Edgar Allan Poe (1809-49) was born in Boston, Massachusetts. Orphaned by the age of two, he was brought up by foster-parents. Following his expulsion from both the University of Virginia and West Point, he led a precarious existence as an editor, critic and writer. In 1844 his poem 'The Raven' caused a sensation, but after his wife's death in 1847 he drank heavily and died mysteriously in Baltimore.