Washington Irving pieces: "Rip Van Winkle" & "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"

How did Rip Van Winkle typically respond to his wife's constant nagging?

He shrugged his shoulders, shook his head, cast up his eyes, and said nothing.

What secondary role provided Ichabod Crane with supplemental income on Sundays?

Singing-master (instructing youth in psalmody)

What did Hans Van Ripper do with Ichabod Crane's books on witchcraft and fortune-telling after his disappearance?

He burned them.

According to an old farmer visiting New York years later, what legal and political roles did Ichabod Crane eventually achieve?

He studied law, entered the bar, became a politician, wrote for newspapers, and was appointed justice of the Ten Pound Court.

According to local legend, how was the Kaaterskill stream formed?

An Indian hunter dropped a spirit's stolen gourd, releasing a torrential stream that washed him away.

Who was the eighteen-year-old heiress courted by Ichabod Crane?

Katrina Van Tassel

What happened to old Brouwer when he encountered the Headless Horseman near Sleepy Hollow?

The Horseman turned into a skeleton, threw Brouwer into the brook, and vanished over the treetops with thunder.

According to Native American traditions recorded in the Catskill region, what entity ruled the mountain weather from the highest peak?

An old squaw spirit

What piece of equipment fell from Gunpowder and was trampled during Ichabod's wild ride through the hollow?

Hans Van Ripper's Sunday saddle

What was the name of Rip Van Winkle's faithful dog?

Wolf

What was the mysterious, antique-dressed stranger carrying up the mountain when Rip Van Winkle encountered him?

A stout keg filled with liquor

What game were the strange, silent figures playing in the mountain amphitheatre?

Ninepins

What became of Derrick Van Bummel, the village schoolmaster, during Rip Van Winkle's twenty-year sleep?

He went off to the Revolutionary War, became a militia general, and served in Congress.

What was the nickname of Abraham Van Brunt, Ichabod Crane's formidable rival?

Brom Bones

What was Ichabod Crane's primary coping mechanism to drive away evil spirits when walking home at night?

Singing psalm tunes

Which elderly inhabitant verified Rip Van Winkle's account of the supernatural beings in the Catskills?

Peter Vanderdonk

What golden maxim guided Ichabod Crane's approach to student discipline?

"Spare the rod and spoil the child."

How did Dame Van Winkle die during Rip's twenty-year absence?

She broke a blood vessel in a fit of passion at a New England peddler.

Who was the young woman who recognized Rip Van Winkle as her father?

Judith Cardenier

Why did Ichabod Crane believe reaching the church bridge would ensure his safety from the specter?

Local goblin stories alleged that the Headless Horseman was forced to vanish upon reaching the church bridge.

What physical feature on his own face alerted Rip Van Winkle that extensive time had passed?

His beard had grown a foot long.

How did the tavern crowd react when Rip Van Winkle declared himself a loyal subject of King George III?

They denounced him as a Tory, a spy, and a refugee.

How did village club members discern Nicholas Vedder's opinion without him speaking?

By observing his pipe smoking: angry, frequent puffs indicated displeasure, while light, placid clouds indicated approval.

How was Ichabod Crane boarded and fed while maintaining his low-paying schoolmaster position?

He was boarded and lodged at the homes of his students' families, rotating weekly.

What explanation for Ichabod Crane's disappearance was maintained by the old country wives of Sleepy Hollow?

That he was spirited away by supernatural means

What was Rip Van Winkle's primary character flaw according to the narrator?

An insuperable aversion to all kinds of profitable labor

In the postscript of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," what satirical lesson does the story-teller deduce for a country schoolmaster refused by an heiress?

That being refused the hand of a Dutch heiress is a certain step to high preferment in the state

What activity led Rip Van Winkle high into the Catskill Mountains on the day of his disappearance?

Squirrel-shooting

What two items were found near the bank of the brook the morning after Ichabod vanished?

Ichabod's hat and a shattered pumpkin

What was the name of Brom Bones's spirited favorite horse?

Daredevil

How was the log schoolhouse in Sleepy Hollow secured during off-hours?

