When most travelers think of a prime location within the United States in which to travel to and enjoy world class resorts and waterfront recreation, typically destinations within Hawaii, California, Florida, Texas, and the Carolina’s appear on their list. This is quite understandable as these specific locations offer some of the best beaches, theme parks, National Parks, and shops within the U.S. If you are looking for something outside of these six vacation hot spots though, the remaining 44 other states also offer their own highly recommended tourist locations, attractions, and five star accommodations as well. The reason for this vast and sometimes overwhelmingly large selection of destinations made available to all travelers is because the travel and tourism sector within the United States is one of the highest grossing industries around.

To understand just how big the travel and tourism industry is within the United States, check out this relatively recent fact. According to the U.S. Travel Association, in 2019, U.S. domestic travel increased 1.7% to a grand total of 2.3 billion person-trips. And for those of you asking what a “person-trip” is, the travel association makes sure to explain this designation. A “person-trip” is officially designated as being one person on a trip away from home overnight in paid accommodations, or on a day or overnight trip to places 50 miles or more, one way, away from home. And with that explanation out of the way, let’s add some more numbers to the already staggering 2019 totals.

Along with the 1.7% increase of domestic travel, leisure travel increased 1.9% to 1.9 billion person-trips overall, and by doing so, total leisure travel numbers ended up accounting for nearly 80% of all U.S. domestic travel. Those individuals traveling around the United States, both domestic and international, ended up spending around $1.1 trillion dollars total, with domestic travelers accounting for $972 billion alone. Now, if you take these numbers and apply them to the overall output revenue generated, the stats will show that the overall travel industry brought in a whopping $2.6 trillion dollars in 2019 alone. Now, to put this all in layman’s terms, this means that those who decide to vacation within the United States, end up helping the U.S. make a lot of money. So it’s easy to see why it can be so difficult at times to choose a destination in which to travel to.

When one is presented with the task of choosing a vacation destination for either themselves, them and their loved one, or their entire family, they must take into consideration a wide range of situations and scenarios which can ultimately alter their preconceived ideas of how their vacation will go. Typically, to help with moments such as these, the soon to be tourist turns to helpful reviews and recommendations made by anonymous travelers who have been there before. They search through list upon list of the best summer destinations, winter destinations, best boating, skiing, fishing, rock climbing, etc. Whatever they need, they can find within an already completed recommended travel destination list. And while many different states make the cut time after time, one state that seems to fly under the radar as a premier vacation destination is the great state of Wisconsin, and if you ask us, that’s a damn shame.

Typically viewed as just another flyover state by those who have never had the honor of getting to witness its beauty first hand, Wisconsin can offer just as much, if not more than a vast majority of other top rated vacation destinations, and this isn’t a recent trend. Unbeknownst to many, the Badger State has been long been known as the perfect getaway for those looking to leave the big city life behind and reconnect with nature. In fact, way back in the 1800s and well into the early 1900s, Wisconsin offered some of the nations best lakeside resorts outside of those on the coasts. Many historically recognized families of wealth and power, as well as many infamous mobsters and crime bosses, flocked to Wisconsin in order to relax, fish, swim, camp, hunt, and of course, spot a lake monster or two. You know, the typical stuff one does while on a vacation.

With over 15,000+ documented lakes in the great state of Wisconsin, and over 172yrs of lake monster sightings within a majority of those lakes, its easy to see why so many people would jump at the chance to vacation around a lake that claimed to have one. And while we could easily choose to talk about one of those bodies of water that are historically known for their dozens upon dozens of reports of strange activity within its depths, this time around we are going to focus on an area that has just one known sighting. Ladies and Gentlemen, pack your bags and book your tickets, because we are heading off to beautiful Elkhart Lake.

Located within a kettle created through glacier retreat during the last glacial period within in North America, Elkhart Lake is a 292 acre body of water which is located within Sheboygan County, WI. The lake, which sports a maximum depth of 119 feet, is the fourth deepest lake within Wisconsin and is what is known as a groundwater seepage lake. This means that Elkhart Lake has no inlet or outlet, and outside of normal rain storms, it is filled mainly by underground springs. Because of this, the lake is rated as having some of the clearest water out of any of the Badger State’s many lakes by the Wisconsin DNR. Within these clear blue-green waters swim both Smallmouth and Largemouth Bass, Musky, Northern Pike, Panfish, Trout, and Walleye. And depending on who you ask, a serpent-like creature may have at one time also swam these clear waters while in search of easy prey.

