Sarah Helen Power Whitman (January 19, 1803 – June 27, 1878) was an American poet, essayist, transcendentalist, spiritualist and a romantic interest of

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 wid ...

Early life

Whitman was born in

Providence, Rhode Island Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts ...

on January 19, 1803, exactly six years before Poe's birth. She was the daughter of Nicholas Power and Anna Marsh. In 1828, she married the poet and writer John Winslow Whitman. John had been co-editor of the ''Boston Spectator and Ladies' Album'', which allowed Sarah to publish some of her poetry using the name "Helen". John died in 1833; he and Sarah never had children. Sarah Helen Whitman had a heart condition that she treated with

ether In organic chemistry, ethers are a class of compounds that contain an ether group—an oxygen atom connected to two alkyl or aryl groups. They have the general formula , where R and R′ represent the alkyl or aryl groups. Ethers can again be ...

she breathed in through her

handkerchief A handkerchief (; also called a hankie or, historically, a handkercher or a ) is a form of a kerchief or bandanna, typically a hemmed square of thin fabric which can be carried in the pocket or handbag for personal hygiene purposes such as wi ...

. Whitman was friends with

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 other intellectuals in New England. She became interested in transcendentalism through this social group and after hearing

Ralph Waldo Emerson Ralph Waldo Emerson (May 25, 1803April 27, 1882), who went by his middle name Waldo, was an American essayist, lecturer, philosopher, abolitionist, and poet who led the transcendentalist movement of the mid-19th century. He was seen as a champ ...

lecture in Boston, Massachusetts and in Providence. She also became interested in science, mesmerism, and the occult. She had a penchant for wearing black and a coffin-shaped charm around her neck and may have practiced

séance A séance or seance (; ) is an attempt to communicate with spirits. The word ''séance'' comes from the French word for "session", from the Old French ''seoir'', "to sit". In French, the word's meaning is quite general: one may, for example, spea ...

s in her home on Sundays, attempting to communicate with the dead.

Relationship with Edgar Allan Poe

Whitman and

first crossed paths in Providence in July 1845. Poe was attending a lecture by friend and poet

Frances Sargent Osgood Frances Sargent Osgood ( née Locke; June 18, 1811 – May 12, 1850) was an American poet and one of the most popular women writers during her time.Silverman, 281 Nicknamed "Fanny", she was also famous for her exchange of romantic poems with Edga ...

. As Poe and Osgood walked, they passed the home of Whitman while she was standing in the rose garden behind her house. Poe declined to be introduced to her. By this time, Whitman was already an admirer of Poe's stories. She admitted to her friend Mary E. Hewitt: A friend, Annie Lynch, had asked Whitman to write a poem for a

Valentine's Day Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. It originated as a Christian feast day honoring one or two early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine and, thr ...

party in 1848. She agreed, and wrote one for Poe, though he was not in attendance. Poe heard about the tribute, "To Edgar Allan Poe," and returned the favor by anonymously sending his previously-printed poem " To Helen". Whitman may not have known it was from Poe himself, and she did not respond. Three months later, Poe wrote her an entirely new poem, "To Helen," referencing the moment from several years earlier where Poe first saw her in the rose garden behind her house. Poe was on his way to see Whitman at the time of his alleged suicide attempt. Before boarding a train to Boston from

Lowell, Massachusetts Lowell () is a city in Massachusetts, in the United States. Alongside Cambridge, It is one of two traditional seats of Middlesex County. With an estimated population of 115,554 in 2020, it was the fifth most populous city in Massachusetts as of ...

on his way to Providence, he took two doses of laudanum. By the time he arrived in Boston he was very sick and close to death.Benton, Richard P. "Friends and Enemies: Women in the Life of Edgar Allan Poe" as collected in ''Myths and Reality: The Mysterious Mr. Poe''. Baltimore: Edgar Allan Poe Society, 1987: 19. He spent four days in Providence with her immediately after. Though they shared a common interest in literature, Poe was concerned about Whitman's friends, though he had little regard for many of them, including

Elizabeth F. Ellet Elizabeth Fries Ellet ( Lummis; October 18, 1818 – June 3, 1877) was an American writer, historian and poet. She was the first writer to record the lives of women who contributed to the American Revolutionary War. Born Elizabeth Fries Lummis, ...

