There is trouble afoot, Baltimore. Serious trouble. One of our beloved institutions is in danger of being spirited away. And on his 200th birthday, no less.
Philadelphia, that city of brotherly love and cracked bells, is claiming that they deserve to be known as the city of Edgar Allan Poe. Sure, there is some legitimacy for the claim, since Poe did write some stories there. Fair enough, we suppose. Only, this is Baltimore and this is our man, our Edgar Allan. This is where he lived; where he was married and buried. It’s our football team that’s named the Ravens. We’re home to the Poe Toaster. Baltimore, not Philadelphia, is hosting Nevermore 2009, the yearlong bicentennial birthday bash for the melancholy man himself. These are facts, Philly, and you can just back up, okay?
Sorry if that was a bit aggressive. It’s just our hackles get a bit raised, you know, when we’re thumbing through the New York Times and come across nefarious men, such as Poe scholar (and Philadelphia resident) Edward Pettit, saying, “So, Philadelphians, let’s hop in our cars, drive down I-95 and appropriate a body from a certain Baltimore cemetery. I’ll bring the shovel.”
Really, grave robbing is just so tacky. And while we’re sorry that Philadelphia is so lacking in cultural relevance that they need to steal another city’s author to put next to their lovely Rocky statue, Baltimore just won’t have it. As Jeff Jerome, curator of the Poe House, suggested, if Philadelphia wants a Baltimore body so badly, there’s one we could consider parting with: John Wilkes Booth.
We’re partial to the great man’s tombstone in the Westminster Presbyterian Church graveyard; we’re just spooky like that. What’s your favorite Poe-centric site in Baltimore?
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