ASTOR, Fla. – Decades ago, a 35-foot-long creature was allegedly seen along the St. Johns River in Astor, sparking rumors of a mysterious beast lurking in the waters nearby.
Boaters who saw the so-called “St. Johns River Monster” described it as grey, horned, four-legged, and with an appetite for hyacinths. Strangely, witness accounts reported seeing it either in the river or on land.
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According to newspaper articles from 1953, the beast — theorized by some to be a prehistoric creature that had survived to modern times — had been reported by witnesses ranging from Lake Monroe up to Lake George.
During that year, The Orlando Sentinel spoke with Buck Dillard, a longtime Astor resident and river guide who was the first to see the monster.
Dillard told reporters that he was taking a Missouri couple out fishing in Lake Dexter, which is when he spotted the creature’s head pop up out of the water.
“He looked at us for about a minute, then he went under the water and swam underwater away from us,” Dillard said. “We waited about two hours in that same spot to see if he would come up again, but he didn’t.”
An animal with the same description was later reported in Blue Creek and the Astore Bridge, among several other locations.
Rumors of the monster spread to the point that even then-President Homer Wright of the Astor Chamber of Commerce believed them.
“That thing has been seen by many reliable persons,” Wright said. “I wouldn’t be at all surprised if in the wilds of Florida, there weren’t some creature like that monster.”
Several news outlets at the time reported the decrease in hyacinths along the river, which fed even further into the myths surrounding the monster.
One Kissimmee resident posted a $5,000 reward for anyone who could catch the monster alive. Some people tried to organize a hunt to capture the monster and prove its existence.
Regardless, the legend brought crowds of tourists to Astor, hoping to catch a glimpse of the fabled monster.
However, many biologists at the time believed the creature was just a manatee that had been “exaggerated” by witnesses.
In addition, The Miami Herald reported that the disappearing hyacinths were being carried downstream thanks to quicker currents brought about by the rainy season.
What about witnesses who reported seeing it walk?
Former Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commissioner John Dequine told The Orlando Sentinel it might have been a regular cow.
”If you’ve ever been up in that country and have seen a cow come up with eelgrass and weeds all over its head, you might imagine it was a monster,” he said. “They stick their heads under the water to get the eelgrass.”
Despite these theories, Dillard didn’t believe it could be a manatee.
“I’ve seen schools of 25 manatees. They’re in the river all the time,” he said in October 1953. “I’ve seen some of them 800 or 900 pounds in size and 15 feet long.”
Chances are that the “St. Johns River Monster” wasn’t some sort of prehistoric beast, but there’s no way to know for sure what Dillard saw that day on the water.
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