Altamaha-ha

Altamaha-ha

English

One artistic rendition of an Altamaha-ha.

Noun

Altamaha-ha (plural Altamaha-has)

1. A mythical aquatic creature (cryptid) supposed to inhabit the Altamaha River and connected streams and marshes in Georgia in the United States (either considered one specific creature, or a species).
   • 1987, Doris Buchanan Smith, Karate Dancer, Putnam Publishing Group (→ISBN), page 62:

     "That Altamaha-ha has nothing to do with anything." Troy almost laughed because Keven was pointing to the Ha-ha even in the midst of his denials. "If we didn't have Altamaha-has and unicorns and dreams of flying we'd never come up with  […] "

   • 2005, Emily Ellison, Chuck Perry, Liars and Legends, Thomas Nelson (→ISBN)

     The Altamaha-ha, as the serpent has been named, is said to be from twelve to twenty feet long, about two feet in diameter, and gunmetal gray on top with a creamy underside. Most descriptions suggest a creature that is part eel, part alligator, ...

     […] Despite many sightings since 1969, no one has yet landed an Altamaha-ha, but the marshes around Darien still roil at high tide.

   • 2006, Kelly Milner Halls, Rick Spears, Roxyanne Young, Tales of the Cryptids: Mysterious Creatures That May Or May Not Exist, Millbrook Press (→ISBN), page 31:

     Some reports suggest the monster, dubbed Altamaha-ha, first surfaced along the river in the 1960s. But according to Southern author D. L. Tanner, the Altamaha River monster has a much longer history. “This thing has been reported for more than two hundred years," says Tanner [in 2003. ...] Although dozens of other ordinary people swear they've also seen Altamaha-ha, experts [...] insist there is no such thing. [...A] juvenile Altamaha-ha model is on display in the Rock Eagle Museum […]

   • 2006, Jim Miles, Mark Sceurman, Weird Georgia: Your Travel Guide to Georgia's Local Legends and Best Kept Secrets, Sterling Publishing Company, Inc. (→ISBN), page 77:

     The most famous one, Altamaha-ha, is said to make his home in the Altamaha River, a vast tidal estuary of rivers, creeks, and marshes affected by the tides of the Atlantic. Altamaha-ha, fondly known as Altie, is reported to be twenty to thirty feet [long...]