Artist Tara Jacoby painted this rendition of the October 2015 Jersey Devil sighting in Galloway Township.

Kelly Roncace | For NJ.com

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And so the Jersey Devil was born

It was 1735, deep in the New Jersey Pine Barrens, when Jane "Mother" Leeds discovered she was pregnant with her thirteenth child. "Let this one be the devil," she allegedly cursed. While there are many versions of the Jersey Devil’s lore, the most popular is this: When Leeds' thirteenth child was born, it grew wings, horns, hooves, and a tail. The monster flew up the chimney and out into the night. With Halloween upon us, we decided to take a closer look at thirteen of the most convincing Jersey Devil sightings and stories. — Kelly Roncace

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This famous sketch appeared in the Philadelphia Bulletin in January of 1909.

Bonaparte and the Devil

One of the first reported Jersey Devil sightings was in 1812 when Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon's older brother, claimed he saw the Jersey Devil while hunting near his Bordentown estate. Sightings occurred and the legend grew, fueled by animal attacks, strange footprints, and reports filed by eye witnesses who supposedly encountered the beast.

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A Trenton Times story on a string of Jersey Devil sightings in January 1909. (File photo)

Kelly Roncace | For NJ.com

Devil craze of 1909

The Jersey Devil's fame solidified itself in January of 1909 when nearly 1,000 reports came in from eyewitnesses throughout South Jersey. While testing cannon balls at Hanover Mills Works in the Pine Barrens, Navy Commander Stephen Decatur reportedly saw the creature and shot it. (Talk about target practice.) The cannon ball blew a hole in the Devil, but it wasn't fazed by the projectile. Strange tracks were found in fields, but bloodhounds allegedly refused to follow the tracks. The kids were fine with it all, though, because schools in the Pine Barrens were closed.

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Salem cab attack in 1927

The Jersey Devil fad died out for a while until 1927 when a taxi driver in Salem City allegedly encountered the Jersey Devil while changing a tire. The man told the police that a winged creature was pounding on the roof of the cab. Guess the Jersey Devil really needed a ride that night.

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After Jersey Devil sightings were reported in 1960, wealthy merchants offered a $250,000 reward for the capture of the beast. (File photo)

File photo

Wanted: Rewards offered for the Devil

In 1960, several residents of Mays Landing heard horrifying screams in the night. There was no explanation for the noises and people began to panic. Police hung flyers assuring residents that the Jersey Devil was a hoax, but a circus owner countered the appeal by offering a $100,000 reward for anyone who could capture the creature. No one received said reward.

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Devil in the roadway

Mary Ritzer Christianson told Weird NJ that she got the "heebie jeebies" one night in 1972 when she spotted the Jersey Devil on Greentree Road. Christianson was driving from Blackwood to Glassboro when she says she saw a towering figure crossing the road about 25 feet behind her car. She described the figure as standing taller than the average man, with thick haunches like a goat and a huge, wooly head.

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A family walks along Green Bank toward the bridge over the spillway in Batsto in Wharton State Forest. (Photo provided by by David Bergeland)

David Bergeland

Mysterious deaths

Forest rangers are experts in on the wildlife that inhabits the woods they patrol. But in 1980, Wharton State Forest Chief Ranger Alan MacFarlane saw something that both grossed him out and stumped his wild animal knowledge: a brutal scene on a South Jersey farm where a pack of pigs had been killed. He reported that the backs of their heads were eaten and their bodies were scratched and torn. However, there were no tracks surrounding the bodies and no blood on the ground. Could the Jersey Devil have been hankering for some bacon?

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Lee Bradley gets ready to take the stage in demonic guise, dancing with musicians and fans during the annual Legend of the Jersey Devil concert at the Albert Music Hall in Waretown. (Lisa Rose | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)

Lisa Rose

Asbury Park Press reports sighting

In 1988, an Asbury Park Press reporter told the story of a Howell Township resident who claimed to have encountered the Jersey Devil seven years prior. This eye witness must have been up close and personal with ol' JD because he described the beast right down to his large teeth.

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This image is from an early episode of the 'X-Files' television series. It was set in New Jersey and focused on the story of the Jersey Devil. (File photo)

File photo

Dirt bikes and the Devil

In the late 1980’s, a group of friends went camping and riding dirt bikes in the Pine Barrens. While riding down a trail about 100 yards from camp, the bikes all stalled. One said it could have had to do with terrain or the nearby power plant. However, as suddenly as the bikes quit running, the men heard a piercing, inhuman scream coming from the woods. When they returned to camp, those who stayed behind said they also heard the screams. That evening, one of the men went into a local bar and told the bartender about the screams in the woods. The man informed the visitor that he had most likely had an encounter with the Jersey Devil.

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Was that the Jersey Devil?

In 1993, Forest Ranger John Irwin was driving along the Mullica River when he saw a strange creature blocking the road ahead of him. He said it was about six feet tall with horns and matted black fur. The two stared at each other for several minutes before the creature turned and ran into the forest.

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Smithville surprise

One evening, while taking out the trash, Fran Coppalo, owner of the Smithville Inn and Village in Galloway Township, saw a strange shadow projected onto the wall before her. She said she looked up and saw the shadow of a beast with wings. While the image had to be frightening, Coppalo said she felt calm — as if the Jersey Devil was watching over her. Perhaps he was curious about what was in her trash.

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View from the dock outside Mullica River Crab Co. in Leeds Point. (Pete Genovese | For NJ.com)

Pete Genovese

10 feet tall and stopping traffic

While traveling on Route 9 in Bayville, three cars were forced to slam on their breaks when — according to one witness — a ten-foot-tall, Jersey Devil figure with a long head and short flat ears ran across the road. One witness reported that the creature emerged from a wooded area near a mini-mall and galloped out in front of traffic, disappearing into the woods on the other side of the street. Maybe the beast had just gotten a devil of a deal at his favorite boutique.

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Reader Dave Black of Little Egg Harbor captured this photo in Galloway Township. He believes it could be the Jersey Devil. (Photo provided by Dave Black)

Photo provided by Dave Black

Llama or Devil?

One of the most recent sightings occurred in Galloway Township in October of 2015. Little Egg Harbor resident David Black said he was driving along Route 9 near a golf course when he saw what he thought was a llama walking in and out of the tree line on the side of the road. Suddenly, the creature spread its wings and flew away. He captured the beast's image with his cell phone and the photo went viral.

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Flying off into the sunset

A few days after David Black supposedly captured the Jersey Devil with his cell phone's camera, Emily Martin shot a video of what appears to be the same creature after she spotted it on Old Port Republic Road near Leeds Point. Both Black and Martin swear neither the image nor the video were edited or set up. Some who have seen the photo and video have their suspicions. What do you think?

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