Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (1924), illustrated by Edna Cooke

This 1924 edition of Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, published by J.B. Lippincott Company, Philadelphia, brings together two of Washington Irving’s most enduring and beloved American short stories. Known for his vivid storytelling and use of early American folklore, Irving captures the mysterious atmosphere of colonial New York with humor, suspense, and lyrical prose. Rip Van Winkle follows a Dutch-American villager who escapes his nagging wife only to awaken twenty years later, while The Legend of Sleepy Hollow tells the eerie tale of Ichabod Crane and the legendary Headless Horseman.

This edition is particularly notable for its illustrations by Edna M. Cooke, an American artist who worked primarily during the early 20th century. Cooke’s illustrations blend charm with subtle spookiness, perfectly matching the tones of Irving’s tales. Her pen-and-ink drawings and color plates enhance the rural settings and character expressions, capturing both the quaintness of village life and the haunting beauty of the Hudson River Valley. Though less widely known today than some contemporaries, Cooke was a skilled illustrator whose work appeared in children’s books and classic reprints, marked by fine detail and narrative sensitivity.

Cooke’s contributions to this edition elevate the stories, providing a visual entry point into Irving’s richly imagined world. Her portrayal of characters like Rip and Ichabod bring a gentle humanity to these figures, while still leaving space for the supernatural undertones that define the tales.

Recommended for collectors:

• Tales of Mystery and Imagination (1935), illustrated by Arthur Rackham – A darker take on American Gothic, with stunning atmospheric visuals.
• Rip Van Winkle (1921), illustrated by N.C. Wyeth – Another powerful visual interpretation of Irving’s classic work.

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” is a gothic story by American author Washington Irving, contained in his collection of 34 essays and short stories entitled The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent.. Written while Irving was living abroad in Birmingham, England, “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” was first published in 1820. Along with Irving’s companion piece “Rip Van Winkle”, “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” is among the earliest examples of American fiction with enduring popularity, especially during Halloween because of a character known as the Headless Horseman believed to be a Hessian soldier who was decapitated by a cannonball in battle.

Edna Cooke – The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, 1924