Posted on 06/24/2005 7:47:03 PM PDT by nickcarraway
After several months hiding in depths unknown, the well-known monster has returned to the marshy area west of the Huron River, north of SR 2.
Brothers Dale and Gerald Schofield returned the monster and a new friend to their swampy lair Saturday evening. The brothers chose to replace the creature in time for Father's Day as a tribute to their father, Thomas A. Schofield, who created the monster in 1994 and died in November 2004 at age 80.
"It's strange seeing it out there," Gerald Schofield said yesterday about the monster sculpture. "It's got a little baby with it. It looks good out there now."
A native of Cleveland, Thomas Schofield was known around Huron as a carpenter and owner of Shark Charters boat service. The elder Schofield, who lived on Wheeler Drive just west of the marshy area, put the monster out after a rash of alleged spottings created a Lake Erie Monster craze in the early 1990s, Gerald Schofield said.
For years, the monster was visible from the SR 2 bridge over the Huron River to travelers heading west to Cedar Point and points beyond.
The monster disappeared after the elder Schofield's death last year, but a rash of inquiries prompted the brothers to revive their father's creation.
"That's the reason we put it back out - everyone was calling and asking where it was at," Gerald Schofield said.
Using Styrofoam and plywood, the brothers rebuilt the 27-foot-long, 4-foot high monster, with new glow-in-the-dark eyes, and a new 13-foot baby monster, Gerald Schofield said.
About 6 p.m. Saturday, the monsters emerged from hiding behind the Patio Tavern on Cleveland Road. The brothers used a rowboat to tow them to water about 3 feet deep.
"This one floated a lot better than we thought it would," Gerald Schofield said. "We made it a lot lighter than what my dad made."
The sea serpents are anchored with about 50 feet of rope so they can change direction with the wind, Gerald Schofield said. He thanked Ace Hardware, Gordon Lumber, Huron Cement and Huron Lagoons Marina for donating supplies to rejuvenate the beast and add another.
"It was really good with the stores," Gerald Schofield said. "We told them what we were doing, they said, just get what you need."
Come winter, the monsters likely will hibernate again, Gerald Schofield said. Once the weather breaks next spring, the brothers plan on releasing them to slither in the area around the Huron River.
What, no pics??! :-)
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