Edgar Allan Poe Trivia Questions

Tap a choice for the answer and its reason, from Tamerlane to the Longfellow War.

Question 1 of 10

From which Irish county had Poe's grandfather David Poe emigrated around 1750?

County DownCounty KerryCounty CavanCounty Cork

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Scored round: 20 questions, no time limit.

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Unofficial practice questions, not affiliated with any school, exam board or quiz show. Bank checked October 3, 2026.

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How it works

These Edgar Allan Poe trivia questions run in four rounds: his boyhood in Boston, Richmond and Britain, the army, West Point and the first books, his years as editor and author, and his influence and landmarks.

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The life behind the tales

The army, West Point and first books has the assumed name Edgar A. Perry, Fort Independence and the fifty copies of Tamerlane. Editor and author follows him through the magazines to the Evening Mirror, where 'The Raven' appeared in January 1845.

For an October book club

No line of Poe is quoted and no film or stage version is asked. Each tap on a choice brings the answer and a one-line reason. Print question sheet is offered at the end of the first ten.

Questions and answers

What are some easy Edgar Allan Poe trivia questions?

Which university did Poe attend? In which city did he die in 1849? He is considered a pioneer of which genre? The answers are the University of Virginia, Baltimore and detective fiction.

Is 'The Raven' in the pack?

Yes, twice: the paper that printed it on January 29, 1845, and the essay in which Poe described how he composed it. The poem's refrain is asked by another pack of this site.

How were the answers checked?

Each was read on October 3, 2026 in the English Wikipedia article Edgar Allan Poe, which every question links. His private life and the theories about his death are left out.

All 50 questions with answers

Boston, Richmond and Britain 11

From which Irish county had Poe's grandfather David Poe emigrated around 1750? Answer: County Cavan. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
In 1824 Poe served as lieutenant of a youth honor guard for the visit of which Frenchman? Answer: The Marquis de Lafayette. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
In which Scottish town did Poe attend the grammar school? Answer: Irvine. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
In which suburb north of London was the Manor House School that Poe attended? Answer: Stoke Newington. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
In which year did Poe return with the Allans to Virginia? Answer: 1820. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
In which year did the Allan family, with young Edgar, sail to the United Kingdom? Answer: 1815. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Poe studied at a boarding school in which part of London until the summer of 1817? Answer: Chelsea. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
What is the name of the student and staff group that looks after Poe's old room at the University of Virginia? Answer: The Raven Society. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
What was the profession of both of Edgar Allan Poe's parents? Answer: Actors. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Where did John and Frances Allan, who took Poe in, make their home? Answer: Richmond. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Which university did Poe attend, leaving after only a year for lack of money? Answer: The University of Virginia. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe

The army, West Point and first books 13

At which fort in Boston Harbor did Poe first serve? Answer: Fort Independence. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
At which military academy did Poe become a cadet on July 1, 1830? Answer: West Point. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Fellow cadets helped to pay for one of Poe's books. As much as how much did some of them give? Answer: 75 cents. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
How did Poe decide to leave West Point? Answer: By getting court-martialed on purpose. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
How many copies of Poe's first book were printed? Answer: 50. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
How much was Poe paid a month when he first served in the army? Answer: Five dollars. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
In which city was Poe's second book, Al Aaraaf, Tamerlane and Minor Poems, published in 1829? Answer: Baltimore. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Poe told the army he was 22. How old was he really? Answer: 18. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
To which fort in Charleston, South Carolina, was Poe's regiment posted? Answer: Fort Moultrie. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
To whom was Poe's first book credited on its cover? Answer: A Bostonian. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Under which assumed name did Poe enlist in the United States Army in 1827? Answer: Edgar A. Perry. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
What was the title of Poe's first book, a 40-page collection of poetry? Answer: Tamerlane and Other Poems. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Which critic gave Poe what he called the very first words of encouragement he remembered hearing? Answer: John Neal. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe

Editor and author 15

At which successful monthly did Poe work as writer and co-editor after leaving Burton's? Answer: Graham's Magazine. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
In which city did Poe die in 1849, aged 40? Answer: Baltimore. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
In which essay does Poe describe the method he used to compose 'The Raven'? Answer: The Philosophy of Composition. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
In which New York paper did 'The Raven' appear on January 29, 1845? Answer: The Evening Mirror. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
In which part of the Bronx did Poe move into a cottage in 1846? Answer: Fordham. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Of which journal did Poe become editor and later owner, before it failed in 1846? Answer: The Broadway Journal. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Of which magazine did Poe become assistant editor in the summer of 1839? Answer: Burton's Gentleman's Magazine. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Of which Richmond magazine did Poe become assistant editor in 1835? Answer: The Southern Literary Messenger. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Poe planned for years to start his own journal. What did he finally mean to call it? Answer: The Stylus. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
To which city did Poe relocate in 1838? Answer: Philadelphia. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
What is the title of Poe's only novel? Answer: The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
What is the title of the essay of 1848 in which Poe set out a theory of the cosmos? Answer: Eureka: A Prose Poem. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Which Baltimore paper awarded Poe a prize in October 1833 for a short story? Answer: The Baltimore Saturday Visiter. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Which collection of Poe's stories was published in two volumes in 1839? Answer: Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Which story did Poe write with ciphers as an essential part of the plot? Answer: The Gold-Bug. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe

Influence and landmarks 11

In which city is the Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site, a house he lived in? Answer: Philadelphia. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
In which city was an intersection named Edgar Allan Poe Square in 2009, two blocks from his birthplace? Answer: Boston. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Poe is generally considered a pioneer of which genre of fiction? Answer: Detective fiction. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Poe was the first well-known American writer to do what? Answer: Earn a living only by writing. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Poe's attacks on which Boston poet were later called a 'war' named after him? Answer: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Poe's essay Eureka held a theory that came how many years ahead of the Big Bang theory? Answer: 80. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Under which name did Rufus Griswold sign his notice of Poe's death? Answer: Ludwig. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
What did James Russell Lowell suggest Poe the critic sometimes used instead of ink? Answer: Prussic acid. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
What did Ralph Waldo Emerson derisively call Poe? Answer: The jingle man. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Which French author wrote a sequel to Poe's novel, called An Antarctic Mystery? Answer: Jules Verne. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe
Whose early translations made Poe particularly esteemed in France? Answer: Charles Baudelaire. Source: Wikipedia: Edgar Allan Poe

How this list was compiled

Written for this site; nothing was copied from another list. Questions and wrong choices are our own. Each explanation restates, in our own sentences, a fact from the English Wikipedia article named and linked beside the question (https://en.wikipedia.org, text under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license): Edgar Allan Poe. The article was read on October 3, 2026, and the passage that states each fact was found in it before the question was kept. Only Poe's own works and other works published in 1930 or earlier are named; no film, show or stage version is a question or a choice and no line of his is quoted. Left out on purpose: his private life and the theories about his death. Levels are our estimate: easy is fair for any table, medium suits people who know the subject, hard will stump most tables. Each question also carries the date its article was read. Licence: own work