Text-01 — “[Ballad of Ulalume]” — about June 1847 — [There are
no known draft manuscripts or scratch notes reflecting the original effort of composition. In an obituary for John
Collins McCabe, it is noted that “He was stimulated to literary activity by Edgar A. Poe, who was his
intimate friend and wrote his far famed Ulalume, originally in his album” (see the Middleton
Transcript of Middleton, DE, March 13, 1875, vol. VIII, no. 11, p. 2, col. 4, apparently reprinted from the
Franklin Repository of Chambersburg, PA). While it is true that Poe had a close connection to McCabe,
there is reason to be suspcious of this claim about this purported version of “Ulalume.” It is known
that Poe did indeed write a manuscript draft of “Irene,” an early form of “The Sleeper,”
in McCabe's album. That manuscript has perhaps been confused with the more famous poem noted in the
obituary.]
Text-02 — “[Ballad of Ulalume]” — about June 1847 —
“Bronson” manuscript (now lost and text not recorded) — [See The Poe Log, pp. 699, 705 and 707. In an article printed in 1860, Rev. C. P.
Bronson's daughter, Mary Elizabeth LeDuc, describes the manuscript as having been a roll, which
“consisted of leaves of paper wafered neatly together,” a form recognized in a number of other
surviving Poe manuscripts. She also mentions that “the writing was beautifully distinct and regular, almost
like engraving.” It was, therefore, presumably a fair copy and not a working or composition draft. This
manuscript may be the same as Text-03a.]
Text-03 — “To — — —. Ulalume: A Ballad” — about
October - December 1847
Text-03a — “To — — —. Ulalume: A Ballad” —
before December 1847 — [Faircopy manuscript Poe prepared for the American Review. Cullen B.
Colton states that the manuscript was among those “either lost or stolen.” No trace of a
manuscript is known, but it was common practice for such material to be destroyed during or after typesetting.
Poe himself saw no particular importance in his manuscript once that version was set in type. The future value
of these manuscripts was, of course, not recognized at the time. This manuscript may be the same as Text-02.]
Text-03b — “To — — —.
Ulalume: A Ballad” — December 1847 — American Review — (Mabbott
text A) — [When Poe visited Mrs. Whitman in Providence in 1848, he signed his name to the bound
copy of this periodical at the Athenaeum, but appears not to have made any changes to the text.]
Text-04 — “Ulalume: A Ballad” — about December 8, 1847
Text-04a — “Ulalume: A Ballad” — about December 8, 1847 —
[Poe sent N. P. Willis a copy of the American Review on December 8, 1847, with a letter requesting “a great favor if you would copy it in the H. J.,
with a word of inquiry as to who wrote it.” This copy does not appear to have had any changes marked by
Poe, and technical differences in the text are presumably a matter of house style for the Home Journal
or errors by the typesetter. It is possible that Poe marked out the superflous title of “To —
— —,” or dropping it was the choice of the editor of the Home Journal. Willis did
precisely as he was requested, in Text-04a.]
Text-04b — “Ulalume: A Ballad”
— January 1, 1848 — Home Journal — (Mabbott text B) — [In another letter to Willis, dated January 22, 1848, Poe says that “I am about
to make an effort at re-establishing myself in the literary world,” by which it may be implied that the
reason for asking Willis to reprint the poem, with a slight air of mystery, was part of his plan for
publicizing his renewed effort to establish his own magazine.]
Text-05 — “Ulalume: — A Ballad” — about January - November 1848
Text-05a — “Ulalume: — A Ballad” — about January -
November 1848 — [Speculated marked copy of the American Review or the Home Journal,
prepared for The Poets and Poetry of America, and sent or delivered by hand to R. W. Griswold, with
minor changes. Although there is no clear external evidence that Poe sent Griswold this poem, there are
earlier and later letters from Poe to Griswold that show him supplying new poems with the hope of having them
included in Griswold's anthology. Griswold's text for this poem has several strong similarities to
that printed in the Providence Journal, but not all changes there, suggesting an earlier form that Poe
also used as the basis for Text-07. The argument for the American Review is that the accent over both
instances of the accent in “crispéd” returned, although with the opposite slant, changing
the grave an accute. If Poe used the Home Journal, he must also have marked those words
to mark the accent again, omitted by Willis simply as a matter of house style that preferred the simpler form.
