| 1809 |
Edgar Allan Poe was born on Jan. 19 in Boston. |
| 1812 |
Poe's parents, David Poe Jr. and Elizabeth Arnold Hopkins, were touring actors; they both died before he was 3 years old, and he was taken into the home of John Allan, a prosperous merchant in Richmond, Va., and baptized Edgar Allan Poe. |
| 1815-1820 |
His childhood was uneventful, although he studied for 5 years in England. |
| 1826 |
He entered the University of Virginia but stayed for only a year. Although a good student, he ran up large gambling debts that Allan refused to pay. Allan prevented his return to the university and broke off Poe's engagement to Sarah Elmira Royster, his Richmond sweetheart. Lacking any means of support, Poe enlisted in the army. |
| 1827 |
Tamerlane and Other Poems, verses written in the manner of Byron.
|
| 1833 |
The MS. Found in a Bottle was originally published. The Philadelphia Saturday Courier published five of his stories -- all comic or satiric -- MS. Found in a Bottle won a $50 prize given by the Baltimore Saturday Visitor.
|
1841 |
The Murders in the Rue Morgue was sometimes considered the first detective story. |
| 1849 |
He died on Oct. 7 in Baltimore. |