My pap used to tell us about the time he saw the Loch Ness Monster. Now, I'm not talking about grandpa jokes and spooky fairy tales about alleged sightings. Pap actually SAW the Loch Ness Monster. It was an early morning when a young, U.S. Merchant Marine gazed upon the fabled sea monster descending into Scotland's Loch Ness. Natural history be damned, Nessie was "real" that day.
You can trace wild tales of mythical creatures to Ancient Greek Mythology, where The Chimera — a fire-breathing female monster with a lion's head, a goat's body, and a serpent's tail — is introduced in Homer's Iliad. Minotaurs, basilisks, centaurs, cyclops, krakens, goblins, gnomes, golems, harpies, leprechauns, ogres, sasquatch, yetis and even Dracula himself scared the crap out of kids around the world for centuries. Even in the United States, there are famous mythological creatures that adorn every state's history.
Dubbed "The American Bestiary," SavingSpot and CashNetUSA compiled a list of the old wives' tales and wild animal humanoids that allegedly have been seen across the United States. This list features everything from mountain whales to Bigfoot's half-human cousins to airplane-sized predator birds. We can't get enough of these mythical beasts.
As a Pennsylvania native who grew up with pap's stories, all I can say is this: The Squonk is 100 percent real.
Popular Mythical Creatures in the United States
SavingSpot, CC license
Alabama - White Thang
Alaska - Tizheruk
Arizona - Mogollon Monster
Arkansas - Fouke Monster
California - Dark Watchers
Colorado - Slide-Rock Bolter
Connecticut - Melon Heads
Delaware - Selbyville Swamp Monster
Florida - Skunk Ape
Georgia - Altamaha-ha
Did you know Georgia has its very own Loch Ness Monster? Local lore has it the Altamaha-ha sea monster, better known as Altie, lives in the waters of McIntosh County. More mystical legends of Peach State folklore: https://t.co/59bkXFt1dq pic.twitter.com/QrW7xPIn0V
— Explore Georgia (@ExploreGeorgia) March 9, 2018
Hawaii - Menehune
Idaho - Sharlie
Illinois - The Enfield Horror
Indiana - Beast of Busco
Iowa - Van Meter Monster
Kansas - Sink Hole Sam
Kentucky - The Kelly Little Green Men
Louisiana - Rougarou
Maine - Specter Moose
Maryland - Chessie
Massachusetts - Dover Demon
Michigan - The Michigan Dogman
Fact or Fiction:
Michigan Dogman Thread pic.twitter.com/lJH4s2acCN— Michigan Bests (@MichiganBests) August 1, 2018
Minnesota - Wendigo
Mississippi - Pascagoula River Aliens
Missouri - Momo
Montana - Shunka Warak'in
Nebraska - Alkali Lake Monster
Nevada - Tahoe Tessie
New Hampshire - Wood Devils
New Jersey - Jersey Devil
New Mexico - Teratorns
New York - Champ
North Carolina - The Beast of Bladenboro
North Dakota - Thunderbird
Ohio — Loveland Frogmen
The Loveland Frogmen! 31 Terrifying Monsters Causing Insomnia Around The World - https://t.co/DDTOgXah6H pic.twitter.com/oG1In9FbTR
— Cracked.com (@cracked) October 27, 2018
Oklahoma - Oklahoma Octopus
Oregon - Colossal Claude
Pennsylvania - The Squonk
Rhode Island - Vampire Mercy Brown
South Carolina - Lizard Man of Scape Ore Swamp
South Dakota - Taku-He
Tennessee - Tennessee Wildman
Texas - Chupacabra
Utah - Bear Lake Monster
Vermont - Northfield Pigman
Virginia - Snallygaster
Washington - Bigfoot
It would be a huge mistake? #BigFoot #Washingtonhttps://t.co/e028C7W0y2 pic.twitter.com/y9PejaiI7h
— Ripley's Believe It or Not! (@Ripleys) October 2, 2020
West Virginia - Mothman
Wisconsin - The Beast of Bray Road
Wyoming - Jackalope
Be honest, have you seen any of these creatures in your home state? Let us know in the comments!
