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Cornish Sea Monster
Richard La Monica is a sasquatch researcher, based in Ohio. In an article about him it was mentioned that his Cornish grandparents had told him about a monster sometimes seen in Falmouth Bay. I emailed him about this, and this is part of his rely:
"... My mother, aged 85, was born in Cornwall, but came to the U.S., with my grandparents in I believe 1918. My mother would have been around three years old then. My grandparents came to America, after my grandfather returned from South Africa, where he was a foreman in a gold mine. My grandfather's name was John Wood Matta. My grandmother's maiden name was Elsie May Fewins. They were both born and lived in St. Austell.
My grandmother never really mentioned the mysterious parts of Cornwall, but on occasion, my grandfather, usually after seeing something of interest on the TV, would say things like, "Richard, you know Cornwall has a monster in the bay just like that".
Usually, this statement would come just after an announcement about Nessie, or some similar creature. He would mention Falmouth Bay, when given the chance, but really wouldn't elaborate too much about it. He was a God fearing man, and I believe talking about such things, to him, was in a way
blasphemous. At least, that is the way I saw it.
I am not sure if he ever really saw the creature Morgawr himself or not, and I don't really recall that he ever used that name, but the way he would describe it, would indicate to me that he might have. His description was that of a serpents head, long, black neck, and large, dark body. I don't recall his saying how big it was in actual or estimated length, but the way he described it, would have had to be fairly large, and long. I am sure my grandfather spent many a childhood day, in and around the bay, as he had a very adventurous spirit.
I was a very young lad when he would sit me upon his knee, and talk of his home. I have probably forgotten much since then, but remember his talks of Cornwall rather fondly. I may still have a couple of cousins living there, but of the Matta family, my mother is the last. I was told, most of my grandfather's ancestry, had names from building materials. Kinda funny to me, but the names were Brick, Stone, Wood. My grandparents, have long since passed away now, but their Cornish spirits still linger on. I do hope one day to make an attempt to find out about my possible cousins, and to come see the land that was once my mother's family homeland...
Best Regards, Rich La Monica"
This is an interesting story, dating from well before the modern interest in the Monster: it became news in the 70s (which is when the name Morgawr arose). There isa lot of info about Morgawr on the web, and I think Richard's family memories tend to confirm other early reports.
Richard's Bigfoot website is at
http://www.geocities.com/ResearchTriangle/System/6591/
(Hear a bigfoot howl...!)
See Also:
Morgawr! (Cornish Sea Serpent)
https://forums.forteana.org/index.php?threads/morgawr-cornish-sea-serpent.4719/#post-1655858
Richard La Monica is a sasquatch researcher, based in Ohio. In an article about him it was mentioned that his Cornish grandparents had told him about a monster sometimes seen in Falmouth Bay. I emailed him about this, and this is part of his rely:
"... My mother, aged 85, was born in Cornwall, but came to the U.S., with my grandparents in I believe 1918. My mother would have been around three years old then. My grandparents came to America, after my grandfather returned from South Africa, where he was a foreman in a gold mine. My grandfather's name was John Wood Matta. My grandmother's maiden name was Elsie May Fewins. They were both born and lived in St. Austell.
My grandmother never really mentioned the mysterious parts of Cornwall, but on occasion, my grandfather, usually after seeing something of interest on the TV, would say things like, "Richard, you know Cornwall has a monster in the bay just like that".
Usually, this statement would come just after an announcement about Nessie, or some similar creature. He would mention Falmouth Bay, when given the chance, but really wouldn't elaborate too much about it. He was a God fearing man, and I believe talking about such things, to him, was in a way
blasphemous. At least, that is the way I saw it.
I am not sure if he ever really saw the creature Morgawr himself or not, and I don't really recall that he ever used that name, but the way he would describe it, would indicate to me that he might have. His description was that of a serpents head, long, black neck, and large, dark body. I don't recall his saying how big it was in actual or estimated length, but the way he described it, would have had to be fairly large, and long. I am sure my grandfather spent many a childhood day, in and around the bay, as he had a very adventurous spirit.
I was a very young lad when he would sit me upon his knee, and talk of his home. I have probably forgotten much since then, but remember his talks of Cornwall rather fondly. I may still have a couple of cousins living there, but of the Matta family, my mother is the last. I was told, most of my grandfather's ancestry, had names from building materials. Kinda funny to me, but the names were Brick, Stone, Wood. My grandparents, have long since passed away now, but their Cornish spirits still linger on. I do hope one day to make an attempt to find out about my possible cousins, and to come see the land that was once my mother's family homeland...
Best Regards, Rich La Monica"
This is an interesting story, dating from well before the modern interest in the Monster: it became news in the 70s (which is when the name Morgawr arose). There isa lot of info about Morgawr on the web, and I think Richard's family memories tend to confirm other early reports.
Richard's Bigfoot website is at
http://www.geocities.com/ResearchTriangle/System/6591/
(Hear a bigfoot howl...!)
See Also:
Morgawr! (Cornish Sea Serpent)
https://forums.forteana.org/index.php?threads/morgawr-cornish-sea-serpent.4719/#post-1655858
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