Poe was Irish on his father’s side, his great-grandfather and grandfather having immigrated to Baltimore from County Cavan, Ireland. This month we’re celebrating those Irish roots and poetical tradition with a Pints for Poe: Dead Irish Poets Edition party to kick-off St. Patrick’s Day weekend. Dead Irish poet-ry readings and traditional Irish music are promised, and this event is sponsored by Baltimore’s own RavenBeer.
Poe Programs will continue at Carroll Mansion this season: we’ve partnered with Carroll Museums to open the historic Carroll Mansion & Phoenix Shot Tower for weekend tours from April thru November. Visit The Poe Death Exhibit and new Ghastly Galentine Pop-up Shop at Carroll Mansion starting April 6: each ticket includes the exhibit, a mansion tour and drop-in access to the Shot Tower. More events, parties, readings and chamber concerts TBA.
Springing forward, next month Poe House will open expanded hours once more, Wednesday thru Sunday. We’re also bringing back monthly bus tours of Edgar Allan Poe’s Baltimore. Stops include Poe House, the site of Poe’s Death, and Poe’s grave and monument at Westminster Hall. Add the Death exhibit and mansion/tower tours for only $6.
P.S. Our commemoration of the 75th Anniversary of the Poe House & Museum in Baltimore continues. Each month we’re sharing facts, points of interest, and hidden history of Poe House, from its savior from demolition in 1940, to the future of the museum as we look ahead to transformation and expansion. This month we delve deeper into the scholarly effort by May Garrettson Evans to research and save Poe House.
Last month we saw a huge outpouring of support from you, Poe Nation, at a time it was truly needed. This month’s newsletter is a Valentine to all the ticket-donors and supporters who exceeded our goal with $7K raised for Poe House for Poe’s 215th Birthday. It takes more than love to keep our mission going, and these wonderful people contributed.
Very special thanks to Chris Riehl at Baltimore Rent-A-Tour, Academy Buses, and Westminster Hall, as well as the team at the NSA’s National Cryptologic Museum and Poe’s Magic Theatre for rescheduling for next year!
Finally, the focus in February is on Valentines, but as we’ve seen, love comes in many forms, including friendship and inspiration. To that end, our Ghastly Galentine’s Pop-up Shopping Event is next week; tickets are moving fast. And call for entries has opened for the 2024 Saturday ‘Visiter’ Awards, recognizing a new generation of artists and writers inspired by Poe. If you are moved to support your literary love, be our Valentine this and every month.
Common sentiment to feel a bit beleaguered after the mad season of the holidays and return to work and school. But beleaguered is bread and butter for us, Poe Nation. Plus there’s little time to feel weary as January is jam-packed with events as we close in on celebrations for Edgar Allan Poe’s 215th Birthday!
Can’t be in Baltimore? The Poe Museum Richmond & The Poe Cottage in NY have birthday celebrations, too!
And finally, we’re very proud to kick off commemoration of the 75th Anniversary of the Poe House & Museum in Baltimore. Each month we’ll share facts, points of interest, and hidden history of Poe House, from its savior from demolition in 1940, to the future of the museum as we look ahead to transformation and expansion. We begin with a list of great events in literary history from 1949, the first year Poe House was opened to the public–read the newsletter here!
Yours in Poe, Enrica Jang Director, Poe Baltimore
P.S. We’re planning a “Ghastly Galentine” event at Carroll Mansion, February 13. Tickets on sale next Friday!
We at Poe Baltimore wish to thank all of you, Poe Nation, for your support and shared love of poetry, literature, and history. As we continue our 10-year retrospective of programming highlights in the Poe Baltimore yearbook, it’s clear that all we have accomplished–and all that we dream to do–only happens with the continued support of our patrons, donors, volunteers, and friends. However you contribute to our mission, past, present or future, Poe Baltimore is thankful for YOU.
Happy recognition of the 10th anniversary of our organization’s founding will roll into a jubilant year of commemoration, as 2024 marks the 75th Anniversary of the Poe House & Museum in Baltimore. We look forward to sharing some of the hidden history of Poe House, from its savior from demolition in 1949, to the future of the museum as we look ahead to transformation and expansion. And don’t forget, 2024 is also the 175th Anniversary of Edgar Allan Poe’s mysterious death in Baltimore, coinciding with the International Edgar Allan Poe Festival & Awards.
Get a sneak peek at the coming year’s programming when you donate for Giving Tuesday: ALL purchases and donations in the Poe House online gift shop through December will include a QR code link to a special festival preview and ticket opportunity!