Well known by various Native American tribes within in the area (Potawatomi, Chippewa, Ottawa, Winnebago, and Menominee) prior to the arrival of European settlers, the lake was thought to be a source of healing and rejuvenation due to the clarity of the water. When German immigrants began to arrive in the area in the mid-1800s, they too recognized the lake as being special, not only for its clarity but also for its purity and the fertile land which surrounded it. So in true historical fashion, farms were established around the lake and cultivation of the land began immediately. And according to historical records and newspaper articles at the time, it didn’t take long for these farms to prove themselves as successful.

In 1846, hoping to cash in on some of the success taking place around the lake, a Sheboygan man by the name of J.L. Moore arrived in the area and purchased nearly 3,000 acres of land surrounding Elkhart to be used for farming. Proving to be a financially profitable decision, the recognized largest land owner on the lake held onto his title all the way up until the early 1850s when he began to grow tired of farming and started to sell off plots of land to various parties. During this selling off period, a man by the name of Henry Davidson purchased some of Moore’s land with the intention of building a residence which was to provide accommodations for those passing through the area, much like an early hotel. Well, it wasn’t long before other residents around Elkhart Lake began to see Davidson’s success with boarding travelers, and before long they too were building their own accommodations to provide the same.

With this sudden surge of construction and influx of travelers almost over night, Elkhart Lake officially transitioned from an obscure farming community into a booming Wisconsin resort village. Seeing the success of the small residential accommodations, those with grand visions came to the lake in order to build even larger and more extravagant resorts, three of which are still in operation to this day. In 1872, William Schwartz built a hotel known as The Rustic House. Over the course of many years, different owners, and two encounters with fire, it was expanded upon and first became known as The Schwartz Hotel, then changed to Barefoot Bay, and later updated to Victorian Village Resort. Today it operates under the name, The Shore Club.

In 1883, William Schwartz (the same one from above) went on to build the three-story hotel known as Belleview House which was able to accommodate 75 guests right out of the gate. In 1916 the resort was purchased by Herman Siebken and renamed Siebkens Resort. The large building provided guests with swimming lessons, moving picture shows, and even serenades from groups of German opera singers who frequently stayed at the resort during the summer months. This historic building, name unchanged, is still in operation alongside Elkhart Lake to this day.

Finally, in 1886, Otto and Paulina Osthoff arrived from Germany with plans to build a large and breathtaking summer resort. Originally named Otto Osthoff’s Hotel, the building was able to comfortably sleep guests in over 120 rooms, making it the largest resort on the lake at the time. After 69yrs the hotel was eventually sold to a Chicago couple and expanded upon again, this time changing to a summer camp known as, The Harand Camp of the Theater Arts. The camp operated until 1989 when it was then sold again, this time to an investment company who, through large scale demolition and reconstruction, converted it back into a resort hotel and renamed it after the original owners becoming The Osthoff Resort.

Now, you may be wondering why this story, which is supposed to be about a lake monster, has spent so much time dwelling on resort history rather than the aquatic beast itself. Well to that we must say, the best way to truly understand a Wisconsin lake monster is to first understand the location in which supposedly lived. And the best way to do that is to realize just how long tourists and vacationers have been flocking to a specific body of water as means to get away and experience something new. But now that we have given what we feel is a good base level of history regarding the resort lake known as Elkhart, we think it’s time to give you exactly what you came here for. That’s right, it’s time to talk about the monster.

So before we begin, we want to let it be known that for this specific monster, we have no official date to link the encounter with. Typically for these historical sightings, we can often find at least one or two historical newspapers in which to corroborate the tale. But for this one, not so much. What we do have though, is the research of Charles E. Brown (1872-1946, former curator of the Museum of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin and secretary of the Wisconsin Archaeological Society) and his forever classic folklore pamphlet entitled, ‘Sea Serpents: Wisconsin Occurrences Of These Weird Water Monsters In The Four Lakes, Rock, Red Cedar, Koshkonong, Geneva, Elkhart, Michigan, and Other Lakes.”

Now, according to the legend, one night in the mid-1890s, an unnamed fisherman had attached a fishing line to the end of one of the many piers that could be found along the edge of Elkhart Lake. Leaving it to sit overnight, the man returned in the morning and ventured down to the end of the pier in order to see if he had caught anything. Much to his elation, the man noticed right away that his line was pulled tight and that the water just below the surface was agitated as if something large was struggling to free itself. Feeling that he may have possibly landed a new lake record, the fisherman began to slowly pull in his line.

As the fisherman slowly brought the line inward, every so often it would jerk back forward out into the deeper part of the lake. In fact the force at which it would pull was so strong, that even the bare minimum of progress was made only with great difficulty. None the less though, the fisherman continued his battle with whatever was on the other side of the line, and finally, after a good amount of time had passed, the man had slowly brought in whatever was on the hook. Interestingly though, whatever this creature was, it had not yet broken the surface and revealed itself to the man. But within an instant, this would soon change.

