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Plate 1 A thin creature with a large egg-shaped head, big round eyes and long spindly limbs, gripping a stone wall

Dover Demon

A small creature with glowing eyes that teenagers reported in Dover, Massachusetts, on two nights in April 1977.

Cryptids and folklore creatures. Also called Dover demon of Massachusetts.

Meaning

At about 10:30 p.m. on 21 April 1977, 17-year-old Bill Bartlett was driving down Farm Street in Dover with two friends when he saw something on the stone wall in his headlights. About two hours later 15-year-old John Baxter, walking home about a mile away on Miller Hill Road, reported a creature too (WBSM; GBH).

Origin and history

Bartlett drew what he saw, and wrote on the sketch: "I, Bill Bartlett, swear on a stack of Bibles that I saw this creature." That drawing became the image of the Dover Demon (WBSM).

See also

Kraken, Sea serpent, Loch Ness Monster, Champ (Lake Champlain monster), Bigfoot (Sasquatch), Yeti (Abominable Snowman).

Sources

  1. 'Dover Demon' Still Mystifies Massachusetts 45 Years Later (WBSM), WBSM, New Bedford, WBSM
  2. Nearly half a century later, 'Dover Demon' mystery still puzzles enthusiasts (GBH), GBH News, 29 April 2024, GBH

Last reviewed September 28, 2026 by Rory Hansen. How we research

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