10/04/2026
Sunday, April 30th, 1911 THE DAILY GATE CITY page 7
Sea Monster Is Trapped Within Coffer Dam
Great hideous serpent, 80 feet long found last night
when water was lowered from the big pool in the river.
Bullets fail to leave any mark.
Writhing Leviathan which is even more horrible than the fabled
Dragons of old or the flame belching brutes of mythology
A sea monster, from 70 to 80 feet in length covered with scales, a green, slimy, hideous Leviathan which would put terror into the heart of the boldest fisherman should he chance to see it, is entrapped in the cofferdam of the water power works and is thrashing the shallow waters of the pool as the pumps are gradually lowering the water.
The great snake like thing has been plainly seen several times by the workmen and is expected that sometime during today that the water will be low enough for the monster to be visible to all.
A great many fish, snakes, turtles, and all kinds of members of the water families have been entrapped between the walls of the great cofferdam in the river and when the water is pumped out the fish will be gathered up by the workman who will have many a mass of fine fish.
It will prove an interesting sight when the water is all out of the big space and the entrapped fish can be seen floundering around in the last drops of water and writhing in their misery. With A bottom of solid rock, there is no escape for them and they are doomed.
But the sea serpent which has been caught in the trap may be strong enough to escape and its presence within the enclosure is causing considerable worry.
The brute was first reported yesterday afternoon late when the workmen were Startled to see what they at first thought was a big fish, leap clear out of the water. As the water slowly dropped lower and lower, the presence of the big thing became more noticeable and its course through the water could be easily seen by the ripples.
Workman watched it skirt the entire bounds of the barrier. Seeking some whole out of which to escape and although the monster did not leap to the surface again during the afternoon its length could be estimated by the disturbance in the water.
Near the middle of the pool being emptied, is a deep hole, for the fish beast could be seen to swim towards that spot and then the ripples would cease, proving that there is deep water there.
Seen last night.
Last night the water had been lowered enough to make the monster wild with fright, for there was barely enough left in the pool for it to swim. It was a weird, uncanny sight when a party of water power officials and newspaper men were summoned to the sides of the coffer dam at 10:00 o’clock last night to witness the enraged monster battling for its life in the fast decreasing water.
Lanterns bobbed up and down along the coffer dam, where Workman were gathered in little groups and watched the water boil up where the beast writhed and wriggled. A shaft of light from one point sent a silver beam across the water, a locomotive headlight having been placed in position to train on the fish so that it could be seen.
There was no doubt about what it was then, for time after time its full length was shown in every part of the great ugly thing could be seen by all.
Most hideous terror.
Easily 80 feet in length. The monster is more snake than fish, yet it has numerous fins along the sides and back and a great, disgusting head, unlike that of any fish or animal ever before seen, accepting in the imagination. Horrible though it is, it is yet beautiful in its coloring and its green body sparkled in the Rays of light, like a mass of gems.
Imagine a bright green snake with a body as big as a horse, with a hideous head as big as a bull, great black eyes which fairly seem to gleam with hate; rows and rows of sharp teeth; masses of hair about the neck; sharp quivering fins along the sides and back; a great gaping flat mouth which could swallow a man whole; a writhing, wriggling, quivering, horrible thing.
Imagine the most horrible looking dragon you can think of and you have the Keokuk sea monster. It is all that could be expected of an up to date, progressive, summer resort sea monster. It could hold its own with the Dragons of old, the monsters of mythology, the Beasts of fairy lore, or the wildest dreams of the delirium tremens.
Shot several times.
Several times last night, bullets were sent into the skin of the beast by men with ri**es along the top of the dam, but the missiles seemed to have no effect upon the monster.
While the reporter watched the brute, it received four r***e bullets and two loads from a sh***un, but apparently it will never be killed by these means. Bullets do not affect it. One load from a sh***un was emptied into the beast while it was close to the wall of the Coffer Dam. The search light was playing on it and the beast had stopped in its rush about the pool. It’s great ugly head was lifted towards the group of men gathered there and its jaws dripping with slime. The men were about to flee for it looked as though the monster would make a spring from the water at them. The man with the sh***un sank on one knee and blazed away. The full load struck the beast in the neck.
There was no blood. There were no jagged holes in the neck.
The bullets and shots merely sank into the green flesh as though it was putty. The brute must be made of blubber. It turned slowly and swam away out of the center to the pool and disappeared in the deep hole there. Later, it returned to the shallow water.
May wreck the works.
When the water becomes so low that the beast fully realizes that it is a hopeless captive, then will come the real excitement, for it will make a desperate attempt to reach deep water.
It is surely powerful enough to crash through the coffer dam and escape if it decides on such a method. This fact is worrying the officials, for a break in the cofferdam would allow the water to rush back in and this would mean a delay until the break has been patched up.
For this reason it was decided last night the monster must be killed, but how to do it is the question. It is out of the question to think of capturing it alive and as bullets have no effect upon it, the annihilation of the monster is really a problem.
It cannot be shot to death, it cannot be cut.
It has been suggested that a dog with a can of dynamite tied to its tail be lowered into the shallow water and when the monster swallows the dog, developments would follow. This plan was almost decided upon last night until the Humane Society heard of it and gave notice that the scheme should not be carried out. Society argues that the dog would not stand for it.
No trouble expected.
Later at 11:30 o’clock last night the situation was not as acute, for the sea serpent had quieted down considerably, in fact had become so familiar with seeing human beings hanging around and watching it, that it ceased to flash angry sparks from its eyes and its roars were silenced.
It swam up to one side of the cofferdam, gazed rather lovingly at the crowd of men gathered there, reared its head out of the water and began to purr like a cat.
It even permitted the men to reach over and pat it on the head and seemed to enjoy the attention.
Then it slowly wriggled along the sides of the dam, stopping wherever a bunch of men had collected and made friends with all.
Shortly before midnight the reporter left the scene and climbed the hill. Just before he left all of the men Had tied a pink ribbon around the beast neck and the men were discussing what was the most suitable name for the monster.
It no longer writhed and made the water boil as it slashed its great tail. It kept hovering around close to the walls of the dam and did not seem to wish to be away from the men.
Now and then it would drop languidly Over to one side or the other and gobble up a 100 pound catfish or a turtle as big as a chest protector, but it made no attempt whatever to harm any of the men and did not seem to care to escape.
The men were all sitting in a row along the edge of the cofferdam, their feet hanging over the sides and the sea serpent was going along the line, laying its big head in their laps like a shepherd dog, while they stroked it. One man even blew smoke in its eyes from his pipe and no resentment was shown, only a wag of the Serpent’s tail as though it enjoyed it.
The new mascot.
Still later early in the morning, word was received from the canal by telephone that the sea serpent would be retained as a mascot and that it had made friends with everyone about the place. A small experiment had been made towards training the beast to haul Timbers through the water and it had shown great intelligence, likewise more strength than a launch and it was believed that the snake would become quite useful about the works in hauling heavy timbers through the water and doing other little odd jobs about the place.
It had made no attempt to escape and seemed perfectly contented now that it found out no effort would be made to do it harm.
It will prove quite an attraction to the thousands of people who visit the dam during the summer and no doubt will become as great a favorite with the public as our dear ran park.
It has been christened Elmer
