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Edgar Allan Poe is born
Born in Chelsea, Massachusetts, his father left the family and his mother died when he was young, he became an orphan that was adopted by John Allan. -
Edgar's sister was born
Rosalie Poe was the third child of Elizabeth and David Poe. Her parentage has been debated, from only being a half-sibling of Edgar, to being an adopted orphan unrelated entirely. -
Poe's mother dies
His mother, Elizabeth Arnold Hopkins Poe, died of tuberculosis, when Edgar was only two. -
Poe writes his first poem
His first work was a collection of poetry called Tamerlane and Other Poems, Poe didn't credit himself by name, instead referring to himself as "a Bostonian". -
Enlistment in the army
After his first work was published, Poe enlisted in the U.S. military. He used the name Edgar A. Perry and lied about his age, he rose to the rank of sergeant officer. After his foster mother died, he left to return home. -
Poe's older brother dies.
William Henry Leonard Poe, Edgar's older brother, dies of tuberculosis at 24 -
Poe marries his cousin, Virginia Clemm
Poe obtained a license to marry his cousin Virginia on September 22, 1835, when he was 26, and she was 13. On May 16, 1836, he and Virginia Clemm held a Presbyterian wedding ceremony at their Richmond boarding house, with a witness falsely attesting Clemm's age as 21 -
Poe writes his first novel 'The Narrative of the Arthur Gordon Pym
It's the only complete novel written by Poe. The story starts out as a fairly conventional adventure at sea, but it becomes increasingly strange and hard to classify. -
Poe's story collection Tale of the Grotesque and Arabesque is published in two volumes
The publisher was willing to print the collection based on the recent success of Poe's story, regardless, they refused to pay Poe royalties. -
Poe publishes the poem, The Raven
The poem makes use of folk, mythological, religious, and classical references. -
Poe's wife dies of tuberculosis at their home in the Bronz
It's been debated over if his wife's untimely death affected Poe's later, more depressing works. -
Edgar Allan Poe dies
On October 3, 1849, Poe was found delirious on the streets of Baltimore, He was sent to a hospital, but due to his incoherent nature, he couldn't explain what caused this to happen. All medical records have been lost, including his death certificate.
