RIP VAN WINKLE

Inscription

RIP VAN WINKLE
TWENTY YEAR'S SLEEP AND
THUNDEROUS NINE-PIN GAME,
IRVING'S 1819 SHORT STORY
GAVE CATSKILL MOUNTAINS ITS
FAMOUS DUTCH CHARACTER
NEW YORK FOLKLORE
WILLIAM G. POMEROY FOUNDATION 2019

Famed Knickerbocker Washington Irving created a literary legend in the form of sleepy Rip Van Winkle, a pre-Revolutionary War resident of upstate New York who became a hallmark of American folklore by taking the longest nap ever. Rip, tired of his wife’s nagging, sought relief in the peaceful Catskill Mountains. But his mental health stroll took a turn for the surreal when Rip stumbled upon men bowling. After accepting a drink from the men, Rip fell into a deep slumber.

Rip wakes up two decades later to find everything has changed. He’s sporting a long beard, his musket is rusty, and his dog is gone. His village too has changed, and the major calamity of the decade, the American Revolution, has both come and gone. The word had changed greatly, as the United States would continue to do over the next couple centuries. And amid it all, sleepy Rip Van Winkle became a centerpiece of Upstate New York folklore.