Sleepy Hollow, New York

 The dominant spirit that haunts this enchanted region is the apparition of a figure on horseback without a head. It is said to be the ghost of a Hessian trooper, whose head had been carried away by a cannonball in some nameless battle during the Revolutionary War, and who is ever seen by the countryfolk, hurrying along in the gloom of the night as if on the wings of the wind. Historians of those parts allege that the body of the trooper having been buried in the yard of a church at no great distance, the ghost rides forth to the scene of battle in nightly quest of his head; and that the rushing speed with which he sometimes passes along the Hollow is owing to his being in a hurry to get back to the churchyard before daybreak. The specter is known, at all the country firesides, by the name of the Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow.

- Washington Irving "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"

Decided to track down the Headless Horseman the other day...and found him! With the recent success of Fox's tv show, Sleepy Hollow, I'm sure I'm not the only one on the Horseman's trail. So while the show is actually filmed in North Carolina, the real town made famous by Washington Irving in his story, Legend of Sleepy Hollow, is in New York, just outside of Tarrytown.

This town has embraced its fame! In fact, the town had originally been incorporated as North Tarrytown, but in 1996 changed the name officially to Sleepy Hollow. Upon entering the town I was greeted by an amazing sculpture of Icabod Crane on his horse, Gunpowder, chased by the Headless Horseman himself who is just about to throw his pumpkin head. The statue is at 420 North Broadway and his hard to miss.

Just up the road from the statue is the Old Dutch Church, which also appears in the Legend of Sleepy Hollow. It is the graveyard of this church (not the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery located next to it) that the Headless Horseman haunted and where is nightly ride began.

 They had now reached that stretch of the road which descends to Sleepy Hollow, shaded by trees for about a quarter of a mile, where it crosses the famous church bridge just before the green knoll on which stands the church.

Although any bridge that may have stood has long since decayed, there is a sign posted where the Headless Horseman bridge would have spanned the river. Also, in the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery you will find a wooden bridge named The Headless Horseman Bridge. It's in no way original, but also spans the river down from the church and is the only bridge around resembling what might have stood.

The Headless Horseman Bridge of Sleepy Hollow Cemetery

Washington Irving is buried in the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, as well as several other famous individuals - Elizabeth Arden, Walter Chrysler, and Rockefellers. Irving's house, Sunnyside, can also be visited during spring and summer hours.

There's also a beautiful part of town with lots, and lots of shopping. I didn't stop there, but it looked beautiful and like it would make a great afternoon.


If you want to read the short story, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, check it out here.