Edgar Allan Poe's History of Mystery at Westminster Hall (2026 Int'l Edgar Allan Poe Festival)
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Celebrating 185 Years of “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” and the Invention of the Detective
Before Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, Nancy Drew, Columbo, Scooby-Doo, and every brilliant investigator who ever faced an impossible case, there was C. Auguste Dupin. First introduced in Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” in 1841, Dupin became literature’s first detective, and Poe’s tale became the first great locked-room mystery: a brutal crime, a baffled police force, and one strange genius able to see what everyone else had missed.
Poe did more than invent the detective. Across “The Murders in the Rue Morgue,” “The Mystery of Marie Rogêt,” “The Purloined Letter,” “The Gold-Bug,” and “Thou Art the Man,” he helped create the machinery of modern mystery: the eccentric investigator, the loyal narrator, the clue hidden in plain sight, the puzzle solved through reason, the cryptogram, the false trail, and the final revelation.
Poe Baltimore, The Poe Museum (Richmond,) Enoch Pratt Free Library, and the NSA's National Cryptologic Museum present a new exhibit celebrating Poe’s invention of the detective and his lasting influence on mystery, crime-solving, codebreaking, and popular culture. Led by The Poe Museum, the exhibit brings together first printings, rare artifacts, interpretive panels, and interactive experiences that invite visitors to follow Poe’s clues across the stories that launched a genre.
Explore the puzzle of the Rue Morgue. Search for the stolen letter. Crack the cryptogram of “The Gold-Bug.” Then test your own powers of ratiocination as you try the methods Poe made famous and solve mysteries of your own.
From the birth of detective fiction to the science of secret messages, every clue leads back to Poe.
Exhibit and programming are part of the 2026 International Edgar Allan Poetry Festival & Awards: PoeFestInternational.org
Celebrating 185 Years of “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” and the Invention of the Detective
Before Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, Nancy Drew, Columbo, Scooby-Doo, and every brilliant investigator who ever faced an impossible case, there was C. Auguste Dupin. First introduced in Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” in 1841, Dupin became literature’s first detective, and Poe’s tale became the first great locked-room mystery: a brutal crime, a baffled police force, and one strange genius able to see what everyone else had missed.
Poe did more than invent the detective. Across “The Murders in the Rue Morgue,” “The Mystery of Marie Rogêt,” “The Purloined Letter,” “The Gold-Bug,” and “Thou Art the Man,” he helped create the machinery of modern mystery: the eccentric investigator, the loyal narrator, the clue hidden in plain sight, the puzzle solved through reason, the cryptogram, the false trail, and the final revelation.
Poe Baltimore, The Poe Museum (Richmond,) Enoch Pratt Free Library, and the NSA's National Cryptologic Museum present a new exhibit celebrating Poe’s invention of the detective and his lasting influence on mystery, crime-solving, codebreaking, and popular culture. Led by The Poe Museum, the exhibit brings together first printings, rare artifacts, interpretive panels, and interactive experiences that invite visitors to follow Poe’s clues across the stories that launched a genre.
Explore the puzzle of the Rue Morgue. Search for the stolen letter. Crack the cryptogram of “The Gold-Bug.” Then test your own powers of ratiocination as you try the methods Poe made famous and solve mysteries of your own.
From the birth of detective fiction to the science of secret messages, every clue leads back to Poe.
Exhibit and programming are part of the 2026 International Edgar Allan Poetry Festival & Awards: PoeFestInternational.org
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Where is it happening?
Westminster Hall & Burying Ground, 513 W Fayette St, Baltimore, MD 21201-1768, United States
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
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Host or PublisherThe International Edgar Allan Poe Festival & Awards