Most importantly, Griwold's text, Text-05a, includes the final stanza, with a minor change, the final
stanza being omitted in Text-06b. With a new edition having just been printed in 1847, Griswold would not
revise the text until the 1850 edition, issued late in 1849. An unrevised ninth edition would be printed in
1848 from the steroplates of the 1847 text. This marked copy has not survived, but is presumably recorded in
Text-05a.]
Text-05b — “Ulalume — A
Ballad” — Late 1849 — Poets and Poetry of America (10th edition, dated 1850)
— (Mabbott text F) — [Although printed in late 1849, the text was probably set in type long
before 1849. Thus, it reflects an earlier version, and is listed accordingly.]
Text-06 — “Ulalume: — A Ballad” — about November 7, 1848
Text-06a — “Ulalume: — A Ballad” — about November 7, 1848
— [Speculated marked copy of the Home Journal, prepared for the Providence Daily Journal.
During his visit Before November 24, 1848, Poe discussed the poem with Mrs. S. H. Whitman, and left a copy of
this issue of the Home Journal, apparently requesting that she arrange to have it printed in
Providence, see The Poe Log, p. 770. Writing to
J. H. Ingram on March 30, 1874, Mrs. Whitman stated that Poe omitted the final stanza at her suggestion. It is
not clear whether smaller changes were made by Poe or Mrs. Whitman.]
Text-06b — “Ulalume: — A
Ballad” — November 22, 1848 — Providence Journal — (Mabbott text C)
— [This version omits the final stanza, and changes not reflected in other texts may reflect other
suggestions by Mrs. Whitman. Poe sent a copy of this issue of the Providence Journal to E. A. Duyckinck
on February 15, 1849, with a letter requesting that it be reprinted in
the Literary World, see Text-07, but in that reprint, the final stanza is restored, suggesting that Poe
sent the clipping only for the introductory material, and had already provided Duyckinck with a full copy of
the text for the poem.]
Text-06c — “Ulalume” — 1850
— WORKS — (Mabbott text G) — [Although printed early in 1850, the text
presumably reflects an earlier version, and is listed accordingly. In this text, Griswold omits the final
stanza. J. H. Whitty is mistaken when he suggests that Griswold later changed his mind and restored the
stanza. Although Whitty cites the 1855 edition of The Poets and Poetry of America as evidence, Griswold
had already printed this poem, with the final stanza, in the edition of 1850, issued late in 1849. Something
prompted Griswold to make this dramatic change, and one might speculate that Mrs. Clemm, in sending to
Griswold the materials Poe had accumulated, provided a copy of the Home Journal marked with changes,
partially matching what he had provided for the Providence Journal, although not including all of the
changes made there. In this version, Poe must have marked out the final stanza, as it was omitted in the
Providence Journal. Griswold was understanably unaware of the precise sequence of the revisions, and
the omission of the final stanza may have seemed to him an improvement with authorial approval and thus
adopted that text even though Poe himself appears to have restored it.]
Text-07 — “Ulalume. A Ballad” — before February 16, 1849
Text-07a — “Ulalume. A Ballad” — before February 16, 1849
— [Speculated copy of Home Journal with minor changes marked by Poe for the Literary
World. Although Poe sent Duyckinck a clipping from the Providence Journal on February 16, 1849, requesting that it be printed “as it
stands,” Poe had previously spoken with Duyckinck in person, presumably the day before, and appears to
have left another copy of the poem as it had appeared in the Home Journal. This copy bore the same
change in the final stanza that he had sent to Griswold. The idea that Poe provided the clipping from the
Providence Journal only for the sake of the introductory material seems to be what is suggested in The Poe Log, p. 796.]
