As our favorite spooky month approaches, we should keep an eye out for some creepy creatures. There have been numerous cryptid sightings throughout New England, including in our very own state of Rhode Island! Some you may not have even heard about, but others you will be shocked were so nearby.

Glocester Ghoul

One local cryptid is the Glocester Ghoul, which was first spotted in — you guessed it —Glocester, R.I. back in 1839. The pirate Albert Hicks and his men were searching in the dead of night for Captain Kidd’s treasure, which they believed was buried somewhere in Glocester. They found a spot and began digging for the gold before they were interrupted by a large beast, which Hicks had described had “eyes [that] looked like balls of fire. When it breathed as it went by, flames came out of its mouth and nostrils, scorching the brush in its path.”

It reportedly was as big as a cow with scales covering its body, rattling every time it moved. Dark wings sprouted from both its sides like a bat’s and spiral horns twirled out from its head. Hicks had sensed its presence before he even saw it and as quickly as it appeared, it vanished.

Bigfoot

Believe it or not, there have been Bigfoot sightings in Rhode Island. Bigfoot, otherwise known as Sasquatch (or even “Big Rhodey”), is an ape-like creature that reportedly inhabits the forests of North America. People who have claimed to see Bigfoot describe it as being large and hairy, and that it stands at roughly six to nine feet. Footprints that have been found, which inspired the name of this creature, are usually about 24 inches long and eight inches wide.

Much of the evidence of Bigfoot’s existence, including a number of videos, photographs, sightings and large footprints, have been debunked by scientists who consider Bigfoot to be either a hoax or misidentification.

Regardless, in Rhode Island, there have been several sightings and videos captured of unidentifiable creatures in the woods. In one, there’s something appearing from behind a tree as the camera pans around the forest. In another, there’s something swinging through the trees as the videographer is driving by.

Dover Demon

Probably one of the most famous cryptids in New England is the Dover Demon, which was first spotted in Dover, Massachusetts on April 21, 1977, and then several times after. The first sighting was when Bill Bartlett and his friends were driving around the small town until they began driving down the winding road of Farm Street, which was surrounded by woods and fields. Bartlett saw an animal climbing over a stone wall along the road, and when the headlights shined on it, the creature froze in place.

Bartlett noticed that the creature had glowing orange eyes that resembled glass marbles but had no other facial features, and that “it looked like a baby’s body with long arms and legs. It had a big head about the same size as the body, it was sort of melon-shaped.”

After several other sightings, local papers ran stories. Eventually, The Boston Herald and The Boston Globe ran stories about the Dover Demon, including drawings Bartlett made the night he saw it. However, despite the many theories as to what the Demon was, no one ever truly found out.