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* The Jersey Devil appears in ''[[The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest]]'' episode "The Spectre of the Pine Barrens".
* The Jersey Devil appears in ''[[The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest]]'' episode "The Spectre of the Pine Barrens".
* The Jersey Devil appears in the ''[[American Dragon: Jake Long]]'' episode "The Long Weekend". It is depicted with the head of a moose with different horns as well as a moose's back legs, claw-like hands, the wings of an eagle, and the tail of a lion. It terrorized a city of wood sprites in New Jersey while Jake was on a camping trip with his dad.
* The Jersey Devil appears in the ''[[American Dragon: Jake Long]]'' episode "The Long Weekend". It is depicted with the head of a moose with different horns as well as a moose's back legs, claw-like hands, the wings of an eagle, and the tail of a lion. It terrorized a city of wood sprites in New Jersey while Jake was on a camping trip with his dad.
* "[[The Jersey Devil (The X-Files)|The Jersey Devil]]" is a season one episode of ''[[The X-Files]]'' which revealed the creature as feral people living in the forest.
* "[[The Jersey Devil (The X-Files)|The Jersey Devil]]" is a season one episode of ''[[The X-Files]]'', which revealed the creature as feral people living in the forest.
* The Jersey Devil appears in the [[Animal Planet]] cryptozoological series ''[[Lost Tapes]]''.
* The Jersey Devil appears in the [[Animal Planet]] cryptozoological series ''[[Lost Tapes]]''.
* The Jersey Devil was the subject of investigation on the episode "Devil in Jersey" of the A&E show ''[[Paranormal State]]''.
* The Jersey Devil was the subject of investigation on the episode "Devil in Jersey" of the A&E show ''[[Paranormal State]]''.

Revision as of 00:16, 7 August 2012

"New Jersey Devil" redirects here. For the NHL Hockey Team, see New Jersey Devils. For other uses, see Jersey Devil (disambiguation).
Jersey Devil
Other name(s)Leeds Devil
CountryUnited States
RegionPine Barrens (New Jersey)

The Jersey Devil is a legendary creature or cryptid said to inhabit the Pine Barrens of Southern New Jersey, United States. The creature is often described as a flying biped with hooves, but there are many different variations. The most common description is that of a kangaroo-like creature with the face of a horse, the head of a dog, leathery bat-like wings, horns, small arms with clawed hands, cloven hooves and a forked tail. It has been reported to move quickly as to avoid human contact, and often is described as emitting a "blood-curdling scream."[1][2]

The Jersey Devil has worked its way into the pop culture of the area, even lending its name to New Jersey's team in the National Hockey League.

Origin of the legend

There are many possible origins of the Jersey Devil legend. The earliest legends date back to Native American folklore. The Lenni Lenape tribes called the area around Pine Barrens "Popuessing", meaning "place of the dragon".[3] Swedish explorers later named it "Drake Kill", "drake" being a Swedish word for dragon, and "kill" meaning channel or arm of the sea (river, stream, etc.)[4]

The most accepted origin of the story, as far as New Jerseyans are concerned, started with Mother Leeds and is as follows:

"It was said that Mother Leeds had 12 children and, after giving birth to her 12th child, stated that if she had another, it would be the Devil. In 1735, Mother Leeds was in labor on a stormy night. Gathered around her were her friends. Mother Leeds was supposedly a witch and the child's father was the Devil himself. The child was born normal, but then changed form. It changed from a normal baby to a creature with hooves, a horse's head, bat wings and a forked tail. It growled and screamed, then killed the midwife before flying up the chimney. It circled the villages and headed toward the pines. In 1740 a clergy exorcised the demon for 100 years and it wasn't seen again until 1890."

"Mother Leeds" has been identified by some as Deborah Leeds.[5] This identification may have gained credence from the fact that Deborah Leeds' husband, Japhet Leeds, named twelve children in the will he wrote in 1736,[6] which is compatible with the legend of the Jersey Devil being the thirteenth child born by Mother Leeds. Deborah and Japhet Leeds also lived in the Leeds Point section of what is now Atlantic County, New Jersey,[7] which is the area commonly said to be the location of the Jersey Devil story.

Reported encounters

There have been many sightings and occurrences allegedly involving the Jersey Devil.

According to legend, while visiting the Hanover Mill Works to inspect his cannonballs being forged, Commodore Stephen Decatur sighted a flying creature flapping its wings and fired a cannonball directly upon it to no effect.[8]

Joseph Bonaparte, eldest brother of Emperor Napoleon, is also said to have witnessed the Jersey Devil while hunting on his Bordentown estate around 1820.[8] In 1840, the devil was blamed for several livestock killings. Similar attacks were reported in 1841, accompanied by tracks and screams.