Text-08 — about June 1849 — If we accept the Examiner text, and certainly
in the light of the existence of the given to Miss Ingram, Poe appears to have made a full copy of the poem, for
his own purposes, presumably with the intention of having a copy with him on his lecture tour of the South.
Text-08a — “Ulalume — A
Ballad” — September 10, 1849 — “Ingram” manuscript — (Mabbott
text K — This is Mabbott's copy-text) — [Poe had recited the poem, as well as several
others, to a small informal group at the Hygeia Hotel in Old Point Comfort, Norfolk, VA the night before, for
which see The Poe Log, pp. 832-833. He may have
done so from memory, but instead of making a copy of the poem for Miss Ingram, he appears to have given her a
manuscript that he already had in his possession, probably the manuscript he read from the night before, and
the one used previously to create the Richmond Examiner proofsheets. It resembles the manuscripts he
made in anticiation of publication, in the form of a roll and with a byline rather than a signature. If this
supposition is true, Poe would not have needed to take the time to write out the full manuscript over night,
although the gesture is still of special interest and the manuscript would still, essentially, represent the
final authorized text without editorial interference.]
Text-08b — “Ulalume — A
Ballad” — about August 1849 — Richmond Examiner proofsheets — (Mabbott
text J) — [J. H. Whitty is the sole authority for this text.]
Manuscripts and Authorized Printings (excerpts):
“[Ulalume]” — about March 1848
— “Stedman” manuscript (in a notice about H. B. Hirst)
“[Ulalume]” — about June 1849
— lines 30-38 only, “Griswold” manuscript (in a notice about H. B. Hirst) (Mabbott
text E)
“Ulalume” — 1850 — lines
30-38 only in article about H. B. Hirst, WORKS (Mabbott text H)
Reprints:
“Ulalume” — January 20, 1848 — Vicksburg Daily Whig (Vicksburg,
MS), p. 2, col. 5 (reprinted from the Home Journal, with Willis's introduction, the inquiry as
to “Who is the author,” and without Poe's name as author) (This entry was provided to the Poe
Society by Ton Fafianie in an email dated July 30, 2019)
“Ulalume” — January
22, 1848 — Saturday Courier (Philadelphia, PA) (reprinted from the Home Journal, with an
extended introductory note of disapproval, probably by Henry Beck
Hirst.)
“Ulalume” — March 11, 1848 — Columbia Spy and Literary Register
(Columbia, PA), new series vol 1, no. 37, front page, col. 1 (reprinted from the Home Journal, with
Willis's introduction, the inquiry as to “Who is the author,” and without Poe's name as
author) (This entry was provided to the Poe Society by Ton Fafianie in an email dated July 30, 2019)
“Ulalume” — September 8, 1849 —
Portland Transcript (Portland, ME)
“Ulalume” — October 17, 1849 — Oquawka Spectator
(Oquawka, IL)
“Ulalume” — October 17, 1849 — Louisville Daily Journal,
Louisville, KY (only a few stanzas)
“Ulalume. A Ballad” — November 28, 1849 — Pennsylvania
Telegraph (Harrisburg, PA), vol. 9 no. 22, front page, col. 4 (This entry was provided to the Poe Society by
Ton Fafianie in an email dated August, 18, 2018)
“Ulalume” — 1852 — Tales of Mystery and Imagination and Humour; and
Poems, London: Henry Vizetelly (An undated edition appears about the same time, published by Charles H.
Clark and Samuel Orchart Beeton, and their name appears as publisher for the second series), first series pp.
