Water Monster reports from the 1880s
80 cases, best-documented first. Page 1 of 1.
We map claims, not creatures. A case is what some source says someone saw or heard, with the link to that source. It is not proof that anything was there, and a retelling counts once, not as a second sighting.
Water Monster · Door County, Wisconsin · 1883
Fishermen report seeing a large, black, hairy creature with an immense head and threatening teeth swimming alongside their boat off Death's Door.
Water Monster · Cook County, Illinois · 1884
The steward of the tug Miller reports a huge black object rising under the port bow, followed by Captain Neiman and the engineer corroborating.
Water Monster · Excelsior, Minnesota · 1889
Witness reports a sea serpent with a human-like head resembling spectacles and short feelers that followed Carl Puckett for three hours.
Water Monster · Lincoln Park, Illinois · 1884
Deckhand Ed Burke and Captain Everatt of the tug Success report a huge animal rising out of the water with a roaring sound and darting toward the tug.
Water Monster · Essex County, Massachusetts · 1886
Witnesses report seeing a large, snake-like marine animal near Cape Ann, described as undulating vertically and measuring approximately seventy feet in length.
Water Monster · Newport, Rhode Island · 1889
A man in Newport captured a sea serpent and placed it in a glass jar, noting it was only five feet long and weighed two pounds.
Water Monster · Lake Minnetonka, Minnesota · 1889
Witness reports seeing a huge serpent with a catfish-like head and greenish eyes in Lake Minnetonka.
Water Monster · Hudson River, New York · 1886
The article claims there is no longer doubt about the existence of a marine monster, citing historical reports from Greenland, Norway, and Massachusetts.
Water Monster · New York · 1882
Witness reports the crew of the Levi Young noticed a huge serpent swimming ahead of the boat near Blackwell's island.
Water Monster · Lake Minnetonka, Minnesota · 1889
Witness reports a long slender serpent with a box-like head and feelers hanging from its mouth in Lake Minnetonka.
Water Monster · Oakland, Maryland · 1887
Dr. [name] presented arguments and paleontological evidence to the Boston Scientific Society supporting the existence of sea serpents.
Water Monster · Wessington Springs, South Dakota · 1887
Captain Jones narrates his thrilling experience of capturing a sea serpent to inmates in a workhouse.
Water Monster · Mineral Park, Arizona · 1888
Witness reports Virgil described twin sea serpents with bloody crests and fiery bloodshot eyes.
Water Monster · 1885
Captain A. N. Smith reports sighting a massive black sea serpent with three humps in the Atlantic Ocean.
Water Monster · Thunder Bay, Michigan · 1888
Witness reports that Isaacson's boy Grant saw a huge snake near Thunder Bay and fired at it, while his father later examined the tracks.
Water Monster · Wind River, Wyoming · 1886
Hunters report seeing a huge serpent-fish hybrid monster at Bull Lake that bellowed and sank into the depths.
Water Monster · City of Bristol, England · 1886
Witness reports a 22-foot long sea serpent was captured near Bristol 14 years prior and drawn by historians.
Water Monster · Lake Tahoe, California · 1880
Italian fishermen report encountering a large serpent in the lake that frightened them.
Water Monster · Lake City, California · 1882
A hunter claims a huge monster seized a wounded deer from Cook's Lake and was later seen swimming across the lake by one of the hunters.
Water Monster · Rockport, Massachusetts · 1886
Witnesses report seeing a large marine monster described as a sea serpent near the Rockport breakwater.
Water Monster · Manomet, Massachusetts · 1884
A witness reports that Webster saw a sea serpent with a horse-like head and barrel-sized body in the bay between Manomet and Plymouth beach.
Water Monster · Lower Chain Lake, Maine · 1882
The Machias Republican published an article regarding a monster serpent in Chain Lake, which many local people believe inhabits the lake.
Water Monster · Mokelumne River, California · 1881
Witnesses report a water monster in the Mokelumne River attacked and drowned a man attempting to capture it, with another death attributed to the same creature years prior.
Water Monster · Gloucester, Massachusetts · 1888
Witness reports the Gloucester sea serpent seemed to be about eighty feet in length with a smooth dark head.
Water Monster · Lake Champlain, Vermont · 1887
Reports allege that a Lake Champlain Boa serpent has been seen several times this year by scores of people.
Water Monster · Bar Harbor, Maine · 1881
A woman known in society reported seeing a sea serpent off Bar Harbor that was over 50 feet long and moving in a circle.
