The mystery of Edgar Allan Poe’s grave: three roses and a half-empty cognac bottle kept appearing

Edgar Allan Poe’s grave carried a mystery for six decades. Beginning in 1949, three roses and a half-empty bottle of cognac appeared there every Jan. 19, the anniversary of Poe’s birth. Some people said a mysterious figure in black, wearing a broad-brimmed hat and a white scarf, arrived before dawn to leave the offering.

Poe, one of the major figures of world literature, was born in Boston on Jan. 19, 1809. His life was marked by loss from childhood. His father abandoned the family when Poe was two, and his mother died soon afterward. The Allan family adopted him, giving him a privileged education and an early path into literature. He began publishing in 1827.

His struggles with alcohol forced him to leave university. In 1827, he married Virginia Eliza Clemm, his cousin and the great love of his life. Virginia died of tuberculosis in 1847 at the age of 24, devastating Poe.

On the morning of Oct. 3, 1849, a man wandered through Baltimore without knowing his own name. It was Poe, and his friend Dr. John Joseph Moran ordered him into a hospital. Four days later, on Oct. 7, Poe died. He was 40. No cause of death was established. Some accounts attributed it to an epileptic attack, while others suggested suicide or murder.

Poe’s funeral drew only a few people, and he was buried in a simple grave marked with the number 80. When efforts began to move him to a more dignified location, workers initially found another person’s remains. Poe’s body was eventually located and reburied where his grave stands today, later joined by Virginia’s remains.

The roses and cognac became the most enduring mystery attached to the site. The cognac served as a birthday toast and a reference to Poe’s favorite drink. The three roses represented the souls of Poe, Virginia and the third person described in the account.