Little Old New York was a fascinating place for a boy to grow up in. In 1787 it took only twenty minutes to walk from one end of it to the other, but it was already rich in history. Even when he was still a small boy Washington Irving knew more stories about its quaint Dutch past than almost anyone else. And he loved every foot of it.

There was Broad Way, up which a procession might come. There was the Bowling Green with its rough black iron fence and the solemn old gentlemen playing bowls. there was the Battery, and a sight of white sails. And everywhere and always there was the fragrant smell of the sea in the air. The old Dutch houses had funny gable ends, and odd roofs made like steps. Yes, young Washington Irving loved it all.

He and his friends had great fun outdoors—fishing, hunting, wandering about. He met General Washington, after whom he was named, when he came to New York to be inaugurated as our first President. On a stagecoach trip he met John Jacob Astor who was going west to build a community on the Columbia River. He promised both the President and Mr. Astor that when he grew up he would write books about them.

The boy turned everything he saw and everyone he met into stories. His curiosity and imagination were boundless. A voyage up the Hudson River was a thrilling experience. On a visit to Tarrytown he seized eagerly on the old Dutch legends of the countryside. You learn how he came to hear about the headless Hessian soldier of Sleepy Hollow, Hulda the brave witch and many a legendary figure of the Catskills.

A blue tile, given him by a ship's captain, made him long to see the Alhambra in Spain. In fact, he wanted to travel everywhere, "for to admire and for to see, for to behold this world so wide," and to write books about it all. Eventually his travel books were to win him great and lasting fame.

He is called the "Father of American Literature." He is one of the best storytellers of all time. You understand his charm when you read this book about his boyhood.

Mrs. Widdemer was the one right person to write of Washington Irving for the Childhood of Famous Americans Series. She too loves New York. She has the imagination to slip back into the past, to "wish away" the tall buildings and to see the little town as it was when her hero was a lad. Like him she relishes all the lore and legendry of the old Dutch times. Her great-grandfather knew Washington Irving, and for seven happy years she herself lived in Tarrytown. The author of many stories and poems for children, she now uses all her skill to make them acquainted with a most delightful boy, who grew up to be a writer of enduring appeal for young and old.

From the dust jacket