A path of Discovery - Part 4 - Sleepy Hollow, the Legend Lives

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow in three of the interpretations I knew best.

Few would be the number of people not familiar with Washington Irving's (b. April 3, 1783 – d. November 28, 1859) tale of the Headless Horseman that pursued the schoolteacher Ichabod Crane. One of the earliest folk tales that helped set  the standard for Americana writings, it was one of twelve stories in a collection of written works published as The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. in 1819.

I know I was pretty darn excited being up in the Allentown area to realize after a bit of searching that the actual village of Sleepy Hollow was only about two hours of drive away. The larger Tarrytown is the small town that surrounds Sleepy Hollow. Literally you have to go through Tarrytown and then all of a sudden you're in Sleepy Hollow!

I didn't really know what to expect, as the story, to the best of my knowledge was simply a tale, a work of fiction. But like many great writers that would follow him, his tale of Ichabod's nightmare ride had some elements that rang true, if only from the influence of the village around him...

If you are looking for the bridge (over the Pocantico River) that the sign is referring to, it's on the corner of Bellwood Ave.

And I can see how it would have inspired him. Sleepy Hollow has it's touristy edge, but not as bad as some of the places in the midwest. The fact that fall was giving it's last push of explosive color made the village seem... well like a movie set. Like the surroundings were right out of a Flemish painting.

A bit of tourist flair that was on display.

Now there is some parking around the area, but if you can manage it, get there really early to go in the rear way, and enjoy this incredibly cool little pathway that leads up to the visitor center.

The area is well taken care of and the path is well defined.

After walking a bit, you come around a bend and this view right out of a distant memory of childhood fairy tales hits your eyes. The lighting was so dramatic and inviting, just from that morning light draping across that body of water.

I took this shot immediately after I laid eyes on the mill.

I've seen some beautiful places, but the old colonial rustic charm and feel of this was overwhelming. Add that to the fact it was Autumn and I was literally on cloud nine.

I was wondering if that bridge would give access to the mill and house behind it...

After walking around, I saw that the bridge actually connected to the back of the visitor center. So after signing up for a tour of another site that would start in about thirty minutes, the bridge was what I wanted to check out now!

HA! No dice! Bridge is closed!

Oh man, the disappointment! Evidently, some damage had happened to that old bridge recently, and it would be some time before it would be fixed. For the foreseeable future no access or guided tours would be allowed to those wonderful buildings.

The old Church of Sleepy Hollow.

After coming back from the guided tour of the other location (which I'll cover in my next update), the next obvious place to check out within walking distance and that is ALSO located on the corner of Bellwood Ave., was the Dutch Church where the Irving family burial plot is.

There was someone selling t-shirts, and mugs, and frisbees all emblazoned with terrible clip art of scary trees and something that was supposed to be representative of the Headless Horseman. They were also peddling some wagon rides up the hill that the Church resided on. Save your money and walk. Also, bring some good walking shoes with orthopedic inserts. I did, and my knees forgave me for walking so much.

The interior looked modest and,... HOLY CRAP IS THAT AN ORGAN!?

I do not know why a church this small needs an organ that big, but oh MY god is it not magnificent, as much as it is over the top in grandeur and pomp and circumstance?! I wish Tim Burton had put that thing in his version.

That totally looks like something that would have been in that version of Sleepy Hollow. With like John Hurt portraying a character that was a criminal that was maybe chained to it, to play at every Sunday Mass, as is penance and price for being a criminal.

Yeah that works doesn't it?

You'd never think that right above these people, was installed two tons of WTF organ playing put the fear of God in you musical assault.

I bet it was a hoot to get the new people in town to sit there, underneath it. They walk in and it's all, "Oh this is nice! So serene, so quiet and pensive, I can hear the birds ou... OH MY GOD IS JESUS RETURNING AND HE BROUGHT ALL THE ANGELS AND A $%&#ing TWO HUNDRED PIPE ORGAN!?"

I also believe that the local doctor made a mint off of all of the hearing loss he had to treat.

The cemetery around the church.

I didn't have a lot of time, but as a kid I used to love making graphite rubbings of headstones, a practice that many well tended graveyards look down upon nowadays unfortunately.

There were two specific headstones I wanted to find, the one for the author of this tale, and another that I feel was very much a real world inspiration for the tale's female main character, a woman named Catrina Van Tassel (b.1748-d.1816) who is buried at the Van Tassel plot.

I did not come across Catrina's headstone, but I did manage across one I was looking for...

The small gate with the Irving family name upon it.

There you see the final resting place of the creator of the tale of Sleepy Hollow. If not for the family gate, it's almost too easy to pass him by.

The headstone is located about fifteen feet over to the upper right of the gate, just over from the grave plot plate.

This place was a lot of fun, especially if you love old stories that draw inspiration from real places. I was raised on a steady feed of folk tales, but I really loved this one for it's spookiness factor.

There is a reportedly great live action performance they do in October in the evenings which the time frame did not allot for, that plays out the tale completely. I hope to make it back someday to see that.

The photos above are like maybe 10% of what I managed to get. The rest are detail shots, reference shots, inspiration shots... oh man, this stop was more than worth it!

Until the next part of this update, support your local artists, be kind to your fellow beings, and I'll see you next time! - Mario, the Artisan Rogue