Washington Irving was an American writer. He was born in New York City on April 3, 1783. He began his literary career writing humorous newspaper sketches. He edited magazines. He went to Europe on family matters as a young man. He remained there for 17 years. He served as the United States ambassador to Spain from 1842 to 1846. He wrote biographies. He regarded his 5-volume life of George Washington as his masterpiece. He died in his home,Sunnyside, at Tarrytown, New York on November 28, 1859.
"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is a short story by Washington Irving. The story was published in 1820 in a collection of Irving's literary pieces called The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. The story was one of the first fictional works by an American author to become popular outside the United States. Adaptations include Walt Disney'sanimatedmovieThe Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad of 1949 and, more recently, Tim Burton's Sleepy Hollow of 1999 starring Johnny Depp.
