June 03, 2026

195. The Gloucester Sea Serpent

1 hour 14 minutes

In August 1817, a large serpentine creature was spotted off the coast of Gloucester by dozens, if not hundreds, of residents. Sure you've heard of Bigfoot and Nessie, perhaps even the Chupacabra and the Jersey Devil. But have you heard the famous Gloucester Sea Serpent? YES, the North Shore has its very own Nessie and it is perhaps the most well-documented and most-sighted cryptid of American legends. Join Jeffrey and Sarah, your favorite Salem tour guides, as they discover the mysteries and the truths about what was seen in Gloucester Harbor over 200 years ago. How big was this thing? How valid were the reports? Did the serpent come to Salem? What exactly was it that visited Gloucester that fateful summer of 1817?

Dr Vitka's Myths Legends & Lore. 2025. “The Gloucester Sea Serpent What Was It? Myth or Monster?” YouTube. January 9, 2025. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Qe9FBBJ1EA.

Landrigan, Leslie. 2014. “The Great New England Sea Serpents.” New England Historical Society. April 3, 2014. https://newenglandhistoricalsociety.com/great-new-england-sea-serpents/.

“Report of a Committee of the Linnaean Society of New England, Relative to a Large Marine Animal, Supposed to Be a Serpent, Seen near Cape Ann, Massachusetts, in August 1817 : Linnaean Society of New England : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive.” 2026. Internet Archive. 2026. https://archive.org/details/b22333393/mode/2up.

Soini, Wayne. 2010. Gloucester’s Sea Serpent. Arcadia Publishing.

Bentley, William. The Diary of William Bentley, D.D., Pastor of the East Church, Salem, Massachusetts. Vol. 4, 1811–1819. Salem, MA: Essex Institute, 1905.

Nickell, Joe. “Gloucester Sea-Serpent Mystery: Solved after Two Centuries.” Skeptical Inquirer, September 26, 2019. LINK

“Here There Be Monsters, OR The Gloucester Serpent!” Readex. November 8, 2012. LINK.

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By Sarah Black & Jeffrey Lilley

4.8

285285 ratings