THE SERPENT OF LAKE MEMPHREMAGOG 
The Memphremagog Monster, 1917. (Source: J. M. Currier, Uriah Jewett and the Sea Serpent of Lake Memphremagog Matthew Farfan Lake Memphremagog is located partly in Canada and partly in the United States. Europeans have been living around the lake for only the last two centuries; before their arrival, the area was occupied by the Abenakis, the indigenous people who gave the lake its name, which roughly translates as "beautiful waters." The lake is steeped in legend. One such legend pertains to a creature that is said to inhabit the depths beneath Owl's Head Mountain. According to a document from 1816, when the first settlers arrived from New England, the Native people told them that they were afraid to bathe or swim in the lake because it was inhabited by a sea serpent. Over the past two centuries, more than 225 sightings of the monster have been recorded. One of the earliest reports dates to 1847 when The Stanstead Journal proclaimed that "a strange animal, something of a sea serpent... exists in Lake Memphremagog." Known in the past by such names as the "Sea Serpent," "the Anaconda," or "the Lake Memphremagog Monster," in recent years, the creature has been affectionately dubbed "Memphré." I have attached a link to the above website. Our family comes from this area of Quebec, Canada. The Howie, England, Rider, and Lorimer Families to mention a few, can trace their roots to the Europeans who started out around this lake. William Rider Howie was born in a bay on Lake Memphremagog. In the town of Fitch Bay. As its name suggests, Fitch Bay is Located near a bay on Lake Memphremagog. This community began its development in the Mid-Nineteenth Century. One possible solution was to build a canal linking Lake Massawippi Fitch Bay to promote the circulation of small steamers. In 1881, Ftich Bay has three churches, three stores and a population of 300 inhabitants. Near the village, Highway 247 South, we find a Covered Bridge (Narrows Bridge) built in 1881 by Charles McPherson. It is a length of 28 meters and in good condition. This bridge replaced the first bridge built on the conventional "Narrows" in 1802 to facilitate the connection between Georgeville and Stanstead Plain. Because the wooden bridges had a limited service life due to weather which hastened the decay, covered bridges seemed the best solution. Note also, in the heart of the village, the St. Matthias Anglican Church in neo-Gothic style built in 1889. |