Sarah Elmira Royster

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Sara Elmira Royster

Sarah Elmira Royster (* 1810 in Richmond ; † February 11, 1888 there ) was a childhood friend of Edgar Allan Poe . Shortly before his death, the relationship was renewed and a marriage was discussed. But this never happened because of Poe's death.

Life

First relationship with Poe

Royster and Poe, Richmond neighbors, began dating in 1825 and were secretly engaged to be married soon after. At the time, Royster was 15 and Poe was 16. After Poe joined the University of Virginia , a split ensued as Royster's father, who turned down the relationship, intercepted Poe's letters.

Marriage to Alexander Shelton

Unaware of the interception of the letters, Royster thought that Poe had forgotten her. The engagement was broken off and she married the merchant Alexander Shelton. Shelton died on July 12, 1844 37 at a pneumonia . He left $ 100,000 to his family.

Second relationship with Poe

Poe visited Royster in July 1848, a year after the death of Virginia Clemm, Poe's wife. During his stay in Richmond, he courted her. In August there were already rumors of a possible marriage. A request was made by Poe in late July. Royster needed time to think about it: her two surviving children were against the new marriage and according to her husband's will she would lose a quarter of the money she inherited.

Nevertheless, the marriage never took place. On September 27, 1849, Poe left Richmond, whereupon he died under mysterious circumstances on October 7. Biographer John Evangelist Walsh speculated that Royster's brothers murdered Poe.

Later life and death

Royster would later claim that she never wanted to marry Poe, or even get engaged. This contradicted a letter to Poe's stepmother Maria Clemm from September 22nd, in which she informed Clemm that she would accept her as a stepmother. In the same letter she referred to Poe as "the dearest object on earth" .

Significance for literature

It has often been speculated that Royster was the inspiration for Poe's poems Annabel Lee and The Raven . His collection of poems Tamerlane and Other Poems may also have been inspired by her.

Poe's brother Henry Poe dedicated his poem The Pirate to the relationship between Poe and Royster.

literature

  • Harriet Ide Davis: Elmira: The Girl Who Loved Edgar Allan Poe. Houghton Mifflin Co., 1966.
  • Fredrick S. Frank, Anthony Main Line: The Poe Encyclopedia. Greenwood Press, Westport 1997, ISBN 0-313-27768-0 , p. 315.
  • Jeffrey Meyers: Edgar Allan Poe: His Life and Legacy. , Cooper Square Press, New York, 1992 ISBN 0-8154-1038-7 .
  • Arthur Hobson Quinn: Edgar Allan Poe: A Critical Biography. Appleton-Century-Crofts, New York 1941, ISBN 0-8018-5730-9 .
  • Kenneth Silverman : Edgar A. Poe: Mournful and Never-ending Remembrance. New York et al. a. 1991, ISBN 0-06-092331-8 .
  • Dawn B. Sova: Edgar Allan Poe: A to Z. , Checkmark Books, New York ISBN 0-8160-4161-X .
  • Daniel Stashower: The Beautiful Cigar Girl. Mary Rogers, Edgar Allan Poe, and the Invention of Murder. Dutton Adult, New York, 2006 ISBN 0-525-94981-X .
  • Dwight Thomas, David Kelly Jackson: The Poe Log. A Documentary Life of Edgar Allan Poe 1809-1849. GK Hall & Co., Boston 1987, ISBN 0-8161-8734-7 .
  • John Evangelist Walsh: Midnight Dreary: The Mysterious Death of Edgar Allan Poe. St. Martin's Minotaur, New York, 2000 ISBN 0-312-22732-9 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Dwight Thomas, David Kelly Jackson: The Poe Log. A Documentary Life of Edgar Allan Poe 1809-1849, pp. 63, 74
  2. ↑ Jeffrey Meyers: Edgar Allan Poe: His Life and Legacy, p. 18
  3. ↑ Kenneth Silverman: Edgar A. Poe, p. 30 f.
  4. ↑ a b Jeffrey Meyers: Edgar Allan Poe: His Life and Legacy, p. 29
  5. ^ Kenneth Silverman: Edgar A. Poe, p. 425
  6. ^ A b Kenneth Silverman: Edgar A. Poe, p. 426
  7. ↑ Dwight Thomas, David Kelly Jackson: The Poe Log. A Documentary Life of Edgar Allan Poe 1809-1849, p. 746
  8. ↑ Dwight Thomas, David Kelly Jackson: The Poe Log. A Documentary Life of Edgar Allan Poe 1809-1849, p. 820
  9. ↑ a b Jeffrey Meyers: Edgar Allan Poe: His Life and Legacy, p. 250 f.

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Royster, Sarah Elmira
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Shelton, Sarah Elmira (married name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American childhood friend of Edgar Allan Poe
DATE OF BIRTH 1810
PLACE OF BIRTH Richmond
DATE OF DEATH February 11, 1888
Place of death Richmond