, Margaret Fuller, and several other Transcendentalists. He said to her, "My heart is heavy, Helen, for I see that ''your'' friends are not my own." The two exchanged letters and poetry for some time before discussing engagement. After Poe lectured in Providence in December 1848, reciting a poem by

Edward Coote Pinkney Edward Coote Pinkney (October 1, 1802 – April 11, 1828) was an American poet, lawyer, sailor, professor, and editor. Born in London in 1802 when his father was serving as ambassador to the Court of St. James, Pinkney returned with his famil ...

directly to Whitman, she agreed to an "immediate marriage". Poe agreed to remain sober during their engagement — a vow he violated within only a few days. Whitman's mother discovered that Poe was also pursuing Annie Richmond and childhood sweetheart Sarah Elmira Royster. Even so, the wedding had come so close to occurring that, in January 1849, a newspaper in

New London, Connecticut New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States, located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, Connecticut. It was one of the world's three busiest whaling ports for several decade ...

and others announced their union and wished them well. At one point, they chose the wedding date of December 25, 1848,Ehrlich, Eugene and Gorton Carruth. ''The Oxford Illustrated Literary Guide to the United States''. New York: Oxford University Press, 1982: 70. despite criticism of the relationship from friends and enemies alike. Whitman supposedly received an anonymous letter while she was at the library suggesting that Poe had broken his vow to her to stay sober, directly leading to an end of the relationship. Poe said in a letter to Whitman (addressed "Dear Madam") that he blamed her mother for their split.

Rufus Wilmot Griswold Rufus Wilmot Griswold (February 13, 1815 – August 27, 1857) was an American anthologist, editor, poet, and critic. Born in Vermont, Griswold left home when he was 15 years old. He worked as a journalist, editor, and critic in Philadelphia, New Y ...

, Poe's infamous first biographer, claimed that Poe purposely ended his relationship with Whitman the day before their wedding by committing unnamed drunken "outrages" that, as he wrote in his biography, "made necessary a summons of the police".

Later life

Whitman's collection ''Hours of Life, and Other Poems'' was published in 1853. In 1860, eleven years after his death, she published a work in defense of Poe against his critics, aimed especially at Rufus Griswold, entitled ''Edgar Allan Poe and His Critics''. A Baltimore newspaper said the book was a noble effort "but it does not wipe out the... dishonorable records in the biography of Dr. Griswold." The work likely inspired William Douglas O'Connor to write ''The Good Gray Poet'', a similar defense of

Walt Whitman Walter Whitman (; May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892) was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among ...

, published in 1866. She corresponded with Poe's English biographer, John Henry Ingram, who added her letters from Poe and a daguerrotype portrait to the library of material he was assembling; Ingram's Poe collection is now held at the Alderman Library at the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...

. Sarah Helen Whitman died at the age of 75 on June 27, 1878 at the home of a friend at 97 Bowen St. in

, and is buried in the North Burial Ground. In her will, she used the bulk of her estate to publish a volume of her own poetry and that of her sister. She also left money to the Providence Association for the Benefit of Colored Children and the Rhode Island Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.Silverman, Kenneth. ''Edgar A. Poe: Mournful and Never-ending Remembrance''. New York: Harper Perennial, 1991: 521.

References

External links

Sarah Helen Power Whitman on about.com

to and from Poe at the Edgar Allan Poe Society online * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Whitman, Sarah Helen Edgar Allan Poe Writers from Providence, Rhode Island Poets from Rhode Island American women poets 19th-century American women writers 1803 births 1878 deaths 19th-century American poets Burials at North Burying Ground (Providence)