In describing life on a long sea voyage, Poe also drew from personal experience. In 1815, a six-year-old Poe along with his foster-parents traveled from Norfolk, Virginia to Liverpool, England, a journey of 34 days. During the difficult trip, young Poe asked his foster father, John Allan, to include him in a letter he was writing. Allan wrote, "Edgar says Pa say something for me, say I was not afraid of the sea." The family returned to the United States in 1820 aboard the "Martha" and docked in New York after 31 days. Closer to the time Poe wrote his novel, he had sailed during his military career, the longest trip being from Boston to Charleston, South Carolina.