Water Monster · Hudson River, New York · 1886
Witnesses in a boat reported seeing a sea serpent with greenish eyes and a long body raising its head along the Hudson River.
Water Monster · Lake Minnetonka, Minnesota · 1889
Witness reports a horned sea serpent with red and green eyes that smiled, smoked a cigar, and drank from a bottle.
Water Monster · Saint Croix River, New Brunswick / Nouveau-Brunswick · 1888
Old salts report that Capt. Stinson saw a monster serpent in the St. Croix river approximately 15 years prior.
Water Monster · Coös County, New Hampshire · 1887
P.T. Barnum claims to believe in the existence of a huge sea serpent and has renewed his offer of $20,000 for its capture.
Water Monster · Hudson River, New York · 1886
The author claims a marine monster is currently haunting the Hudson river and being witnessed by residents and fishermen near Washington's Headquarters at Newburg.
Water Monster · Lake Champlain, Vermont · 1887
A correspondent reports that a sea serpent seen by picnickers on Lake Champlain has traveled overland to Lake George and was spotted by a farmer driving hay.
Water Monster · Skunk River, Iowa · 1884
The Skunk river monster is described as a mystery with conflicting political interpretations of its identity.
Water Monster · Hudson River, New York · 1886
Witnesses report a sea serpent seen in the Hudson River this summer, supported by descriptions from Capt. Robert Brush.
Water Monster · Lake Minnetonka, Minnesota · 1889
Witness reports a huge head with horns and spikes, attached to a grayish-brown body with fins, which smiled and smoked a cigar.
Water Monster · Mokelumne River, California · 1881
A water monster is said to inhabit the Mokelumne river above Jackson, Cal., with Chinese people claiming it killed one of their number.
Water Monster · Washington County, Maine · 1883
A sea serpent was reportedly killed on Campobello Island in 1883 after it had been terrifying fishermen for over a month.
Water Monster · Gloucester, Massachusetts · 1886
Witness reports a sea serpent seen off Gloucester on the Massachusetts coast this year.
Water Monster · Ottawa County, Ohio · 1887
Two French fishermen report seeing an immense fish-like monster with arms on the beach of Lake Erie, which died and was carried away by waves.
Water Monster · Allen County, Indiana · 1883
Witnesses report a large serpent inhabiting Pleasant Lake, seen multiple times over six months by several reputable citizens.
Water Monster · Lake Champlain, Vermont · 1887
W. H. H. Murray reports seeing a sea-serpent in Lake Champlain which he later identified as a flock of plovers.
Water Monster · Gloucester, Massachusetts · 1886
Witness reports the monster has been seen several times this summer, notably off Gloucester.
Water Monster · Leòdhas, Alba / Scotland · 1882
The captain and crew of the German steamer Katie reported seeing a large, dark sea monster with hillock-shaped projections near the Butt of Lewis.
Water Monster · Hudson River, New York · 1886
The Army and Navy Journal reports that Lieutenant Foster and others on the USS Minnesota encountered a sea serpent in the Hudson River.
Water Monster · Cattaraugus County, New York · 1881
A water monster is said to inhabit the Fokelumne river above Jackson, and Chinese residents claim it killed one of their number.
Water Monster · Knox County, Indiana · 1881
Witness reports that in the summer of 1881, a farmer named [name] caught an unwelcome marauder in his seine which tore a huge hole through it and escaped.
Water Monster · Charlotte, Vermont · 1887
A party of Charlotte people claim to have seen the Lake Champlain sea serpent during a picnic on the lake shore.
Water Monster · Nahant, Massachusetts · 1881
Witness reports a sea serpent seen by hundreds on the beach at Nahant, described as having white foam under its chin and protuberances along its back.
Water Monster · Arnprior, Ontario · 1881
Captain Brow of the steamer Alliance reports viewing a monster in Chats Lake.
Water Monster · Mississippi River · 1882
The St. Louis Chronicle reports that the Mississippi river monster has not yet appeared this year, causing anxiety among its fans who expect it to be discovered by Memphis or Cairo newspapers around…
Water Monster · Lake Minnetonka, Minnesota · 1887
Col. Piatt B. Walker and several others reported seeing a huge serpent-like monster in Lake Minnetonka that emitted a loud hiss and disappeared.
Water Monster · Piscataquis County, Maine · 1884
Witnesses report that a serpent of enormous size was seen in Big Lake by an Indian and two Native American women who paddled ashore in fear.
