Gloucester Sea Serpent
This is a story about an alleged snake-like animal, that swims the water off the harbour of Gloucester, on the Atlantic coastline.
The first sighting of this serpent was in 1638, by a guy named John. Here began the haunting of the sea serpent for the next three centuries to come. In 1817 there were many reports of this unnamed marine animal. The general description of this ‘thing’ was that it was around 100 feet long, with black, large eyes, pointy teeth, covered in scales. Two women sighted this large, almost dinosaur-like creature, stating "it’s head was as broad as a horse or more so, but not quite as long." It was said that the animal swam vertically and had several humps. Around this period, the sea serpent was shot by a ship’s carpenter and he stated “ I had a good gun, and took good aim. I aimed at his head, and I think I must have hit him. He turned toward us immediately after I had fired, and I thought he was coming at us, but he sunk and went directly under our boat, and made his appearance at about one hundred yards from where he sunk...” That is an ominous statement. It is estimated that over 100 years there have been 190 sightings of this animal, which makes it seem legit right?
There must have been some realism to this tale, as an ex-employee of Washington, David Humphrey’s, went out of his way to interview eyewitnesses, in hope of solving this mystery himself. He brought to light this quoted description of the monster, from one witness “…much like the head of a turtle… and larger than the head on any dog… (with) a prong or spear about twelve inches in height, and six inches in circumference at the bottom, and running to a small point (coming from its head).” Years later, scientists began investigating this phenomenon. It is stated that this living thing was one of the most admired and respected mysteries within the scientific community. However it remains unsolved by the community so the question is asked, did the Gloucester Sea Serpent ever lurk in the deep, murky sea, or was it just another ‘sailors tale’? Some scientists and investigators gave the logical explanation of these sightings to just be schools of dolphins or sightings of elephant seals. Who knows?
In the 20th century, there were a few sightings. The author of The Great New England suggests that the creature may have moved habitat, due to the lack of fish that roamed at that harbour. However, now fisheries are being protected, maybe the serpent will return to its home?
The last sighting of this big, sea monster was in 1997 after near 30 years of lull, a report was made from Fortune Bay. The witness said that “it turned its head and looked right at us. All we could see was a neck six feet long, a head like a horse, but his dark eyes were on the front of his face...” Nothing has been heard since, regarding the Gloucester sea serpent.
So, does this creature actually exist, is it just an old ‘Wives tale’ or is it a figment of one’s imagination?