Washington Irving, an American writer, was born in New York in 1783 to Deacon William Irving and Sarah Sanders. He was largely self-educated. In 1798, he began work at the law office of Henry Masterton. In 1804, he sailed for France, where he lived and traveled. He returned in 1806 and wrote for many newspapers. His most well-known works of fiction are "Rip Van Winkle," and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." Irving died on November 28, 1859, in Cambridge, Massachusetts.