Why wasn't Edgar Allan Poe's father in his life?

Poe was accepted by his foster mother, Frances Allan, who doted on him as a child. However, he did not get along with his foster father, John Allan, because Poe ran up gambling debts and drank to excess on frequent occasions.
Poe was a bit of an outcast in has foster father's eyes, because of his constant gambling debts. His foster mother somewhat accepted him but at times didn't have much to do with him.