Beyond the Book
Edgar Allan Poe was born Edgar Poe in 1809 to Elizabeth and David Poe, both
actors. They died when he was three and he was taken in by John Allan, a tobacco
merchant living in Virginia. He became estranged from his foster father in
the mid to late 1820s and joined the US Army under the name Edgar Perry - he
served for two years before being discharged with the rank of Sergeant in 1829.
During this time he published his first book, Tamerlane and Other Poems.His foster-mother's deathbed wish was that he would reconcile with his foster-father, who arranged for him to attend the military academy at West Point, but while there he deliberately disobeyed orders and was dismissed - and was promptly disowned by his foster-father again.
Poe moved to...
