Hooray! We Can Still Visit Poe's House.

Where a person creates their art is often interesting to many. Some feel the tight grip of a celebrity appeal, while others need to see what influences might've derived from an artist's residence. In recent new, the Baltimore home of Edgar Allan Poe came close to dying until a new plan called for revitalizing of the attraction. Join me as I ponder what a home means to an artist. 

Home is where the maddness is.

The city of Baltimore recently announced they would pay the B&O Railroad (remember that lot from Monopoly?) Museum $180,000 to stay open and become a self-sufficient attraction, since Baltimore is far too proud of their connection to the great American writer to let go. For more on this, check out this Baltimore Sun article. 

In my view, some people visit the home simply to see it. It's there. Everyone's read Poe. So while you're around Baltimore, why not stop by and check it out?

For aspiring writers, the Poe home has far more to offer. When you enter the home of an artist, you can easily see how and where they completed their work. In my case, I like to check out any genuine trappings that might hint at how certain stories came to life. 

We all know Poe was a bit off his rocker and liked to hit the sauce quite often, among other substances. But let's not rule out his insanity/sanity as drunken nonsense  Instead, maybe where Poe lived drove him to the brilliant madness displayed in so many of his stories. 

Personally, I would love to visit the home and tap on the walls. Maybe someone is buried within. For the most part, though, I'm curious as to how Poe lived and what surrounded his home. I would love for opportunity to check out the streets he stumbled along, the bars he passed out in, and wherever else Poe created his excellent works. It's not so much the celebrity appeal - that unhealthy parasocial relationship most people fall victim to - but rather, I want to see what might've encourage such witty and dark tales. Who knows, maybe he left something behind. 

Planning on visiting the Poe house? Bring me along!

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