The Matawan Man Eater -1916

In 1916, a series of attacks along the Jersey shore, claimed 5 victims, one of which survived. At the time, many officials and scientists were reluctant to blame a shark, instead attributing the attacks to – of all things - a sea turtle. This was partly due to the fact that half the attacks occurred over a mile inland. Denial soon gave way to overreaction, resulting in a massive hunt, protective nets and… explosives. The incident went on to inspire a young Peter Benchley to write Jaws who actually had to tone down some of the more outlandish aspects.

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Sources:
https://weirdnj.com/stories/matawan-man-eater/
https://matawanhistoricalsociety.org/1916-shark-attack/