When it comes to cryptid names, perhaps the most interesting is the Snallygaster, which is said to have dwelled in the eastern United States since the Dutch settled here and discovered it. They called it the schnell geist, meaning “quick spirit.”
The Snallygaster is said to live chiefly in Maryland but also exists within the world of Harry Potter, though it takes on a slightly different form in Rowling’s tale. In real-world lore, it is described by Mariam-Webster as “part reptile and part bird,” while the book series claims that it is a sort of dragon. Based on popular imagery, the creature seems to be a combination of the two. Most art pieces depict the Snallygaster as a dragon-like creature with mouth tentacles, one eye and a long, narrow beak. The video game Fallout seems to have the most accurate pop-culture portrayal of the beast.
The Snallygaster is famous in Maryland, but a show called Mountain Monsters shows people searching for the beast in Preston County, West Virginia.
Supposedly, it was a monster invented in Maryland to sell more newspapers. However, the same article published in 2012 by Susan Fair stated that it got popular enough that President Theodore Roosevelt wanted to hunt it. While there’s no solid proof of the Snallygaster’s existence, the lore has made its way into the South.
Legends of the creature have not surfaced in recent years, though according to an article published in the tale’s prime, the Snallygaster suitably died in a vat of whiskey.
For something to become popular enough to be present within at least two popular franchises, it may not matter the validity but what it meant to the people who believed in it.
