Bessie The Lake Creature Attracting Visitors to Ottawa County

Photo byOttawa County

PORT CLINTON, OH - The legend of Bessie the lake monster in Lake Erie has attracted multiple visitors over the years to see if they could see if the monster is real for themselves.

There have been multiple sightings of the monster and a list of those alleged sightings may be viewed below.

As the season of ghosts and monsters arrives, it's time to revisit one of Lake Erie's oldest legends: Bessie, the lake monster.

Much like Scotland’s famous Loch Ness monster, Bessie is said to inhabit the waters of Lake Erie. Reports of this creature date back hundreds of years.

According to Ottawa County, one of the earliest sightings was on May 21, 1892, when the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported fishermen near Oak Harbor spotting a “sea serpent” about 25 feet long with a large, flat head and several fins. Another sighting in 1898 mentioned a hunter finding large eggs that hatched into long snakes.

In 1909, workers at the Union Salt Company described seeing a “wriggly dragon” near Euclid Beach. The creature was officially named “Bessie” in the 1980s after a contest held by the Port Clinton Beacon, according to Ottawa County.

Sightings continued into the 1990s, with the most notable on September 28, 1990, when Harold Bricker reported a 35-foot-long creature near Marblehead, according to Ottawa County.

Does Bessie still lurk in Lake Erie's depths? No one knows for sure, but boaters might want to keep an eye out.