midnight
The dominant spirit , however , that haunts this enchanted region , and seems to be commander-in-chief of all the powers of the air , is the apparition of a figure on horseback without a head . It is said by some to be the ghost of a Hessian trooper whose head had been carried away by a cannonball in some nameless battle during the Revolutionary War , and who is ever and anon seen by the country-folk hurrying along in the gloom of night as if on the wings of the wind . His haunts are not confined to the valley , but extend at times to the adjacent roads , and especially to the vicinity of a church at no great distance . Indeed , certain of the most authentic historians of those parts , who have been careful in collecting and collating the floating facts concerning this spectre , allege that the body of the trooper , having been buried in the churchyard , the ghost rides forth to the scene of battle in nightly quest of his head , and that the rushing speed with which he sometimes passes along the Hollow , like a midnight blast , is owing to his being belated and in a hurry to get back to the churchyard before daybreak . Such is the general purport of this legendary superstition , which has furnished materials for many a wild story in that region of shadows ; and the spectre is known at all the country firesides by the name of the Headless Horseman of Sleepy Hollow . It is remarkable that the visionary propensity I have mentioned is not confined to the native inhabitants of the valley , but is unconsciously imbibed by every one who resides there for a time . However wide awake they may have been before they entered that sleepy region , they are sure in a little time to inhale the witching influence of the air and begin to grow imaginative -- to dream dreams and see apparitions .