Legends and Lore of Sleepy Hollow and the Hudson Valley
Page 1
Published by The History Press
Charleston, SC 29403
www.historypress.net
Copyright © 2011 by Jonathan Kruk
All rights reserved
Front cover: Headless Horseman in Pursuit of Ichabod Crane, c. 1870. Watercolor on paper, Felix O.C. Darley. Historic Hudson Valley, Tarrytown, NY (ss.80.26). Into Sleepy Hollow, 2009 photograph, Todd Atteberry. www.thehistorytrekker.com.
First published 2011
e-book edition 2012
ISBN 978.1.61423.319.0
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Kruk, Jonathan.
Legends and lore of Sleepy Hollow and the Hudson Valley / Jonathan Kruk.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
print edition ISBN 978-1-59629-798-2
1. Sleepy Hollow (N.Y.)--Social life and customs--Anecdotes. 2. Tarrytown (N.Y.)--Social life and customs--Anecdotes. 3. Hudson River Valley (N.Y. and N.J.)--Social life and customs--Anecdotes. 4. Irving, Washington, 1783-1859. Legend of Sleepy Hollow. 5. Legends--New York (State)--Sleepy Hollow. 6. Folklore--New York (State)--Sleepy Hollow. 7. Sleepy Hollow (N.Y.)--Biography--Anecdotes.
I. Title.
F129.S682K78 2011
974.7’3--dc23
2011018252
Notice: The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. It is offered without guarantee on the part of the author or The History Press. The author and The History Press disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this book.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
CONTENTS
Preface and Acknowledgements
Summary: Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
1. By the Name Washington Irving
The Horseman’s Appeal
Bells Beckon
Washington Irving
A Bairn Named Washington
Tipping Leatherheads
Rambles and Readings, Customs and Heartache
The Little Man in Black, an Old Wolf and Heath
Head in the Mud Hessian
Tarrytown Tavern Tales
A Love for All Things Revolutionary and Dutch
2. “The Place Was Bewitched”
The Legend of Mahicanituck and Pocantico
Spooked Stones
Cuffey’s Prophecy
Hokohonkgus Tree
More Spooked Stones
Legend of the Star Maiden
3. Tales of the Tappan Zee
Henry Hudson and the Severed Hand
Imps!
The Heer of Donder-Berg
Sint Heer Klaas and the Gode Frauv
The Agent and the Imps
Bermuda Triangle on the Hudson
The Spuyten Duyvil
Van Dam, the Ghostly Rower
Flying Dutchmen on the Hudson
4. Mother Hulda, the High German Witch Doctor?
Witch-Doctor-Heroine
White Captives
New York’s Last Witch Trial
5. Women in White
Storm Shriekers
Manitou
The Spirit Saint of Raven Rock
The White Lady of Raven Rock
Witte Juffern of Slaaper’s Hol
6. “The Tragical Story of the Unfortunate Andre”
A Tragic Story Unfolds
Betraying Benedict
Andre’s Journey
Andre’s Capture
Arnold’s Pawn
“I Am Not to Die on a Gibbet”
Interment
Andre’s Tree
“What Party Are You From?”
7. Balt, Brom, Katrina and Ichabod
Balt
The Goblin Race
Brom
Katrina
Ichabod
The Headless Horseman Charivari of Kinderhook
Jesse Merwin, the Real Schoolmaster
Colonel Ichabod Crane
Merwin’s Ghost
Final Word
8. Headless!
The “Nameless” Battle of White Plains
The Helpful Hessian
The Little Man in Black’s Tale
German and Scottish Sources
9. The Storyteller
Storytellers
Other Headless Horsemen in New York
Today’s Horseman
The Whole Place Still Abounds with Spirits
No More North Tarrytown
Dark Shadows
The Good Spirit
Bibliography
About the Author
PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Who is the Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow? Why does he ride? Who are his kindred spirits and what are their stories? Where did Washington Irving find inspiration to write the Legend? What’s the local lore of the lower Hudson Valley?
Curiosity chases the legendary Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow today. Thousands gather every October at the sites most associated with this gallivanting ghost. They seek, at Philipsburg Manor and nearby at the Old Dutch Church, an authentic and uniquely American experience of Halloween.