Claims of a corpse matching the Leeds Devil's description arose in Greenwich in December 1925. A local farmer shot an unidentified animal as it attempted to steal his chickens. Afterward, he claimed that none of 100 people he showed it to could identify it.[9] On July 27, 1937 an unknown animal "with red eyes" seen by residents of Downingtown, Pennsylvania was compared to the Jersey Devil by a reporter for the Pennsylvania Bulletin.[10] In 1951, a group of Gibbstown, New Jersey boys claimed to have seen a 'monster' matching the Devil's description.[11] and claims of a corpse matching the Jersey Devil's description arose in 1957,[12] In 1960 tracks and noises heard near Mays Landing were claimed to be from the Jersey Devil.[13] During the same year the merchants around Camden offered a $10,000 reward for the capture of the Jersey Devil, even offering to build a private zoo to house the creature if captured.[14]

Sightings of 1909

During the week of January 16 through 23, 1909, newspapers of the time published hundreds of claimed encounters with the Jersey Devil from all over the state. Among alleged encounters publicized that week were claims the creature "attacked" a trolley car in Haddon Heights and a social club in Camden.[15] Police in Camden and Bristol, Pennsylvania supposedly fired on the creature to no effect.[16] Other reports initially concerned unidentified footprints in the snow, but soon sightings of creatures resembling the Jersey Devil were being reported throughout South Jersey and as far away as Delaware.[17] The widespread newspaper coverage led to a panic throughout the Delaware Valley prompting a number of schools to close and workers to stay home. During this period, it is rumored that the Philadelphia Zoo posted a $10,000 reward for the creature's capture. The offer prompted a variety of hoaxes, including a kangaroo with artificial wings.[18]

Explanations

Skeptics believe the Jersey Devil to be nothing more than a creative manifestation of the English settlers, Bogeyman stories created and told by bored Pine Barren residents as a form of children's entertainment, and rumors arising from negative perceptions of the local population ("pineys"). According to Brian Dunning of Skeptoid, folk tales of the Jersey Devil prior to 1909 calling it the "Leeds Devil" may have been created to discredit local politician Daniel Leeds who served as deputy to the colonial governor of New York and New Jersey in the 1700s,[19] and folklorist Jan Harold Brunvand wrote that the spread of contemporary pop culture has overtaken traditional Jersey Devil legends. [20] Jeff Brunner of the Humane Society of New Jersey thinks the Sandhill Crane is the basis of the Jersey Devil stories, adding, "There are no photographs, no bones, no hard evidence whatsoever, and worst of all, no explanation of its origins that doesn't require belief in the supernatural."[21] Outdoorsman and author Tom Brown, Jr. spent several seasons living in the wilderness of the Pine Barrens. He recounts occasions when terrified hikers mistook him for the Jersey Devil, after he covered his whole body with mud to repel mosquitoes.

Cryptozoologists believe that the Jersey Devil could possibly be a very rare, unclassified species which instinctually fears and attempts to avoid humans, saying that support for their hypothesis includes the overall similarities of the creature's appearance (horselike head, long neck and tail, leathery wings, cloven hooves, blood-curdling scream), with the only variables being the height and color, and that it is more likely that a species could endure over a span of several hundred years, rather than the existence of a single creature living for over 500 years. Cryptozoologists also say the creature is a species of pterosaur such as a dimorphodon.

One New Jersey group called the "Devil Hunters" refer to themselves as “official researchers of the Jersey Devil", and devote time to collecting reports, visiting historic sites, and going on nocturnal hunts in the Pine Barrens in order to "find proof that the Jersey Devil does in fact exist."[22]

The Jersey Devil has become a cultural icon in the state, inspiring several organizations to use the nickname. In professional hockey, the Eastern Hockey League Jersey Devils played from 1964 through 1973. When the National Hockey League Colorado Rockies relocated to New Jersey in 1982, a fan poll voted to rename that team the New Jersey Devils.[23][24]

The New Jersey Air National Guard's 177th Fighter Wing, stationed at the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center within the Pine Barrens, is also nicknamed the Jersey Devils.[25]

American professional wrestler Jason Danvers portrays a character called "The Jersey Devil", a psychopathic member of a stable called "The Asylum". His outfit consists of a black and white wrestling singlet, long tights, and boots. He also wears full facepaint of a white face covering with black makeup over it that gives him horns and a "Joker"-esque evil smile. He wrestles for WAW wrestling in Manchester, NH.[26]

Film and television

Literature

Music

  • On October 31, 2008 Bruce Springsteen released a music video and free audio download single titled, "A Night with the Jersey Devil", on the official Springsteen website.
  • The band Coheed & Cambria released a song called "The Devil in Jersey City" about a gang called the Jersey Devils.
  • Kevin Welch wrote "Jersey Devil" and recorded it on the album entitled You Can't Save Everybody by Kieran Kane & Kevin Welch with Fats Kaplin which was released in 2004.
  • The Jersey Devil inspired the name of the Jersey Shore Death Metal band "The Son of Leeds".

