James Fennimore Cooper and Washington Irving
James Fenimore Cooper and Washington Irving were two of the first popular American authors. Both Cooper and Irving wrote about specific American themes. James Fenimore Cooper wrote about frontier life in The Pioneers in 1823 and The Last of the Mohicans in 1826. He is credited with creating the first western hero. Washington Irving's most famous stories are “Rip Van Winkle” the story of a man who sleeps for twenty years and wakes up to a very different life, and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” the story of the Headless Horseman. Learn more about both men and their stories below.
Read the Story of Rip Van Winkle
Read the Legend of Sleepy Hollow