Gloucester, Massachusetts · 1817-08-28 · from the LINNAEAN archive
I, William H. Foster, of Gloucester, in the county of Essex, merchant, depose and say 1 That on the fourteenth day of August, A. D. 1817, I first saw an uncommon sea animal, that I believe to have been a serpent, in the harbour in said Gloucester. When I first discovered him, his head was above the surface of the water, perhaps ten inches, and he made but little progress through the water. He was apparently shaded with light colours. He afterwards went in different directions, leaving on the surface of the water, marks like those made by skating on the ice. Then he would move in a straight line west, and would almost in an instant, change his course to east, bringing his head, as near as I could judge, to where his tail was; or in fact, to the extreme hinder part visible, raising himself as he turned, six or eight inches out of water, and shewing a body at least forty feet in length. On the seventeenth of August instant, I \ 15 again saw him. He came into the harbour, occasionally exhibiting parts of his body, which appeared like rings or bunches. As he drew near, and when opposite to me, there rose from his head, or the most forward part of him, a prong or spear about twelve inches in height, and six inches in circumference at the bottom, and running to a small point. Q. Might not the prong or spear that you saw, have been the tongue of the serpent ? A. I thought not; as I saw the prong before I saw the head ; but it might have been. Q. At what distance was you, when you saw the spear of the serpent ? A. I should judge forty rods ; I had a spy-glass when I saw the prong or spear. Q. Did the animal appear round? A. He did. Q. Did he appear jointed, or only serpentine ? A. He appeared jointed. Q, Were its sinuosities vertical; or horizontal? A Vertical. Q. What was its colour ? A. It appeared brown. Q. Did it appear smooth or rough ? A. It appeared smooth. Q. What was the size and shape of his head ? A. At the distance where I was, his head appeared as large as a man’s head; but I cannot describe its shape. Q. Did it appear to pursue, avoid, or notice objects ? A. I thought it appeared to notice objects. Q. How fast did it move ? A. At the rate of a mile in a minute, at times, I have no doubt. WILLIAM H. FOSTER. Essex ss. August 27,1817.
I, Epes Ellery, of Gloucester, in the County of Essex, Ship master, depose and say; that on the 14th day of August, 1817, I saw a sea animal that I thought to be a serpent, in the harbour in…
the accounts read alike, found by meaning rather than by shared details
I, Solomon Allen 3d, of Gloucester, in the county of Essex, Ship master, depose and say ; that I have seen a strange marine animal, that I believe to be a serpent, in the harbour in said Glo…
the accounts read alike, found by meaning rather than by shared details
I, James Mansfield, of Gloucester, in the county of Essex, merchant, depose and say : That I saw a strange creature, of enormous length, resembling a serpent. I think this was on the fifteen…
the accounts read alike, found by meaning rather than by shared details
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This is a sworn deposition, given before a Justice of the Peace in August 1817 and published that year by the Linnaean Society of New England. The deponents were interrogated separately on the same twenty-five questions. The pamphlet is in the public domain and the text is verbatim from it, save for scanning artifacts.
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