
Army enlistment at Fort Independence
· Fort Independence, Boston Harbor, Massachusetts, United States
Using the name Edgar A. Perry, Poe enlisted in the United States Army and first served at Fort Independence in Boston Harbor. May 27 is the enlistment date supplied in the same source passage.
Transfer to Fort Moultrie
· Fort Moultrie, Sullivan's Island, South Carolina, United States
Poe’s First Regiment of Artillery relocated from Boston to Fort Moultrie, where he prepared artillery shells.
Transfer to Fortress Monroe
· Fortress Monroe, Hampton, Virginia, United States
Poe transferred from Fort Moultrie to Fortress Monroe at the entrance to Chesapeake Bay during his Army service. December 1828 is derived from the source's statement that the transfer occurred thirteen months after the November 1827 relocation to Fort Moultrie.
Residence with the Clemm family
· Baltimore, Maryland, United States
After his Army discharge, Poe moved to Baltimore and stayed with his aunt Maria Clemm, cousin Virginia Clemm, brother Henry, and grandmother. The source situates this move after Poe's April 15, 1829 discharge but does not specify a month.
Matriculation at West Point
· United States Military Academy, West Point, New York, United States
Wikimedia Commons · Public domain in the United States because it is a work prepared by an officer or employee of the United States Federal Government as part of that person’s official duties. · file Poe entered the United States Military Academy as a cadet after securing an appointment supported by John Allan.
Departure for New York
· New York City, New York, United States
Wikimedia Commons · Public domain in the United States as a work of the U.S. federal government. · file After leaving West Point, Poe went to New York and issued his third collection, Poems.
Court-martial at West Point
· United States Military Academy, West Point, New York, United States
Wikimedia Commons · Public domain in the United States because it is a work prepared by an officer or employee of the United States Federal Government as part of that person’s official duties. · file Poe was tried at West Point for neglect of duty and disobedience after deliberately refusing required activities in order to leave the academy.
Return to Baltimore
· Baltimore, Maryland, United States
Poe returned to Baltimore to live with his aunt, brother, and cousin after his New York stay.
Return to the Southern Literary Messenger
· Richmond, Virginia, United States
After an initial dismissal, Poe returned to Richmond with Virginia Clemm and Maria Clemm and resumed work at the Southern Literary Messenger. The source places this return in the 1835–January 1837 Messenger period but does not give a more precise date.
Marriage license in Baltimore
· Baltimore, Maryland, United States
Poe obtained a Baltimore license to marry his cousin Virginia Clemm.
Wedding in Richmond
· Richmond, Virginia, United States
Poe and Virginia Clemm were formally married in a Presbyterian ceremony at their Richmond boarding house. The precise boarding-house location is not identified in the source; coordinate represents Richmond.
Relocation to Philadelphia
· Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Wikimedia Commons · Public domain in the United States as a work of the U.S. federal government. · file Poe relocated to Philadelphia, where he would live at five residences and undertake some of his most productive editorial and literary work.
Meeting Charles Dickens
· United States Hotel, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Poe met Charles Dickens at Philadelphia’s United States Hotel; they discussed literature and international copyright. The source dates the meeting to Dickens's 1842 United States tour; coordinate is a representative point for the historic Chestnut Street hotel site.
Residence at 530 North Seventh Street
· 530 North Seventh Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Wikimedia Commons · Public domain in the United States as a work of the U.S. federal government. · file Poe moved with his family into the Philadelphia residence now preserved as the Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site. The National Park Service dates the move to spring 1843 but does not establish a specific month or day.
Departure for New York
· Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Poe and his family left their Philadelphia home for New York, ending his six-year Philadelphia period. The source gives April 6, 1844 as the date of departure; coordinate marks Philadelphia rather than a specific departure point.
Fordham cottage residence
· Edgar Allan Poe Cottage, Fordham, Bronx, New York, United States
After the Broadway Journal failed, Poe moved to a cottage in Fordham, then in New York; Virginia Poe died there the following year.
Lecture in Providence
· Providence, Rhode Island, United States
Wikimedia Commons · Public domain; Creative Commons Public Domain Mark 1.0. · file Poe delivered a version of his lecture later titled “The Poetic Principle” in Providence during his late-career lecture activity. The source does not identify the Providence venue; coordinate represents the city.
The Poetic Principle lecture
· Exchange Hotel, Richmond, Virginia, United States
Poe presented “The Poetic Principle” at Richmond’s Exchange Hotel to a full audience during the final months of his life. The historic Exchange Hotel no longer provides an unambiguous modern map point here; coordinate represents central Richmond.
Found in distress in Baltimore
· Baltimore, Maryland, United States
Poe was found semiconscious in Baltimore in severe distress shortly before his death. The source does not securely establish the exact street location where he was found; coordinate represents Baltimore.
Death at Washington Medical College
· Washington Medical College, Baltimore, Maryland, United States
Wikimedia Commons · Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication · file After being taken to Washington Medical College in Baltimore, Poe died there on October 7, 1849. Coordinate is a representative point for the former Washington Medical College area in Baltimore.