Washington Irving Autographs
Washington Irving (April 3, 1783 – November 28, 1859) was an American short-story writer, essayist, biographer, historian, and diplomat of the early 19th century. He wrote the short stories "Rip Van Winkle" (1819) and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" (1820), both of which appear in his collection The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. His historical works include biographies of Oliver Goldsmith, Muhammad, and George Washington, as well as several histories of 15th-century Spain that deal with subjects such as the Alhambra, Christopher Columbus, and the Moors. Irving served as American ambassador to Spain in the 1840s.
Irving was born and raised in Manhattan to a merchant family. He made his literary debut in 1802 with a series of observational letters to the Morning Chronicle, written under the pseudonym Jonathan Oldstyle. He temporarily moved to England for the family business in 1815, where he achieved fame with the publication of The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. which was serialized from 1819 to 1820. He continued to publish regularly throughout his life, and he completed a five-volume biography of George Washington just eight months before his death at age 76 in Tarrytown, New York.
Irving was one of the first American writers to earn acclaim in Europe, and he encouraged other American authors such as Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Herman Melville, and Edgar Allan Poe. He was also admired by some British writers, including Lord Byron, Thomas Campbell, Charles Dickens, Mary Shelley, Francis Jeffrey, and Walter Scott. He advocated for writing as a legitimate profession and argued for stronger laws to protect American writers from copyright infringement.
Read more about Washington Irving on Wikipedia
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Traded items with a signature of Washington Irving
The most expensive item with a signature of Washington Irving (Arthur Rackham, Washington Irving / Rip Van Winkle Signed limited edition 1st ed) was sold in March 2025 for $5,500.00 while the cheapest item (2024 Historic Autograph Co. The 1800's - Washington Irving #56 Print Run of 99) found a new owner for $6.99 in March 2025. The month with the most items sold (2) was September 2014 with an average selling price of $239.00 for an autographed item of Washington Irving. Sold items reached their highest average selling price in January 2015 with $3,999.00 and the month that saw the lowest prices with $12.86 was January 2009. In average, an autographed item from Washington Irving is worth $206.50.
Most recently, these items with a signature of Washington Irving were sold on eBay - click here for more items.
| Picture | Item Title | Price | Store |
 | 1811 NY LAWYER JOHN TREAT IRVING BROTHER OF WASHINGTON IRVING SIGNED DOCUMENT | $46.00 |  |
| 1811 NY LAWYER JOHN TREAT IRVING BROTHER OF WASHINGTON IRVING SIGNED DOCUMENT | $46.00 | |
| Author Washington Irving Autograph Envelope, With Portait Engraving | $56.00 | |
| Author Washington Irving Autograph Envelope, With Portait Engraving | $56.00 | |
| Washington Irving (1783-1859) Clipped Autograph - Rare | $244.00 | |
 | WASHINGTON IRVING (1783-1859) signed letter | "Sleepy Hollow" autograph PSA/DNA | $1,017.99 | |
| WASHINGTON IRVING (1783-1859) signed letter | "Sleepy Hollow" autograph PSA/DNA | $1,017.99 | |
| WASHINGTON IRVING * PSA/DNA * Autograph Inscription Signed * SLEEPY HOLLOW | $550.00 | |
| WASHINGTON IRVING * PSA/DNA * Autograph Inscription Signed * SLEEPY HOLLOW | $550.00 | |
 | Washington Irving Author Rip Van Winkle – Sleepy Hollow Signed AUTO Cut PSA/DNA | $1,002.99 | |
| Washington Irving Author Rip Van Winkle – Sleepy Hollow Signed AUTO Cut PSA/DNA | $1,002.99 | |
| Washington Irving Autograph Letter - original! Written in London and dated 1831 | $499.00 | |
| Washington Irving Autograph Letter - original! Written in London and dated 1831 | $499.00 | |
| Washington Irving PSA DNA Handwritten Letter Signed Author Autograph COA | $897.25 | |
| Washington Irving PSA DNA Handwritten Letter Signed Author Autograph COA | $897.25 | |
