Between 1837 to 1844, Edgar Allan Poe lived in a number of homes in the Philadelphia area. Today, this is the only home that remains.
Poe spent five years during that period living in Phillie, and it is considered his most prolific years as a writer, completing "The Tell-Tale Heart", "The Murders in the Rue Morgue," and "The Gold-Bug".
Poe moved into this address with his wife, Virginia, and his mother-in-law, Maria Clemm, in June of 1843. Before they moved to New York in April 1844, it is thought that Poe completed the stories "A Tale of the Ragged Mountains", "The Balloon-Hoax", and "Eulalie" at this location. Also, it is believed that he started his most famous work, "The Raven" while at this address. This is rather hard to prove, but it helps to justify a raven sculpture outside the building (and a plaque making this assertion).
The home was purchased by Richard Gimbel (of the department store Gimbels). A fan of the writer, he refurbished the home, made it into a museum, and left it to the National Park Service in his will (which took over facility operations in 1978).
Today, the Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site is open to the public.
