Historic Cryptid Headline: May 3, 1879 - A Boy-Rooster
The Lake Charles Echo
May 3, 1879
“A Boy-Rooster.”
The strangest freak of nature on record has just come to light in the shape of a “boy-rooster.”
The parents of the strange malformation, now about six years old, from mortification, kept its existence a profound secret except in a few instances where near relatives were permitted to see it, until recently when it was taken to St. Louis to see if the learned doctors could account for its strange deformity, but they could not. This strange creature was born or hatched about ten miles from Vicksburg, in Mississippi.
The head and feet of this strange creature is as perfect a chicken as was ever hatched, while its hands and body is that of a perfect human, except that its hands are as large as those of a man. It has beak, comb and gills like a chicken, and its neck from its head to its shoulders is covered with beautiful red feathers tinged with gold, and it crows and talks alternately.
It has the intellect of the human, but when it comes to its food it will eat nothing except such food as fowls feed upon, and is extremely fond of bugs and worms, which it catches out in the yard, and says they are perfectly splendid. It is a great cross to its mother to see it out in the yard catching worms. The name of the father of this boy-rooster is Rathbone.
This is certainly the most wonderful child that the world has ever seen. Barnum would doubtless give a half million dollars for it, but its parents say that they cannot afford to make money out of the misfortunes of their offspring, and will not even exhibit it for pay.
“Historic Cryptid Headlines” showcases actual articles involving cryptids that were published within United States newspapers back in the 1800s-1900s. The articles posted here are written exactly as they appeared during their original publishing date.
-The Pine Barrens Institute
The Minneapolis Journal
August 7, 1906
“Lake Ada Has A ‘Sarpint.’”
Mysterious Creature Seen on the Water by Pine River Men.
The Salt Lake Herald
March 25, 1899
“SEA SERPENT STORY.”
Two-Headed Hairy Monster That Weighed Seventy Tons.
The Daily Gate City and Constitution-Democrat
November 1, 1919
“SEA SERPENT IN LAKE KEOKUK.”
Fort Madison Citizens Insist That They Have Watched Monster Swimming Around and That It Is a Hard Looker.
The Evening World
September 18, 1922
“60-FT. MONSTERS RAID FISHERIES.”
Fishermen Scared Away After Narrow Escapes.
ST. JOHN’S, N.F., Sept. 18.
The Midland Journal
March 11, 1887
“The Wild Man Of Ohio.”
A Curious Creature Seen Among The Hills of Holmes County.
Wauwatosa News
September 17, 1909
“Fish With GooGoo Eyes.”
Same Being About the Size of Locomotive Headlights.
Iowa County Democrat
June 6, 1879
“The Lake Champlain Serpent.”
A Resident of Maquam Sees and Describes Him Minutely.
The Eagle
August 21, 1895
“VIRGINIA’S SWELLING TOAD.”
A Queer Batrachian That Strongly Resembles a Fish.
The Essex County Herald
August 22, 1879
“The Sea-Serpent’s Rival.”
A Reptile Thirty Feet Long and Probably Fifty Years Old - A Story Western Newspaper Readers are Asked to Believe.
Mineral Point Tribune
June 21, 1883
“Ohio Monster.”
A Beast or Reptile Which Startles the Good people of Ohio.
The Superior Times
August 11, 1906
“Snake Milked The Old Brindle Cow.”
Farmer Finally Discovers Mysterious Thief.
First Laid To Witchcraft.
But Finally Bossy and the Reptile Were Found Meeting by Appointment and Now the Latter Is No More.
Northern Wisconsin Advertiser
July 12, 1900
“Monster With Many Horns. Tall Story from Wisconsin”
The Logan Republican
September 18, 1907
“Bear Lake Monster Appears.”
Leviathan Comes from Lake and Devours Horse While Men Shoot At It.
The Saint Paul Daily Globe
September 30, 1890
“Bitten By A Vinegar Rone.”
Deadly Effect of a Sting of an Almost Unknown Creature.
The High Point Review
January 8, 1914
“Unknown To Science”
Strange Animals Believed To Exist In Africa.
Particulars Have Not Been Made Public, But Professors Of Natural History Are Inclined To Credit The Report.
The Washington Times
September 7, 1920
“Bather Fights Octopus With Knife As Weapon!”
Delaware Life Guard, Enveloped By Score Of Tentacles, Cuts His Way To Freedom.
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Richmond Indiana Palladium
August 11, 1838
“The Devil’s Lake.”