Performing in Sleepy Hollow since 1996, as Historic Hudson Valley’s legend storyteller, people turn to me as an authority on the region’s lore. Then they make me their confidant on the subject of its local ghosts. They pepper me with questions, offer theories and share encounters regarding a legend almost two hundred years old. This keen continuous interest motivated the research and story gathering for Legends and Lore of Sleepy Hollow and the Hudson Valley.
The Headless Horseman first galloped into our nightmares as a chapter collected into The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. by Washington Irving in 1819. Legends and letters tell us that this wayward New York lawyer living in England grew nostalgic for his boyhood ramblings through the moody mists of the lower Hudson Valley. Inspired by various sources, some oral, some written, the brooding Irving penned The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. A desire at the time for American stories launched the legend. A clever mix of characters and a little romance, culminating with a ghostly chase, from the new nation turned this tale into a tradition for telling and retelling.
The Legend inspired books, plays, ballets, a half dozen major films, haunted hayrides and countless place names. Indeed, myriad sources moved Washington Irving to create his classic. Heartbreak over the death of his beloved Matilda Hoffman prompted The Legend’s plot. Further, it brought the lovelorn Irving to Jesse Merwin. A New England schoolteacher in the Hudson Valley, Merwin shared his personal experience of an old Dutch American custom. This revelation, along with a quick entry in a Revolutionary War officer’s journal, became the core of truth of The Legend. Detailed conversations with the descendants of New Netherlanders, including their servants and slaves, gave life to The Legend’s convincing characters.
Irving also enlivened his legend with elements found in German folklore. The biggest piece came from an old epic poem retold by Wilhelm Burger. Add a dash from Robert Burns, plus boundless imagination, and The Legend lives.
Washington Irving mentions and alludes to other ghosts of Sleepy Hollow. They haunt people too. When the crowd thins after a show, some tarry like the young Washington Irving did in Van Tassel’s Tarrytown tavern, once just down the Old Albany Post Road from Philipsburg. Curious, they call out for more about the valley’s spirits: “Who is this White Lady of Raven Rock?” “Have you heard of the witch, Moth
er Hulda?” “How do you stop Major Andre’s ghost?” “Why do skippers shorten their sails for Hudson River imps?” “Does the Headless Hessian gallop through Scarsdale?”
The Headless Horseman truly dominates those other spirits of the region. Let them escape from beneath the big ghost’s cloak, and each one delivers a gripping tale. This book also gives the fateful story of Major John Andre’s ghost. I unearthed not just one but several White Ladies wailing warnings at Raven Rock. The origins of Sleepy Hollow’s curse in Native American lore are illuminated here too.
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow’s characters have provoked questions and claims as to who was the original. A former president of the United States even certified an acquaintance of his as a model for Irving. I address the genesis of Ichabod Crane, Katrina van Tassel, Brom Bones and Balt van Tassel.
The storied Hudson River provides a rich source of influence over Sleepy Hollow. People once feared river spirits called imps making mischief or wreaking havoc upon their sloops on the Hudson. Related tales of phantom ships and Revolutionary-era ghosts no doubt filled the head of the rambling Irving. The folklore given here of these spirits and some their history serves to complete this book. Finally, recent encounters with the supernatural are brought out to help illustrate Sleepy Hollow’s continued sway over the land.
People looking for answers on the lore of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow will find Washington Irving charmingly circumspect. He triply distanced himself from the sources of the Headless Horseman. The Legend’s stated author, “Geoffrey Crayon,” declares he found the story “among the papers of the late Diedrich Knickerbocker” (TLSH, 1).* This Dutch New Yorker goes on to proclaim he heard the tale from “a pleasant shabby, gentlemanly old fellow” (TLSH, postscript).
Further, when the gathering of Manhattan’s “most sagest and illustrious burghers” listened to that gentleman spin his yarn, they questioned the veracity of The Legend. The storyteller confessed: “Faith sir, I don’t believe the half of it myself !” People today, however, still persist in believing in the other half. They tend to agree with wise women of Sleepy Hollow, “the best judges of these matters” (TLSH, 74); supernatural spirits, they assert, abound in Sleepy Hollow!