Video games

  • Sony published a video game called Jersey Devil for the PlayStation in 1998. One plays as the Jersey Devil, which looks like a horned and winged cartoon-like person wearing a purple outfit.
  • The popular children's computer game Poptropica featured the Jersey Devil along with the Loch Ness Monster, Bigfoot, and the Chupacabra on the Cryptid Island level. The creature is here depicted with the head and feet of a goat and the claws, wings, and tail of a dragon, and as laying large spotted eggs.
  • The video game Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia features an enemy named "Jersey Devil." This version flies and spits fire. Its description once a picture of it is taken reads, "Out of the pine barrens and straight to your neck of the woods."
  • The Jersey Devil appears in the 2009 Nintendo DS game Scribblenauts as an enemy that will attack the nearest creature in sight.

See also

References

  1. ^ The Jersey Devil, by James F. McCloy and Ray Miller, Jr., Middle Atlantic Press. ISBN 0-912608-11-0
  2. ^ http://www.pinelandsalliance.org/history/devil/
  3. ^ http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art57572.asp
  4. ^ http://www.vernonkids.com/cedarmountain/4thgradelinks/jerseydevil/jerseydevil.htm
  5. ^ Mallowe, Mike, "The Enduring Reign Of The Jersey Devil" The Bulletin (Philadelphia), October 30, 2008
  6. ^ Documents Relating to the Colonial History of the State Of New Jersey, 1st Ser., Vol. XXX Ed. A. Van Doren Honeyman, (Union-Gazette, Somerville, N.J.)1918.
  7. ^ Rundstrom, Olive Conover, "Daniel Leeds and his Descendants", Atlantic County Historical Society Year Book, vol. 6, no. 4, p. 156 (1971)
  8. ^ a b S. E. Schlosser. "Joseph Bonaparte and the Jersey Devil". Retrieved 2010-01-05.
  9. ^ Daily Times of Woodbury, December 15th, 1925, quoted in, Moran, Mark and Sceurman, Mark (2004). Weird N.J.: Your Travel Guide to New Jersey's Local Legends and Best Kept Secrets. Barnes & Noble. P. 107.
  10. ^ Pennsylvania Bulletin of July 28th, 1937 quoted in [1]
  11. ^ http://www.gloucestercitynews.net/clearysnotebook/2007/02/in_1909_the_jer.html
  12. ^ McNab, Chris (2007). Mythological Monsters. New York: Scholastic, Inc. ISBN 0-439-85479-2.
  13. ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A16646295
  14. ^ "Legend of the New Jersey Devil". Retrieved 2010-02-01.
  15. ^ Moran, Mark and Sceurman, Mark (2004). Weird N.J.: Your Travel Guide to New Jersey's Local Legends and Best Kept Secrets. Barnes & Noble. PP. 104-5.
  16. ^ Moran and Sceurman(2004). P. 105.
  17. ^ http://www.jerseyhistory.org/legend_jerseydevil.html
  18. ^ http://www.thefixsite.com/jerseydevil/jdlegend.html
  19. ^ Dunning, Brian. "The Jersey Devil". Skeptoid #282 November 01, 2011. Skeptoid.com. Retrieved 26 January 2012.
  20. ^ Brunvand, Jan Harold (1998). American folklore. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-0-8153-3350-0.
  21. ^ http://archives.citypaper.net/articles/102397/cover.jerseydevil.shtml
  22. ^ Barry, Dan (8 September 2008). "THIS LAND; In the Wilds of New Jersey, a Legend Inspires a Hunt". The New York Times. p. 14.
  23. ^ Mifflin, Lawrie (1982-06-30). "SCOUTING; 'Jersey Devils' Wins Name Poll". The New York Times. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  24. ^ "Jersey Devils - hockey uniforms". sportsK. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
  25. ^ "177th Fighter Wing [177th FW]". GlobalSecurity.org. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
  26. ^ http://www.wawwrestling.com/thejerseydevil.html
  27. ^ a b http://www.njdevilhunters.com/tvapp.html
  28. ^ "Lou Diamond Philips vs. The Jersey Devil". Retrieved 2010-02-01.
  29. ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1604265/

Further reading

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Jersey Devil.
  • Weird NJ: Your Travel Guide to New Jersey's Local Legends and Best Kept Secrets by Mark Sceurman and Mark Moran, Barnes & Noble ISBN 0-7607-3979-X
  • The Jersey Devil, by James F. McCloy and Ray Miller, Jr., Middle Atlantic Press. ISBN 0-912608-11-0
  • Tales of the Jersey Devil, by Geoffrey Girard., Middle Atlantic Press. ISBN 0-9754419-2-2
  • A Natural History of Trees of Eastern and Central North America, by Donald Culross Peattie, pp. 20–23.
  • The Tracker, by Tom Brown, Jr.
  • William Grimstein's Devil of Jersey, by Billy Staggs. ISBN 978-1-4343-0873-3
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