242-246. (with no woodcut illustration) (this poem was omitted in some later printings)
“Ulalume” — August 23, 1855 — Independent Republican (Montrose,
PA), vol. I no. 88, front page, col. 1
“Ulalume” — 1875
— The Works of Edgar Allan Poe, vol 3: Poems and Essays, ed. J. H. Ingram, Edinburgh, Adam and
Charles Black (3:10-12)
“Ulalume” — May 1900 — Chatauquan (vol. 31, p. 195) (this item
is noted by George Monteiro, “Fugitive Reprints,” E. A. Poe Review, Fall 2010, p. 162.)
“Ulalume” — October 14, 1906 — The State (Columbia, SC) (p. 23)
(this item is noted by George Monteiro, “Fugitive Reprints,” E. A. Poe Review, Fall 2010, p.
162.)
Scholarly and Noteworthy Reprints:
“Ulalume” — 1894-1895
— The Works of Edgar Allan Poe, vol. 10: Poems, ed. E. C. Stedman and G. E. Woodberry (Chicago: Stone
and Kimball), 10:43-46 and 10:186-187
“Ulalume” — 1897 —
The Raven, The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Poems and Tales, ed. William P. Trent (Boston:
Houghton Mifflin Company), pp. 11-15
“Ulalume” — 1902
— The Complete Works of Edgar Allan Poe, vol. 7: Poems, ed. J. A. Harrison (New York: T. Y. Crowell),
10:102-105 and 10:213-214
“Ulalume” — 1911 —
The Complete Poems of Edgar Allan Poe, ed. J. H. Whitty (Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Co.), pp.
82-85 and pp. 244-247 (Whitty uses the Richmond Examiner text, for which he is the sole authority.)
“Ulalume” — 1917
— The Poems of Edgar Allan Poe, ed. Killis Campbell (Boston: Ginn and Company), pp. 117-120 and pp.
265-275
“Ulalume — A Ballad” — 1965 — The Poems of Edgar Allan
Poe, ed. Floyd Stovall (Charlottesville: The University Press of Virginia), pp. 103-106 and pp. 271-274
“Ulalume” — 1969
— The Collected Works of Edgar Allan Poe, vol. 1: Poems, ed. T. O. Mabbott (Cambridge: Belknap Press
of Harvard University Press), 1:409-423
“Ulalume” — 1984 — Edgar Allan Poe: Poetry and Tales, ed.
Patrick F. Quinn (New York: Library of America), pp. 89-91 (reprints the text from Stovall, 1965)
“Ulalume — A Ballad” — 2004 — The Selected Writings of Edgar
Allan Poe, ed. G. R. Thompson (New York: W. W. Norton & Co.), pp. 61-65
“Ulalume: A Ballad” — 2015 — The Annotated Poe, ed. Kevin J.
Hayes (Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press), pp. 385-390
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Comparative and Study Texts:
Instream Comparative and Study Texts:
“Ulalume. A Ballad” —
Comparative Text (American Review, Ingram Manuscript, and Richmond Examiner Proofsheets)
“Ulalume. A Ballad” —
Comparative Text (American Review and Home Journal)
“Ulalume. A Ballad” —
Comparative Text (American Review, Home Journal and Poets and Poetry of America)
“Ulalume: — A Ballad”
— Comparative Text (Home Journal and Providence Journal)
“Ulalume” — Comparative
Text (Poets and Poetry of America and WORKS)
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Associated Material and Special Versions:
Miscellaneous Texts and Related Items:
“[Ulalume]” — 1857 — “Edgar Allan Poe,” Magazin
für die Literatur des Auslandes (131:522-524) (German translation by Luise von Ploennis.)
“Ulalume” — 1862 — Contes inedts d‘Edgar Poe, Paris: J.
Hetzel, pp. 283-287 (French translation by William L. Hughes)
“Ulalûm” — October 1949 — De Tsjerne, vol. 4, no. 10, p.
318 (Dokkum, Netherlands, published by J. Kamminga) (Frisian translation by Klaes Dykstra) (This title
provided by René van Slooten)
“Ulalume” — dated 2009, but available in late 2008 — Poèmes
d‘Edgar Allan Poe, Paris: Publibook (translation by Jean Hautepierre)
“Mountains of Madness” by H. P. Lovecraft — February-April 1936 (published
in 1936, but written in about January 1931) — (Lovecraft quotes from part of Poe's poem in chapter I.)
