The Edgar Allan Poe Cottage (or Poe Cottage) is the former home of American writer
Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wide ...
. It is located on Kingsbridge Road and the
Grand Concourse in the
Fordham neighborhood of
the Bronx
The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...
,
New York,
a short distance from its original location, and is now in the northern part of Poe Park.
The cottage is a part of the
Historic House Trust
The Historic House Trust of New York City was formed in 1989 as a public-private partnership with the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation to preserve the historic houses located within New York City parks, although most of the houses ...
, listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
,
has been administered by the
Bronx County Historical Society since 1975,
and is believed to have been built in 1797.
[ ''See also:'' ]
History
Poe family years
The Poe family—which included Edgar, his wife
Virginia Clemm
Virginia Eliza Poe ( née Clemm; August 15, 1822 – January 30, 1847) was the wife of American writer Edgar Allan Poe. The couple were first cousins and publicly married when Virginia Clemm was 13 and Poe was 27. Biographers disagree as to the n ...
, and her mother Maria—moved in around May 1846
[Silverman, Kenneth. ''Edgar Allan Poe: Mournful and Never-ending Remembrance''. New York: Harper Perennial, 1991: 301. ] after living for a short time in
Turtle Bay, Manhattan
Turtle Bay is a neighborhood in New York City, on the east side of Midtown Manhattan. It extends from roughly 43rd Street to 53rd Streets, and eastward from Lexington Avenue to the East River's western branch (facing Roosevelt Island).Gine ...
.
[Meyers, Jeffrey. ''Edgar Allan Poe: His Life and Legacy''. New York: Cooper Square Press, 1992: 193. .] At the time, Fordham was rural, not yet a part of the Bronx, and was only recently connected to the city by rail.
[ The cottage, which was then on Kingsbridge Road to the east of its intersection with Valentine Avenue, was small and simple: it had on its first floor a sitting room and kitchen and its unheated second floor had a bedroom and Poe's study. On the front porch the family kept caged songbirds.][ The home sat on of land and Poe paid either $5 rent per month] or $100 per year. Its owner, John Valentine, had bought it from a man named Richard Corsa on March 28, 1846,[Quinn, Arthur Hobson. ''Edgar Allan Poe: A Critical Biography''. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1998: 507. .] for $1000.[Phillips, Mary E. ''Edgar Allan Poe: The Man''. Volume II. Chicago: The John C. Winston Co., 1926: 1115.]
The family seemed to enjoy the home, despite its small size and minimal furnishings. "The cottage is very humble", a visitor said, "you wouldn't have thought decent people could have lived in it; but there was an air of refinement about everything."[Silverman, Kenneth. ''Edgar Allan Poe: Mournful and Never-ending Remembrance''. New York: Harper Perennial, 1991: 302. ] A friend of Poe's years later wrote: "The cottage had an air of taste and gentility... So neat, so poor, so unfurnished, and yet so charming a dwelling I never saw." In a letter to a friend, Poe himself wrote: "The place is a beautiful one."[ Maria wrote years later: "It was the sweetest little cottage imaginable. Oh, how supremely happy we were in our dear cottage home!" Poe's final short story, "Landor's Cottage", was likely inspired by the home.][
In this home, Poe wrote his poems "]Annabel Lee
"Annabel Lee" is the last complete poem composed by American author Edgar Allan Poe. Like many of Poe's poems, it explores the theme of the death of a beautiful woman.Meyers, Jeffrey. ''Edgar Allan Poe: His Life and Legacy''. New York: Cooper Sq ...
" and "Ulalume
"Ulalume" () is a poem written by Edgar Allan Poe in 1847. Much like a few of Poe's other poems (such as " The Raven", " Annabel Lee", and " Lenore"), "Ulalume" focuses on the narrator's loss of his beloved due to her death. Poe originally wrote t ...
" while the family cat sat on his shoulder. During his time here, he also published his series on "The Literati of New York City", controversial gossip-like discussions of literary figures and their work, including Nathaniel Parker Willis
Nathaniel Parker Willis (January 20, 1806 – January 20, 1867), also known as N. P. Willis,Baker, 3 was an American author, poet and editor who worked with several notable American writers including Edgar Allan Poe and Henry Wadsworth Longfello ...
