The Melonheads of Northeastern US

Author: Nicholas Owens

Artist’s depiction of a melon head

Throughout the Northeastern part of the United States exists a legend which tells the tale the melon heads. Small humanoid creatures with large bulbous heads, who lurk within the forests of mainly Michigan, Ohio, and Connecticut. There’s a variety of stories which try to explain what the melonheads are, and the history of them, but there’s not very much solid evidence.

There are several stories of how the melonheads came to be. The most popular one revolves around a scientist by the name of Doctor Crowe. He had somehow gotten several patients at a mental hospital, either by kidnapping or through some secret deal, who he performed inhumane experiments upon. These experiments focused on the head and the brain and as a result led to their deformed heads. Among Crowes experiments were also lobotomies, making the melonheads not very aggressive, and a little slow. It’s not known whether Dr. Crowe was a real person, some people believe that he was a dentist in the 1940s. Other’s follow the belief that he was a doctor in the early 1800s who practiced medicine from his home. He had obtained kids with mental problems, or maybe even kidnapped and performed bizarre experiments upon them such as injecting their brains with water, leading to further damage. Dr. Crowe kept them locked away in cages, but eventually they escaped to the wilderness. It’s believed that they still live within the woods around Holden Arboretum, Ohio  only coming out at night, feeding on deer and other forest animals for food, and sometimes even humans.

Another story takes place in the 1980’s. A group of teenage girls from Notre Dame High School, decided to go driving around. It was a late Friday night, and they were just looking for harmless fun. They drove around for a while in a blue Granada, but then they decided to go to Velvet Street, nicknamed Dracula Drive. It was given this nickname for all the bizarre occurrences which happened there, the melonheads being one of them. On that road, they decided to stop and get out searching, jokingly thinking they’ll see the melonheads. It just so happened that the car, with its headlights still on, began charging towards them and in the window the girls could see the perpetrators, small human-like creatures with large heads, the melonheads.

People all throughout the area may claim that they have seen a melonhead once in their life, however there isn’t much evidence towards their existence. There is not one definitive answer to what the melonheads are, some believe that they are ghosts of murdered children, some say they’re escaped mental patients and others say that they are the result of inbreeding. But the consistent fact throughout it all is that they have larger than average heads.

Works cited:

Moran. Mark, and Sceurman, Mark. “Melonheads Creep Through the Ohio Woods at Night.” Weird US, http://www.weirdus.com/states/ohio/fabled_people_and_places/melonheads/index.php. Accessed 20 October 2022.

Dimmick, Aaron. “MICHIGAN MONSTERS: Beware the Melon Heads of Saugatuck” WWMT, 9 May 2016, https://wwmt.com/resources/media/a46e9a53-fccb-4891-bdcf-e1edbd4c8f21-jumbo16x9_melon2.PNG?1462797483921

Links for Further Research:

Cryptid Wiki

https://cryptidz.fandom.com/wiki/Melon_Heads

The cryptid fandom page holds more information on the melonheads and has similar cryptids with large heads that could have inspired the legend.

 

Melonheads Part I: A Trip Down Dracula Drive

https://newenglandfolklore.blogspot.com/2015/08/melonheads-part-i-trip-down-dracula.html?m=1

This blog post goes into depth on the stories surrounding the melonheads legend.

 

Melonheads Part II: Why So Many Big Heads?

http://newenglandfolklore.blogspot.com/2015/08/melonheads-part-ii-why-so-many-big-heads.html

This second blog post discusses similar creatures with large heads, which may or may not been inspired by the melonheads, or the other way around.