Yes, Many in Missouri Claim They Saw a Mississippi River Monster

I have heard of many alleged monsters in Missouri, but never one in the river - until now. Yes, it's true that many in the state claim they have seen a real Mississippi River monster.

Do you think this is some kind of tall tale? Perhaps it is, but there are many confirmed reported events of a purported Mississippi River Monster going back as far as August 29, 1877 when the St. Louis Globe-Democrat shared eyewitness testimonies. Missouri Legends has a photo of the newspaper clipping which details "An Extraordinary Story Concerning the River Leviathan". Here are some exact words from what witnesses said:

"A furious attack on a tow boat and fleet of barges"

"A reptile that rivals the horrid creatures of fable and fiction"

"motion seemed to be caused by a round body rolling over and over in the water with considerable violence, throwing the waves a foot high with each revolution"

When I think of Mississippi River "monsters", I think of catfish which can be nearly as big as a human. For more than 100 years, there have been anecdotal reports of something larger than that lurking in the waters along many Missouri shores. Estimates put the creature between 30 and 40 feet in length.

Is there really a river leviathan in the Mississippi River or were the imaginations of fishermen just getting carried away. Whatever the creature was, it was significant enough to be reported on by several newspapers back in the day yet it's never mentioned nearly as often as Bigfoot. Perhaps this will change that.