Anonymous, “Poe's ‘Ulalume’,” Explicator, October 1942,
1:8
Adkins, Nelson F., “Poe's ‘Ulalume’,” Notes & Queries,
January 14, 1933, 164:30-31
Bailey, James O., “The Geography of Poe's ‘Dream-Land’ and
‘Ulalume’,” Studies in Philology, July 1948, 45:512-523
Basler, Roy P., “Poe's ‘Ulalume’,” Explicator, May 1944,
vol. 2, item 49; reprinted in Sex, Symbolism and Psychology, New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1948,
pp. 184-187
Blumenfeld, J. P., “Poe's ‘Ulalume,’ Line 43,” Notes &
Queries, March 29, 1952, 197:147
Brooks, Cleanth and Robert Penn Warren, “ ‘Ulalume’,” Understand
Poetry, New York: Henry Holt, 1950, 194-201 (revised new edition)
Caputi, Anthony, “The Refrain in Poe's Poetry,” American Literature,
May 1953, 25:169-178
Carlson, Eric W., “Poe's ‘Ulalume’,” Explicator, June
1952, 11:56
Carlson, Eric W., “Symbol and Sense in Poe's ‘Ulalume’,”
American Literature, March 1963, 35:22-37
Colton, Cullen B., “George Hooker Colton and the Publication of ‘The
Raven’,” American Literature, vol. X, no. 3, November 1938, pp. 319-330 (footnote 30 on p. 328
provides the comment about the manuscript)
Mabbott, Thomas Ollive, “Poe's ‘Ulalume’,” Explicator,
June 1948, vol. 6, item 57
Mabbott, Thomas Ollive, “Poe's ‘Ulalume’,” Notes &
Queries, February 25, 1933, 164:143
Mabbott, Thomas Ollive, ed., The Collected Works of Edgar Allan Poe (Vol 1
Poems), Cambridge, Mass.: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1969.
Mulqueen, James E., “The Meaning of Poe's ‘Ulalume’,” American
Transcendental Quarterly, 1st Quarter 1969, 1:27-30
Olivero, Frederico, “Symbolism in Poe's Poetry,” Westminster Review,
April 1913, 180:201-207
Omans, Glen A., “Poe's ‘Ulalume‘: Drama of the Solipsistic Self,”
in Papers on Poe: Essays in Honor of John Ward Ostrom, Springfield, OH: 1972
Pattee, Fred Lewis, “Poe's ‘Ulalume’,” Side-Lights on American
Literature, New York: Century Co., 1922, pp. 327-342
Pittman, Diana, “Key to the Mystery of ‘Ulalume’,” Southern
Literary Messenger, August 1941, 3:371-378 (this is the renewed version of the SLM)
Robinson, David, “ ‘Ulalume’: The Ghouls and the Critics,” Poe
Studies, 1975, 8:8-10
Routh, James, “Notes on the Sources of Poe's Poetry: Coleridge, Keats,
Shelley,” Modern Language Notes, March 1914, 29:72-75
Tinnon, J. A., “Poe's
‘Ulalume’,” Graham's Magazine, February 1851, 38:120-122
Savoye, Jeffrey A., “An Unnoticed Printing of ‘Ulalume’,” The Edgar
Allan Poe Review, vol. I, no. 2 (Fall 2000), pp. 34-44
White, Patrick J., “The Thing Needed: Hope
and Despair in ‘Ulalume,” Masques, Mysteries, and Mastodons: A Poe Miscellany, ed.
Benjamin F. Fisher, Baltimore: Edgar Allan Poe Society, 2006, pp. 1-16
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[S:0 - JAS] - Edgar Allan Poe Society of Baltimore - Works - Poems - Ulalume