The Legend offers more than Washington Irving’s imaginative twists and romantic turns. There’s a surfeit of stories here waiting to be told. Gathered into this book are the origins of the Headless Horseman, the stories of other Sleepy Hollow spirits, with the history and local folklore. My research uncovered facts most likely known but obscured by Washington Irving. The reenactor who often portrays the Headless Horseman at Historic Hudson Valley’s Legend event led me to a West Point professor with proof of a Hessian decapitated at a battle Irving calls “nameless.” Reconstructing the events leading to this moment, I put forth at the heart of this book a plausible account for the galloping Hessian’s demise.
This decapitated specter rides on into our new millennium. In 1999, Tim Burton turned The Legend into a gory intrigue, with Johnny Depp playing Ichabod Crane as a detective. The Headless Horseman exists as a worldwide icon. Exploring his origins and revealing the spirits he presides over in the region made for a worthy endeavor for this contemporary taleteller. I am grateful to The History Press, and specifically my commissioning editor, Whitney Tarella, for taking on this project.
My quest for the source and stories surrounding the Headless Horseman took many twists and turns. First came all the queries from my audiences. I delved into over one hundred books. Next came the consultations with diverse experts: historical reenactors, interpreters, professors, linguists, longtime residents, mentors, seers and even blogging oracles. I attempted to unravel fact from fiction, but The Legend of Sleepy Hollow remains steadfast in keeping its secrets. Now, setting out in pursuit of that galloping Hessian and his hosts, I begin by sending forth my acknowledgements to those who helped on this endeavor.
My deep gratitude goes to: my mentor, He Who Stands Firm, for sparking my interest in local lore; Todd Atteberry, photographer extraordinaire, who accompanied me on several legs of the journey; and Professor Boria Sax, who led me to the delightful Elisabeth Paling Funk, a rigorous scholar of the Dutch Americans and Irving. I am most thankful to all at Historic Hudson Valley: the late Charlie Duda, Russell Hubbard, Thom Thatcher, Rob Yasinsac, Kate Johnson, Catalina Hannan and Jessa Krick. Special thanks for the image expertise of Joe and Lisa Dieboll at the Highland Studio. I appreciate Mindy Krazmien and Kendall Ingenito at the Putnam County Historical Society, Sara Mascia at the Historical Society, Inc., serving Sleepy Hollow and Tarrytown and the Columbia County Historical Society. A special thanks goes to Neil Zuckerman, the DeSilvias and Don Troiani for use of their paintings, as well as Bryan Haeffele for his Headless Horseman photo. I salute Lieutenant Colonel Frank Licameli and Hugh Francis for helping me locate the original lost head. Carrie Katz, I am glad for your motivation. Huzzahs to Dickon Love, tower keeper of St. Magnus the Martyr in London; John Kand for tales of Major Andre; and to the Hessian reenactors John Lopez and Robert Sulentic. Thanks to Carol Donick; the staff at the Desmond Fish Library in Garrison, New York; the Julia Butterfield Library in Cold Spring, New York; Warner Library in Tarrytown, New York; Montclair Library in New Jersey; and the Liburnes at Antipodean Books, Garrison’s Landing, New York. “En-na-shee” to Evan Pritchard for his help on Native American lore and to David M. Oestreicher for his counterpoint assistance. Thanks too for encouragement from Rich Bala, Kim Conner, Melissa Heckler, Alicia Kruk, Dorothy McTaggart and all the schoolchildren who urged me to write this book. I’m grateful to Zosia Kruk for turning a stack of books into a bibliography. Finally, I offer a heartfelt thanks to Andrea Sadler, my wife, for her boundless support.
My editors reminded me, while “collating and collecting,” that people want the facts found in these legends and folklore to tell a story. I write then not as a scholar or a historian but as your storyteller. I leap into this book, mindful of the sage advice given by the renowned Alabama storyteller Kathryn Tucker Windham. When asked which spooky tales we should tell, Kate declared, “The only ghost stories worth telling are ones that are true.” I agree!
