CHAMPY, THE LEGENDARY LAKE CHAMPLAIN MONSTER

The town of Plattsburgh is re-installing a historical marker sign honoring New York's most famous lake monster. The original sign had been stolen in November of 2021.

The sign honoring Champy was first installed in July of 2019 via a grant from the William C. Pomeroy Foundation. The Foundation has helped the spread of blue marker signs across the United States, denoting areas of historical significance. Communities can apply for grants from the Foundation to help pay for "signage in the form of roadside markers and plaques."

The red historical marker signs are a relatively new fixture around New York State, and they're meant to recognize local legends and folklore.

Half the funds needed for the new sign were paid for by the Foundation, and the other half was raised through an outpouring of community support for the project, with special Champy t-shirts being sold. The new sign was unveiled the morning of Wednesday, September 14th in a small ceremony.

No one knows who stole the original sign last fall.

PEOPLE LOVE A GOOD SEA MONSTER

For as long as there've been Bigfoot sightings, there've been sea monster sightings.

Champy is arguably the world's second-most famous lake monster, after Scotland's Nessie of Loch Ness. Champy is a unique monster in that New York shares custody with Vermont, since Lake Champlain is located between the two. It's a nice little partnership we have with the Green Mountain State when you can share a legend like that.

It's great to see the town of Plattsburgh come together over a mythological beast.