With only a little bit of line left to go, the fisherman prepared to raise the creature out of the water and lay his eyes upon the prize. But before he could do so, the unseen creature gave a powerful pull and jetted back out into the deep water of the lake. The force of the pull was so extreme in fact, that the man was actually pulled off the pier and went head over heels into the water. Shocked by not only the strength of the unknown creature but also the abrupt temperature change as a result of being submerged, the man understandably struggled to return back to the surface. When he finally did manage to get his head above water yet again, all concerns about what had just occurred no longer occupied his mind. For there in front of him not far away, was the giant head and large, open toothy mouth of the unknown creature he had been attempting to haul in only minutes prior.

Instantly realizing that he had to get out of the water or become breakfast for the monster, the fisherman quickly swam back towards the pier and pulled himself out of the water. The creature, which was not far behind and quickly closing the gap, dashed forward towards the man, but upon seeing that he was no longer in the water and within reach, sank down below the surface and returned back to the center of the lake. Understanding just how lucky he was to make it out of the water alive, the fisherman vowed in that very moment to no longer fish in Elkhart Lake and even went as far as to warn everyone around the lake about the danger within. News of the encounter spread so rapidly in fact that for the entire summer, locals in the area refused to swim in that specific section of the lake. It was only after some time had passed where nobody reported any sightings of the monster did people return to the water once again. At least, that’s what people who believe the legend say happened.

Now we here at The PBI are not often ones to write off the recorded history and documented lore involving the state of Wisconsin’s many aquatic monsters, but there was just something about this story that didn’t sit right with us. In fact the story “bothered” us so much that we reached out directly to the fine folks at the Elkhart Lake Visitors Center in hopes that they could provide us with any and all information they had regarding the supposed encounter which was believed to have taken place in their lake over 120+ years prior. Sadly though to our dismay, they had absolutely zero idea what we were even talking about. The contact at the visitors center stated that they had did some digging and even asked around town if anyone had heard of the legend, and surprisingly, nobody had ever heard it before. The monster in Elkhart Lake it seemed had never existed and had also originated some place else. But where?

As with a majority of other Wisconsin lake monsters, the creature said to be swimming within Elkhart Lake more than likely was created as a way to drive up tourism to the area itself. Remember up above when we were talking about how in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, Wisconsin offered some of the best lakeside resorts within the country? Well, during that time, the state offered so many different choices that the entire life of a resort could begin and end with just one summer. So if you were a resort owner and your establishment offered 75 rooms with one swimming pool, and your competitions resort in the next town over offered 100 rooms with a swimming pool and a concert hall, you may have gone to extreme lengths in order to bring tourists back to your establishment so as not to go under. And what better way to bring back the tourist dollars than with the creation of a lake monster.

It is widely believed that many of the historic articles referencing lake monsters in Wisconsin in the late 1800s and early 1900s were specifically created by resort owners as a means to get people back into their resorts. Some left it at just a story and allowed word of mouth to spread it around naturally, while others went so far as to actually build a monster and pull it through their lake at certain times of day. Often times this was done by making a serpent-like body out of canvas and pulling it through the water via a crudely made pulley system. Sometimes the con would be discovered right away, while other times nobody would ever catch on and the “creature” would eventually enter the public consciousness as a real beast. But regardless of what would happen to the creature down the line, the initial ruse was quite often successful. Because when it comes down to it, people want to see a monster, and if they know of a place where a supposed creature is said to dwell, then they are going to spend their money in hopes of seeing it.

To sum this whole theory up, we are going to quote Charles E. Brown because we believe he said it best back in 1942. And truth be told, who are we to argue with the man who literally wrote the pamphlet on these strange Badger State beasts. “Logs, tree trunks, branches, large fish, and overturned boats, floating in the water, may account for some of these Wisconsin water dragons. More than likely some of the stories were started by real estate promoters, summer resort hotel proprietors and others likely to benefit from the publicity which a lively sea serpent might give to a particular locality. Superstitious and imaginative persons and local jokers unassisted. A resort lake without a sea serpent behind the times. Water demons were popular animals in the news columns of forty to fifty years ago. They still are.”

While we may never know exactly where the legend of the Elkhart Lake Monster originated from or who started it, what we do know is that for the past hundred years, the creature has been included alongside some of the biggest names in Wisconsin lake monster history, and truth be told, we are completely happy if it stays right there. Because in our personal opinion, every lake needs a weird story about a monster dwelling within it, and Elkhart Lake just so happens to be lucky enough to have one whether its real or not.

-The Pine Barrens Institute

Image Credit: Keep Elkhart Blue

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