*Please note that all quotes attributed to Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow will appear within the text with a paragraph number (TLSH, 1). The very short unattributed quotes are also from The Legend.
Summary
WASHINGTON IRVING’S THE LEGEND OF SLEEPY HOLLOW
Everyone knows Washington Irving’s Headless Horseman. When people plunge into his twelve-thousand-word “short” story, they occasionally become “sorely puzzled by the ratiocination of the syllogism” (TLSH, postscript). Some folks grow impatient with Irving’s clever circumlocution, thus failing to get to the ghostly finale. Here then is a summary, about one-tenth the length of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.
Along the cove where the Hudson dances into the Pocantico, there wandered an itinerant schoolmaster from Connecticut. Looking like a scarecrow who had escaped his post, with a pointy snipe of nose, Ichabod Crane was most aptly named. He took on the job of schoolmaster in Sleepy Hollow. Living for a couple of weeks at a time in each of his young scholars’ homes, he brought learning and a gazette of gossip into the gloomy community. By day, he used the birch branch to “urge tardy loiterers down the flowery path of knowledge.” By night he sought students with good cooks for mothers, for he enjoyed the comforts of the cupboards. Above all, in the Hollow known for its ghost lore, Ichabod found no story detail too gory to hear. Soon, the schoolmaster fell under two spells.
First, the drowsy dreamy air of Sleepy Hollow enchanted Crane to sense spirits. The whole region abounds with haunted houses, haunted streams, bewitched barns and bridges. There appears in Sleepy Hollow the specter of Major Andre, the Revolutionary War spy. And one hears the moans of a mysterious Woman in White, wailing before storms sweep across the Tappan Zee.
The principal goblin and dominant spirit is that of a Headless Horseman. A cannonball carried away his head at an unnamed b
attle for independence, leaving a ghoulish ghost relentlessly seeking what he lost. The farm wives frightened the schoolmaster with fireside tales of this specter whom they called the galloping Hessian of Sleepy Hollow.
The other spell beguiled Ichabod more than any ghost, goblin or coven of witches. ’Twas that of a coquettish woman! Katrina van Tassel was a ripe, blooming lass known not only for her beauty but for the bounty anyone marrying her would inherit. She was the only daughter of Baltus van Tassel, the most prosperous farmer in the Hollow.
Ichabod courted Katrina as her singing master. He rolled his eyes over all the Van Tassels’ abundant wheat fields and fruit orchards, imagining, “one day, all this will be mine.” The course, of course, to true love, as the bard said, is never straight. Ichabod’s route to Katrina was more crooked than a barrel of eels. Standing between Crane and Katrina was a “burly, roaring, roistering blade” known as Brom Bones. A Herculean figure, he rode like a Cossack through the Hollow and presented a ready rival to the scarecrow of a schoolmaster. Brom, though, made more of mischief than malice, threatening to “double the schoolmaster up, and lay him on a shelf !”
Clever Crane never agreed to meet his challenger on the open field for a round of fisticuffs. Heavens no! This forced Brawny Bones to turn to a charivari of tricks. He tried smoking Crane out of his school and even set a witch’s web of booby traps. He trained a ridiculous dog to howl whenever Ichabod gave the Van Tassel heiress her singing lesson. Crane still would not give up his suit for Katrina!
Finally things come to a head, lest they’d go on this way too long. The Van Tassels held an annual autumnal “quilting frolic.” Upon receiving the invitation, Ichabod cried, “School’s dismissed!” Hair queued in an eel-skin, neck stock and knee britches, he got himself all dressed up. Then he borrowed for his knightly courting a sway-backed ornery plow horse named Gunpowder. Crane, with a love poem in his frock coat pocket, rode off to woo and win Katrina after the ball.
Again, passing by the Van Tassel farmstead, Ichabod imagined everything, complete with cooked ducks swimming to him in their own gravy, as “all mine.” The Sleepy Hollow folk, decked out in brass buttons and ribbons, sat down together for the feast. Ichabod, though “exceedingly lank,” had the “dilating powers of an anaconda.” He ate with the joy other men felt for a good smoke or a strong drink.