Over a century ago, mermaids were observed in the Ohio River near the town of Vevay, in the US state of Indiana.
In 1891, several witnesses reported seeing mysterious humanoid creatures. Two of the creatures had been seen swimming in the water or basking on submerged tree stumps. They ate fish and mussels.
These creatures were humanoid, amphibious, hairless. They were described as vaguely humanoid in appearance, amphibious and completely hairless, and with webbed hands, sharp claws, fins, pointed ears, and jagged teeth.
The Cincinnati Enquirer provided a description:
“The beast is about five feet in length…Its general color is yellowish. The body between the four legs resembles that of a human being. Back of the hind legs it tapers to a point…The extremities resemble hands and are webbed and furnished with sharp claws…it is devoid of hair…Its ears are sharp-pointed and stand up like those of a dog.”
J.M. Ozier, a conferred captain from Kentucky, saw these monsters and even made a sketch. He said they were aggressive. He says there was a male and a female.
A report was published at the time:
“On the sand bar of the Ohio River Vevay, Indiana, reside two nondescript creatures horrible in appearance and habit. They are amphibious in nature and resemble in appearance huge lizards with human features. When partly submerged in the yellow waters of the Ohio, they are strangely like human beings. Of what species of animal they are no one knows, for it is impossible to get near enough to them to judge correctly. The sand bar in question is at low tide covered with huge logs and stumps of trees, known in the river vernacularly as snags. They have been deposited by the government snag boats engaged in keeping the channel clear. When the water is high enough to cover these snags, the creatures make their home among them. When the water recedes, they disappear into some unknown lair and wait for a rise. From indications they appear to be carnivorous. Among the snags are to be found wagon loads of mussel shells, fish bones, and other debris of animals. When the river goes down, these shells and other articles disappear only to be succeeded by a fresh lot. This is evidence to those who have watched the coming and going of the strange things that they live upon such food.”
These mermaids were not seen until in 1891. After that year they disappeared completely and have never been seen again.
Image by enriquelopezgarre via Pixabay
- The Mysterious Mud Mermaids of Indiana, 11th September 2020
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