By a withe twisted around the door handle and stakes set against the window shutters

What was the name of the gaunt, broken-down plow-horse Ichabod borrowed from Hans Van Ripper?

Gunpowder

What spectral figure was rumored to haunt Raven Rock and shriek before winter storms?

The woman in white

How had the village inn changed when Rip Van Winkle returned after twenty years?

It was replaced by "The Union Hotel, by Jonathan Doolittle," featuring a tall pole with a stars-and-stripes flag.

What object did the Headless Horseman hurl at Ichabod Crane as Ichabod crossed the church bridge?

His head (which was actually a pumpkin)

What Revolutionary War tragedy was associated with the massive tulip-tree Ichabod had to pass on his journey home?

The capture of Major André

According to local Dutch tradition, which explorer and crew maintain a vigil in the Catskills every twenty years?

Hendrick Hudson and the crew of the Half-Moon

How did Brom Bones harass Ichabod Crane after Ichabod refused open combat?

He played boorish practical jokes, smoked out his singing school, turned the schoolhouse topsy-turvy, and taught a dog to whine during psalmody.

From what object did architect Yost Van Houten derive the locking concept of the Sleepy Hollow schoolhouse?

An eelpot (easy for a thief to enter, but embarrassing to exit)

What light farm tasks did Ichabod perform to assist the farmers who hosted him?

Making hay, mending fences, taking horses to water, driving cows, and cutting firewood

How did Brom Bones prefer to settle rivalries with competing suitors?

By single combat

Which historical book was Ichabod Crane a perfect master of and firm believer in?

Cotton Mather's History of New England Witchcraft

What wager did Brom Bones claim to offer the Galloping Hessian during their alleged horse race?

A bowl of punch

What bird was Ichabod Crane physically compared to due to his lank frame, spindle neck, and long nose?

A snipe (or a crane)

What town on the eastern shore of the Hudson River lies adjacent to the valley of Sleepy Hollow?

Tarry Town (Greensburgh)

What sound echoed through the Catskill Mountains when the mysterious figures rolled their ninepin balls?

Peals of thunder

From what form of domestic oppression was Rip Van Winkle relieved after his twenty-year absence?

"Petticoat government" (the nagging tyranny of Dame Van Winkle)

From which US state did Ichabod Crane originate before moving to Sleepy Hollow?

Connecticut

Which fictional Dutch historian persona did Washington Irving create to frame stories like "Rip Van Winkle" and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"?

Diedrich Knickerbocker

In what condition did Rip Van Winkle find his firearm upon waking from his long sleep?

The barrel was encrusted with rust, the lock was falling off, and the stock was worm-eaten.

According to local superstition, why does the Headless Horseman ride through the Hollow at high speed?

He is belated in his nightly quest for his head and rushing to return to the churchyard before daybreak.

What caused Rip Van Winkle to fall into his twenty-year sleep?

Repeatedly drinking liquor from the mysterious strangers' flagon

How did Brom Bones react whenever the story of Ichabod's disappearance and the pumpkin was told?

He looked knowing and burst into a hearty laugh at the mention of the pumpkin.

What is the legendary identity of the Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow?

The ghost of a Hessian trooper whose head was carried off by a cannonball during the Revolutionary War

According to local housewives, how did Tarry Town acquire its name?

From their husbands' habit of lingering ("tarrying") about the village tavern on market days

What distinctive headwear distinguished Brom Bones in cold weather?

A fur cap surmounted with a flaunting fox's tail

What peculiar psychological influence affects people who reside in or visit Sleepy Hollow?

A dreamy, witching influence that causes them to walk in a continual reverie, see apparitions, and believe in marvels

Where did the midnight horseman carry his severed head during his chase with Ichabod?

On the pommel of his saddle

Who served as the patriarch of the village and landlord of the inn where the local sages met?

Nicholas Vedder

How was the tavern sign of King George III altered following the Revolutionary War?

The red coat was repainted blue and buff, a sword replaced the sceptre, a cocked hat was added, and it was labeled "GENERAL WASHINGTON."