Yours in Poe,
Enrica Jang Director, Poe Baltimore
P.S. Deadline to complete Poe-inspired works for the 2024 Saturday ‘Visiter’ Awards is December 31! Like or subscribe to our Facebook and YouTube channel to be notified for the return of our LIVE Q&A and Info sessions.
It’s official: 2023 was the absolute biggest and best Poe Fest International on record! Double the vendors, double the events and tours, nearly 3000 attendees estimated over two days, our biggest crowd yet. All proceeds support the Edgar Allan Poe House & Museum in Baltimore. On the 10th aniversary of Poe Baltimore’s stewardship of the museum, thank you to everyone who made this month the biggest POE-tober since our founding.
Couldn’t join us this year? You can still see all the Poe things! Official photos from the street festival and The Black Cat Ball have posted, and for Halloween we will stream The Best of Poe Fest, a compilation of the best events and stage moments from festival weekend. The video also includes the WINNERS of the 2023 Saturday Visiter Awards. Happy Halloween, Poe Nation!
P.S. Deadline for Maryland High School students to enter the YOUNG Saturday Visiter Awards is November 17!
Poe Fest Int’l Tickets On Sale July 1!
We’ve been a little quiet the last two months, preparing for a very, very big announcement about the future of The Edgar Allan Poe House & Museum. Final details remain a tantalizing distance away, but I can assure you we are looking forward to a very exciting festival season and anouncements in the coming weeks. Click to watch our sizzle reel!
Festival weekend event tickets, Black Cat Ball, and Poe House tours go on sale to the public when the clock strikeds midnight July 1. But all you really have to do is SAVE THE DATE: Poe Fest International is for everyone, October 7-8, and General Admission is FREE! Click to read this month’s newsletter.
Yours in Poe,
Enrica Jang
Director, Poe Baltimore
A WellSPRING at Poe
Wherever you are, Poe Nation, you too are more than likely experiencing some kind of maddening weather. Warmer temperatures in Baltimore = a rising pollen count + an uptick in visitors darkening Poe’s chamber door at Amity Street. The season has officially begun!
We can all go back to cold and melancholy when it’s over, but for now we wish our Poe-nation friends and family a warm, happy holiday. May it be filled with love and poetry.
CLICK HERE to read about upcoming events at Poe House, holiday schedules, and the Official 2022-23 Young Saturday Visiter Nominees.
Virginia Poe Bicentennial
It’s time to celebrate! Virginia Eliza Clemm Poe, wife and muse of Edgar Allan Poe, turns 200 on Monday. We will commemorate the occasion with a special Gothic Tea Party and Summer Reception at Westminster Hall & Burying Ground on Saturday, August 13, at 2PM. (Note: Tickets have sold out! Join the waitlist on the Eventbrite page.) Can’t join us? We will stream highlights from the Reception and a special Happy Birthday to Virginia Poe on Monday, 7PM Eastern, on our Facebook & YouTube pages.
Our most poetical year of programming won’t end with Virginia’s birthday, however: several of this year’s International Edgar Allan Poe Festival & Awards events, including the VIP Death Weekend Bus Tours and the NEW Edgar & Virginia Poe Death Exhibit exploring the hidden-history of this enigmatic figure in Poe’s life.
More celebration is in order: Official Nominees for the 2022 Saturday Visiter Awards have been announced! Read our newsletter to see this year’s selection of Poe-inspired works. More about these extraordinary creators coming soon.
Yours in Poe, Enrica Jang
Director, Poe Baltimore
There’s nothing lazy about Summer days at Poe House, though much of the action will be virtual this month.
First, we interrupt our most poetical year of Virginia Poe programming for a Father’s Day parley: join us for “Allan vs. Poe” a discussion about Edgar Allan Poe, John Allan, and fatherhood with POEtic Justice Productions of Ayrshire, Scotland, ancestral home of the man who put the Allan in Edgar Allan Poe.
Next, register to attend the penultimate session in the Virginia Poe Bicentennial Discussion Series, part of a year of monthly programs to commemorate the 200th birthday of Virginia Poe, Edgar Allan Poe’s wife and muse. On June 21 we present “MARRIAGE, The Public Scandals and Private Tragedies of Mr. and Mrs. Poe.”
Finally, this is the last month for PAVERS FOR POE FEST pre-sales before tickets for the International Edgar Allan Poe Festival & Awards go on sale July 1. Look for announcements and a peek at the festival sizzle reel later this month. Read our newsletter for more!
