The small unassuming structure, which was opened as a writer's house museum in 1949, is a typical row home.

[3] The house is the site for the International Edgar Allan Poe Festival & Awards, held in October of each year.

[5] The house was rented using pension money that Elizabeth collected thanks to her husband, David Poe Sr., who was a veteran of the American Revolutionary War.

The home is small and Poe's room on the top floor has a ceiling with a sharp pitch which is six feet high at its tallest point.

In 1979 during the house renovations, workers lifted the floorboards and found skeletal remains, reminiscent of Poe's story "The Tell-Tale Heart."

In 2011, City of Baltimore officials reduced the museum's subsidy, a decision that ultimately led to its closure in 2012.

After the City cut off its $85,000 in annual support in 2011, the museum was operating on reserve funds to the amount of $380,000 in the Poe House Fundraising account.

[11] In 2012, According to the Edgar Allan Poe Society of Baltimore, the museum was closed on September 28, 2012 with no advance public notice.

The museum hosts monthly and annual events at Poe House and around the City of Baltimore.

The festival includes tours of other sites in Baltimore associated with Poe, as well as a funeral re-enactment at the historic Carroll Mansion.

"[17][18] The Wire chronicles the activities of the fictional Barksdale Organization based in west Baltimore, where the Poe House is located.