Cadets Visit Homes of Edgar Allan Poe & Washington Irving

Cadets enrolled in EP343, American Literature 1, recently visited the homes of two prominent 19th Century American authors, Edgar Allan Poe and Washington Irving. Cadets first traveled to the Bronx, where they received a presentation by Mr. Angel Hernandez, director of the Bronx Country Historical Society’s education department, on the years Poe and his wife and mother-in-law resided in what was then the countryside outside New York City. Cadets then traveled to Tarrytown, where they toured Washington Irving’s fanciful home, Sunnyside. Visiting these two homes underscored Poe’s poverty and Irving’s success. Whereas Poe struggled to make ends meet, Irving earned a good living from the proceeds of his writing alone—the first American author to do so. Visiting these two sites helped the Cadets to gain greater understanding and appreciation of these two authors’ lives and works. Story