The Headless Horseman and Happy Dogs
Early on in elementary school, perhaps second grade, we watched a marionette production of “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” on the cafeteria stage. I was immediately hooked. Years later, when I found out our household set of encyclopedias contained all the wonders of the world, I looked up “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” and was amazed to learn it was based on a real place: a little Dutch settlement just outside Tarrytown, NY. Washington Irving, the author of the 1820 short story, is credited with being the writer of the first “ghost story”. It has since been retold in cartoons, movies and other media, including, apparently, little wooden puppets controlled by string.
This past week, I checked off a visit to Sleepy Hollow from my “History Bucket List.” The locals lean into the legend completely and the Headless Horseman adorns street signs, storefronts and even the town fire engine.
While walking among the stones in the Old Dutch Graveyard, looking for Irving’s final resting place, I couldn’t help but think of the spooky, layered, ‘legend within the legend’ situation. In Irving’s story, the character Brom Bones uses the fictional local legend of a headless Hessian soldier who rides his phantom steed while looking for his head to scare Ichabod Crane. I won’t ruin the ending for those unfamiliar, but as I stood among the early 19th century markers, I couldn’t help but consider other local legends.
Many cities, towns and villages across America have local legends of their own. Often, these are supernatural in nature and designed to teach a lesson of some kind. Equally as often they are used to frighten children and those new to the area.
My hometown spooked little ones with tales of a phantom dog. In my youth, we hunted deer in an area of South Carolina known for the legend of the “Ghost Dog of Maybinton” sometimes referred to as the “Ghost Dog of Goshen Hill.” The names refer to the two communities that serve as the endcaps to the ghostly pooch’s travels. Most commonly, it was called the “Happy Dog.”
The story is that of a traveling salesman in the 1840s who was wrongly arrested for a murder. While awaiting judgement, the large white mastiff that was his traveling companion lay outside the jail. When the man was executed, the dog followed him to the gallows and witnessed the deed. For weeks, the mastiff would howl endlessly near the hanging site. The actual killer eventually came forward after a few weeks and confessed. Whether he was prompted by guilt or the dog’s cries, no one knows. Either way, the dog didn’t care. It continued its mournful cries until it was finally shot.
A few months later, the dog reappeared on a foggy night and chased the hangman along the stretch of road between the aforementioned areas. It continued over the next few decades, these tales of a large white dog appearing on foggy nights to chase travelers. Its hideous “grinning” mouth giving it the name “The Happy Dog.” The invention of the automobile did not give travelers any advantage; the dog still appeared and had no issue keeping pace with a speeding vehicle…. according to legend.
It seems silly now, yet in the predawn dark it was enough to chill a 12-year-old to the bone. I was terrified at the thought of running across the apparition of an angry dog while traveling along the cursed bit of highway. I would avoid looking out the truck window as we drove down the road. Once in the woods, every sound before daybreak was enough to make me nervous. I hated going there. I still do.
I’ve never seen the dog and I don’t know anyone that has, but the legend persists.
Washington Irving had several short stories that became big hits. Sleepy Hollow and Rip Van Winkle are just a few. Nearly any place one visits, they can find a book on local legends or ghost stories. While fictional (hopefully) these little bits of local history passed from generation to generation keep imaginations – and the tourism economy – alive and well. I can’t suggest a trip to Sleep Hollow enough. The locals are wonderful, and the Headless Horseman is completely harmless. The Ghost Dog of Maybinton on the other hand….well, maybe skip that trip.
