Monadnock Moment No. 130

Era 6: Development of the Industrial United States -
           1870 to 1900

The Monster Living Alligator

The Keene Natural History Society was organized in 1871. As the name of the organization suggested, the group concentrated on the study of objects and organisms from the world of nature. The Society met regularly for many years and sponsored a variety of lectures and exhibits.

In the early 1880s the Society held an exhibit that must have been of great interest to the residents of the region. The exhibit, which was held in the basement of the Keene City Hall, included live animals, mounted animals, and four Indian skeletons. The skeletons had been exhumed on Court Street in July of 1882. The exhibit included two live bears from the Rocky Mountains, a mounted deer from Kansas, and a twenty pound pike caught in Spofford Lake.

The featured attraction, however, was a creature billed as "The Monster Living Alligator." A poster for the show indicated that the 7 ½ foot alligator had been captured in Florida and was "active and in excellent condition." It was caught by a party of Keene residents led by Caleb T. Buffum, President of the Keene Five Cents Savings Bank, and presented to the Natural History Society.

Admission to the exhibit cost l5 cents, or 5 cents for students. The records of the Society do not indicate how the alligator was kept peaceful in the basement of City Hall or what happened to the creature after the show. This exhibition, however, must have been an exciting event to Keene youngsters in an age before radio, television, and "National Geographic" Magazine.