A few years ago, a photo popped up on my local town facebook page that showcased something odd hovering a few feet above the Moodus Reservoir. There was a lot of speculation about what it could be including my own spin on it calling it Messy the Moodus Reservoir Monster. Somehow that one stuck. Why shouldn't we have our own water monster to add to town legends, which for a small town, there are quite a few. The picture and these long time stories inspired me to create The East Haddam Legends & Lore Club (EHLLC). It would have been a club of one but fortunately my husband and in-laws (long-time residents of East Haddam) have also always been passionate about everything paranormal in nature.
The EHLLC wasn't our first rodeo though.
In 2007, I founded CGHOSTS (Connecticut Ghost History of Shoreline Towns) while gathering stories for a book on the subject. The creation of that group was how I met my husband and was formally adopted into a family of like-minded weirdos. For fifteen years, we have travelled and investigated all over the country and U.K in search of.
Further inspiration came in the summer of 2019, when we joined a talk given by University of Massachusetts Amherst professor and author Dr. Stephen Gencarella. The talk was hosted at Machimoodus State Park in which he disclosed the weird and unusual sightings and stories of the area. I thought a map of these sightings and locations would be a great thing to hang on my wall.
Enter Kristin Haddad, and her local business Killustrate. EHLLC found Kristin after a story in the EHN featured her painting of the local community garden water tank. Kristin has mad free-hand painting skills. The group approached her to create original artwork for my Mysteries of East Haddam Map idea. I remember worrying she would think we were too strange to work with, but it turned out strange was her game. It was Kristin's enthusiasm for the project and her incredible design ideas that inspired me to make the finished artwork available to others. Her 13 hand painted icons and a map of East Haddam reflect local legends such as the Moodus Noises, the East Haddam Witches, Mt. Tom and the Carbuncle and even my own Messie the Moodus Reservoir Monster.
Creating the town map of legends and lore led me to creating the River Lore site which I hope you will enjoy in the years to come as the EHLLC uncovers and shares all things spooky in the Connectiver River Valley.
EHLLS is an open group and they welcome you to share you own stories or anomalous photos to our facebook page or our email at ctriverlore@gmail.com
Happy Hunting!
Yours Truly,
Ryder Anne
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