Memphre — The Lake Memphremagog Monster

Long before Champ had Lake Champlain, something was already living in Lake Memphremagog. Memphre is the serpent said to inhabit the lake that spans Newport, Vermont and Magog, Québec — and unlike most lake-monster lore, this one's written record predates the invention of the camera by decades.

Author: Vermont Lake Collection · Last reviewed: September 2026

Where the Story Starts

First Nations accounts of the lake describe a creature — sometimes translated as an "anaconda," or water-boa — long before European settlers arrived, and early tellings say local people warned newcomers away from certain parts of the lake because of it. The first written eyewitness account on record dates to 1816: Uriah Jewett and his wife reported a serpent roughly 30 feet long with a "horse-shaped head" and a long neck rising above the waterline. Their account surfaced decades later, recorded in an 1854 journal kept by Ralph Merry IV and rediscovered in 1969 at the Stanstead Historical Society. The earliest known newspaper reference followed in the Stanstead Journal on January 21, 1847, describing "a strange animal something of a sea serpent" in the lake.

Sightings on Record

1816 — Uriah Jewett and his wife report a 30-foot serpent with a horse-shaped head.
1961 — Two fishermen watch a black creature, roughly 40 feet long, pass their boat partially submerged.
July 4, 1974 — Velma and Duane Coburn describe a head rising six to eight feet above the water, eyes set roughly two to three feet apart, and a neck twelve to eighteen inches thick.
August 12, 1983 — Barbara Malloy, watching from Horseneck Island, describes a dark brown creature with a horse-like head and a neck — "longer than a house."
1994 — Four witnesses in separate boats report a roughly 30-foot black creature with three humps.
2005 — The most recent widely cited sighting on record.

The Society That Keeps Score

In 1986, Jacques Boisvert of Magog founded the International Dracontology Society of Lake Memphremagog, later joined by Vermont's own Barbara Malloy, to collect and archive reports. Over the decades since, the Society has logged more than 200 reported sightings, including fifty signed witness declarations from 124 different observers — a more organized paper trail than most lake monsters ever get.

Not Your Average Sea Monster

Where most lake-monster lore leans menacing, Memphre's reputation runs the other way. In 1955, marathon swimmer Billy Connor described sensing a presence during his record-setting swim across the lake — one he called "friendly," even "an angel," guiding him safely along. In 2011, during an international marathon swim, Charlotte Brynn felt something brush against her leg, describing the sensation as "warm" rather than alarming. Local tradition holds that Memphre looks out for swimmers more than it threatens them — which may explain why the lake's boat tours still invite visitors to watch for it, rather than warn them away.

A Few Quick Facts

How is Memphre usually described?

Consistently: long, dark (black, dark green, or dark brown), serpentine, with a horse-like head and a long neck — often compared to Scotland's Loch Ness Monster.

Has Memphre been officially recognized anywhere?

In a sense — in August 2011, an artistic rendering of Memphre appeared on a coloured Canadian commemorative quarter.

Is there scientific evidence Memphre exists?

No. The scientific community treats the reports skeptically, even as sightings continue to be logged.

Is Memphre related to Champ, Lake Champlain's monster?

Not officially — they're two separate legends in two separate lakes — but the two are often mentioned together as Vermont's best-documented lake-monster lore. Read about Champ too.