Edgar Allan Poe was born at 33 Hollis Street, Boston, Massachusetts, on January 19,
1809. His parents were David and Elizabeth Poe. Both of them were actors. However, his
father was unsuccessful in his acting and also drank very heavily. (The New Book of Knowledge,
Shortly after Edgar's birth, the Poe's moved to New York, where Edgar's father, David,
either died or deserted them. Mrs. Poe was left alone with Edgar and some time after gave birth
to a daughter. Despite Mrs. Poe's failing health, she continued with her acting career. In the
winter of 1811, her health worsened, and on December 8th, she died of tuberculosis. At this time,
Edgar was two years old, and he was taken into the home of John Allan, a wealthy Richmond
merchant, while her daughter was given to Mr. and Mrs. William Mackenzie. The Allan's and
Mackenzie's were close friends and neighbors.
While staying in Allan's home, Edgar's nurse often took him to the servant's courters
to listen to ghost stories. These stories were the first inspirations for the strange tales he later
wrote. (WWW.pambytes.com/poe/bio.html)
Edgar began school in Richmond at an early age. In 1815 the family sailed to England
, taking Edgar with them. He attended several different boarding schools before returning back to
the United States in August 1820. The young Poe talks about his early school days in his story
"William Wilson." Later Poe entered the University of Virginia, where he showed remarkable
scholastic ability in classical and romance languages. Unfortunately, heavy debts forced him to
leave after only one term. Desperate for money, he went to Boston on a coal barge looking for
work but was unable to find any. Although he did meet a young printer, who had agreed to
publish some of his poems. Still, in need of money, Poe was forced into the United States Army on
May 26, 1827. He remained there until 1829 when he went to see his d...