, Charles Frederick Briggs, Thomas Dunn English
Thomas Dunn English (June 29, 1819 – April 1, 1902) was an American Democratic Party politician from New Jersey who represented the state's 6th congressional district in the House of Representatives from 1891 to 1895. He was also a published ...
, Margaret Fuller
Sarah Margaret Fuller (May 23, 1810 – July 19, 1850), sometimes referred to as Margaret Fuller Ossoli, was an American journalist, editor, critic, translator, and women's rights advocate associated with the American transcendentalism movemen ...
, and Lewis Gaylord Clark
Lewis Gaylord Clark (October 5, 1808 – November 3, 1873) was an American magazine editor and publisher.
Biography
Clark was born in Otisco, New York in 1808.Miller, Perry. ''The Raven and the Whale: The War of Words and Wits in the Era of Poe ...
. As their publisher Louis Antoine Godey
Louis Antoine Godey (June 6, 1804 – November 29, 1878) was an American editor and publisher. He was the founder of ''Godey's Lady's Book'' in 1837, the first successful American women's fashion magazine.
Biography
Godey was born to Louis and Ma ...
announced in his '' Lady's Book'', they would soon "raise some commotion in the literary emporium."
The Poe family befriended their neighbors, including the family of John Valentine, and Poe even served as a sponsor for baptism
Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost inv ...
for one of the local boys who was named "Edgar Albert". Poe also became friendly with the faculty at what was then St. John's College, now Fordham University
Fordham University () is a Private university, private Jesuit universities, Jesuit research university in New York City. Established in 1841 and named after the Fordham, Bronx, Fordham neighborhood of the The Bronx, Bronx in which its origina ...
. He found the faculty to be "highly cultivated gentleman and scholars hosmoked, drank, and played cards like gentleman, and never said a word about religion."
During the Poe family's time in the cottage, Virginia struggled with tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...
. Family friend Mary Gove Nicholls wrote: "One felt that she was almost a disrobed spirit, and when she coughed it was made certain that she was rapidly passing away." Virginia died in the cottage's first floor bedroom on January 30, 1847. She was buried in the vault of the Valentine family on February 2. Poe died a couple of years later on October 7, 1849, while in Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
. At Fordham, Maria did not hear of his death until October 9, after he was already buried. Shortly thereafter, she moved out of the cottage to live with a family in Brooklyn for a time.
Relocation
The cottage's immediate use following the Poe family is uncertain; however, it was reported to be occupied by an 'old southern lady'. In 1874, an article by M. J. Lamb published in ''Appleton's Journal'' described a pilgrimage to the site and noted the cottage was "dreadfully out of repair". The cottage was sold at auction in 1889 for $775 to William Fearing Gill in the first step of preservation
Preservation may refer to:
Heritage and conservation
* Preservation (library and archival science), activities aimed at prolonging the life of a record while making as few changes as possible
* ''Preservation'' (magazine), published by the Nat ...
after the Parks Department found it to be too expensive a proposition with rent approximately four times what Poe paid. Gill would later become Poe's first American biographer.
In 1895, the New York Shakespeare Society purchased the Cottage for use as a headquarters with the promise that it would be maintained in the condition in which Poe used it. However, concerns about any move of the cottage sprung up almost immediately. An article titled "Shall We Save the Poe Cottage at Fordham" was published in ''The Review of Reviews'' in 1896, urging the New York State
New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...
Legislature
A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make law
Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its p ...
to act on preserving the home with endorsements from Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...
, Hamlin Garland
Hannibal Hamlin Garland (September 14, 1860 – March 4, 1940) was an American novelist, poet, essayist, short story writer, Georgist, and psychical researcher. He is best known for his fiction involving hard-working Midwestern farmers.
Biog ...
, William Dean Howells
William Dean Howells (; March 1, 1837 – May 11, 1920) was an American realist novelist, literary critic, and playwright, nicknamed "The Dean of American Letters". He was particularly known for his tenure as editor of ''The Atlantic Monthly'', ...
, Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work.
...