Water Monster · Alpena, Michigan · 1888
Residents along Thunder Bay are terrified by a monster lake serpent after farmer Isaacson found a wide trail leading to the bay.
Water Monster · Fishers Island, New York · 1886
The Norwich Bulletin reports that a sea serpent seen off Fishers' Island was described ten years prior as being 2,760 feet long with orange back and red sides.
Water Monster · Bear Lake, Utah · 1883
Robinson reported that a party surprised an immense aquatic animal basking on the bank of Bear Lake and fired at it.
Water Monster · Door County, Wisconsin · 1883
Two fishermen report an animal of similar description swimming alongside their boat and frightening them so badly they were taken sick.
Water Monster · Carbon County, Pennsylvania · 1886
Witnesses report seeing a sea serpent on the Lehigh River, describing it as seventeen feet long with a head like a beer keg.
Water Monster · Larimer County, Colorado · 1884
Witnesses report seeing a large, dark, eel-like water monster with a seal-like head in the St. Vrain stream.
Water Monster · Fairfield, Connecticut · 1889
Witnesses report an enormous serpent with a black head and copperas back was seen in the Narabou river by over a dozen people, including Mr. [name] who encountered it while clamming.
Water Monster · Lake Champlain, Vermont · 1887
P. T. Barnum offers a reward for a sea serpent over fifty feet long claimed to be seen in Lake Champlain.
Water Monster · Mokelumne River, California · 1881
Witness reports that a water monster inhabits the Mokelumne river above Jackson, California, and has killed one Chinese person.
Water Monster · Massachusetts · 1886
Rockport observers reported seeing a sea serpent similar to one recently sighted in the Hudson River.
Water Monster · Savannah, Georgia · 1887
Prof. Proctor discusses the possibility of sea serpents existing, citing that many captains claim to have seen them but remain silent to protect their reputations.
Water Monster · Florida · 1880s
Witness reports that Rev. Mr. [name] found a carcass of a vertebrate with saurian features, forty-two feet long, which was swept out to sea by a hurricane.
Water Monster · Cuba · 1888
Captain Paul Boyton claims his expedition captured a sixty-foot sea serpent off the coast of Cuba in August 1888 after it attacked their boats.
Water Monster · Wisconsin · 1885
A Chicago journal reports that a large sea serpent was seen in Lake Michigan by at least two lake-faring men.
Water Monster · Ecuador · 1889
Captain Smith claims to have killed a large sea serpent near the Galapago Islands that was shot with bomb guns.
Water Monster · New York · 1888
Captain Traut and Chief Officer Muir of the steamship Venetia reported seeing a large round body with rough, scaly skin above the water surface before it sank.
Water Monster · Burlington, Vermont · 1887
The lighthouse keeper on Junimer Island confirms a theory that an appearance of a sea serpent was actually a flock of birds.
Water Monster · Norge · 1888
Witness reports Bishop Pontopidon described the Norway sea serpent as gray with a black mouth and long mane.
Water Monster · New York · 1885
Professor Proctor recounts Captain McQuhae's report of seeing a long-necked sea monster near the Daedalus.
Water Monster · Savannah, Georgia · 1883
The table of contents lists an article titled "A Lake Serpent Vouched For" as part of the first page's contents.
Water Monster · Ridgway, Pennsylvania · 1881
Witness reports an enormous monster about 100 feet in length with a head crowned with long hair was seen advancing into the harbor at Green point.
Water Monster · Atlantic Ocean · 1888
Officers on the steamship Venetian reported seeing a large, rough, scaly body moving near the surface of the ocean off Georges Banks.
Water Monster · Chicago, Illinois · 1881
Passengers on the steamer Gypsey and others report chasing a large amphibious creature in the Hideim Canal that was shot at but escaped.
Water Monster · Washington, District of Columbia · 1881
C. Renard described a sea serpent seen in moonlight that caused a stench and had a hard tongue with suckers.
Water Monster · New York · 1889
Mr. [name] encountered a serpent with little black eyes while floating in open water after his sleigh broke through the ice.
Water Monster · Milan, Tennessee · 1886
Witness reports Bishop Pontonpidan had a dissolving view of a sea-serpent with bright eyes and a body as big around as two hogs heads.
Water Monster · Madagascar · 1889
Mr. [name] reports that he and two companions in Majanga, Madagascar, witnessed a 100-foot sea serpent in Bambataska Bay which they shot at with rifles but could not harm.
Water Monster · Tucson, Arizona · 1889
Three Native American claim two companions were captured and devoured by the great water serpent while searching for wood.