Best Short Stories - Edgar Allan Poe (ePub)

Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston, United States, on January 19, 1809. The son of itinerant actors, his father left when he was one year old, and the following year his mother passed away. At the age of two, he was adopted by a wealthy Scottish merchant. He began his early studies in Glasgow, Scotland, and attended a boarding school in London, where the family settled. By 1820, he had returned to the United States and continued his studies at a school in Richmond, Virginia. In 1823, he wrote his first poems. In 1826, he enrolled at the University of Virginia. During this time, he became involved with gambling and alcohol and had a tumultuous relationship with his adoptive father. In 1827, he published his first book of poems, "Tamerlane and Other Poems." In 1829, he moved in with his aunt and cousin. In 1830, Allan Poe entered West Point Military Academy. After eight months, he was expelled for disciplinary reasons. In 1831, he published the book "Poems." In 1833, he received a prize from the Saturday Visitor for his "Manuscript Found in a Bottle." In 1835, Allan Poe became the literary editor of the Southern Literary Messenger. That same year, he married his 13-year-old cousin. His struggles with alcohol worsened, leading to dismissal from his job. He moved to New York, where he worked for several periodicals and continued to write. In 1847, his wife died, exacerbating his alcoholism. In 1849, after traveling from Richmond to Baltimore, he became disoriented in the streets, found drunk and delirious in a tavern, and was taken to a hospital where he spent his last days. Edgar Allan Poe died in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, on October 7, 1849.