, Thomas Wentworth Higginson
Thomas Wentworth Higginson (December 22, 1823May 9, 1911) was an American Unitarian minister, author, abolitionist, politician, and soldier. He was active in the American Abolitionism movement during the 1840s and 1850s, identifying himself with ...
, Henry Cabot Lodge
Henry Cabot Lodge (May 12, 1850 November 9, 1924) was an American Republican politician, historian, and statesman from Massachusetts. He served in the United States Senate from 1893 to 1924 and is best known for his positions on foreign policy. ...
, Horace Scudder
Horace Elisha Scudder (October 16, 1838 – January 11, 1902) was an American man of letters and editor.
Biography
He was born into a Boston family as the youngest of seven siblings—six brothers and one sister. His siblings included Davi ...
and others.
In 1905, it was announced that $100,000 had been authorized by the state legislature for the restoration of the cottage and creation of a park in which to house the cottage after the owners were reported to be denying visitors access to the cottage. The restoration and park creation were not without complaint, and many felt the money would be better spent on other ventures and further that the cottage's authenticity would be lost if it were to be moved. The decision to move was finally made in 1910 and on November 13, 1913, Poe Cottage in Poe Park was dedicated at the corner of Kingsbridge Road and the Grand Concourse. In 1922, further reconstruction was undertaken by the New York Historical Society to restore the cottage to its original condition.
Recent history
In 1962, Poe's Cottage was designated a Bronx landmark
A landmark is a recognizable natural or artificial feature used for navigation, a feature that stands out from its near environment and is often visible from long distances.
In modern use, the term can also be applied to smaller structures or f ...
, and in 1966 it was recognized by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission
The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting New York City's architecturally, historically, and cu ...
as an official city landmark. In 1974 vandals
The Vandals were a Germanic peoples, Germanic people who first inhabited what is now southern Poland. They established Vandal Kingdom, Vandal kingdoms on the Iberian Peninsula, Mediterranean islands, and North Africa in the fifth century.
The ...
struck, as in the past, leading to further criticism of the Cottage's management and preservation efforts.
Vandalism continued to occur over the next few years, though it tapered off by the end of the following decade, becoming less of a risk due in part to the increased use of live-in caretakers. In the late 1990s, the cottage was under the care of a graduate student in philology
Philology () is the study of language in oral and writing, written historical sources; it is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics (with especially strong ties to etymology). Philology is also defin ...
who lived in the basement.
In 2007, the proposed Visitors Center for the Cottage and Bronx Historical Society in Poe Park was honored by the New York City Art Commission's 2007 Design Awards. The visitor center, designed by Toshiko Mori, opened in 2008 and was the first NYC Parks project completed under mayor Michael Bloomberg
Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman, politician, philanthropist, and author. He is the majority owner, co-founder and CEO of Bloomberg L.P. He was Mayor of New York City from 2002 to 2013, and was a ca ...
's Design and Construction Excellence Initiative.
See also
* Edgar Allan Poe Museum in Richmond, Virginia
* Edgar Allan Poe House and Museum
The Edgar Allan Poe House and Museum, located at 203 North Amity St. in Baltimore, Maryland, is the former home of American writer Edgar Allan Poe in the 1830s. The small unassuming structure, which was opened as a writer's house museum in 1949, ...
in Baltimore, Maryland
* Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site
The Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site is a preserved home once rented by American author Edgar Allan Poe, located at 532 N. 7th Street, in the Spring Garden neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Though Poe lived in many houses over s ...
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
* List of New York City Designated Landmarks in the Bronx
* National Register of Historic Places listings in the Bronx
List of Registered Historic Places in Bronx County, New York (Borough of The Bronx):
This is intended to be a complete list of the 76 properties and districts listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Bronx County, New York. The ...
References
External links
Bronx Historical Society: Edgar Allan Poe Cottage
NYC Dept. of Parks & Recreation: Edgar Allan Poe Cottage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Poe, Edgar Allan, Cottage
Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in the Bronx
Houses completed in 1797
Biographical museums in New York City
Historic house museums in New York City
New York City Designated Landmarks in the Bronx
Museums in the Bronx
Literary museums in the United States
Houses in the Bronx
Edgar Allan Poe
Fordham, Bronx
Poe, Edgar Allan Cottage
Relocated buildings and structures in New York City