Status: Explained — folklore plus a 1909 newspaper-driven panic that researchers call mass hysteria.
About the pin: The legend is tied to Leeds Point; reports covered all of South Jersey.
Credit: Unknown artist, Philadelphia newspaper (1909) · Licence: Public domain (published 1909) · Source
The Jersey Devil, also called the Leeds Devil, is a legendary creature said to live in the New Jersey Pine Barrens. It is usually described as a flying biped with hooves, a horse- or goat-like head, bat-like wings and a forked tail.
According to one version of the legend, in 1735 a woman named Leeds, already the mother of twelve children, cursed her thirteenth with the words “let the child be the devil.” The baby is said to have grown wings, claws and a tail, and flown up the chimney into the pines. Other versions put the story in other places and decades. The name “Jersey Devil” does not show up in print until the 20th century.
The big flap came during the week of January 16–23, 1909, when newspapers published hundreds of claimed encounters across South Jersey and the Philadelphia area, including claims that it attacked a trolley car. The image of the batlike creature with a horse's head became standard from these stories. Researchers cite the 1909 panic as a classic example of mass hysteria spreading from a regional legend.
Sources: Wikipedia: Jersey Devil
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