The following information appears on a historic plaque outside the building:

John H. B. Latrobe, 1876, from E. A. Poe Society

"On an evening in October, 1833, three of Baltimore's most discerning gentlemen were gathered around a table in the back parlor of this house. Fortified with 'some old wine and some good cigars,' John Pendleton Kennedy, James H. Miller, and John H. B. Latrobe pored over manuscripts submitted in a literary contest sponsored by the Baltimore Saturday Visitor. Their unanimous choice for the best prose tale was 'MS. Found in a Bottle,' a curious and haunting tale of annihilation. The fifty-dollar prize was awarded to the story's unknown penniless author — Edgar Allan Poe.

"Poe had come to Baltimore in the spring of 1831, after his dismissal from West Point. He had no money, no trade, and no reputation. The four years he spent in Baltimore were a period of intense creativity. His major effort during those years was sixteen tales he wrote for the Folio Club, an imaginary literary club of his creation. One of these sixteen tales was 'MS. Found in a Bottle'"

The prize for this story, the public recognition that it brought, and the lifelong friendship it generated between Poe and literary patron Kennedy helped to launch Poe on his brilliant career. He left Baltimore in 1835 to become editor of the Southern Literary Messenger."

Latrobe House - Now

The Latrobe House isn't open to visitors. It remains a private residence, but visitors walking down Mulberry Street can pick out the house by the historical plaque on the wall.

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