Welcome to the Urban Legends Hotline, where we investigate the mysterious tales of your hometowns and stories passed through the old walkered halls of your schools

to get to the haunted heart of the urban legends that you grew up hearing and maybe even telling.

This week we are covering the Jersey devil.

I'm your host, Chelsea Webbersmith.

And from one friend of a friend to another, this is American hysteria.

My name is Brandon, and I grew up in New Jersey at the edges of the pine barons.

And growing up, I was a Boy Scout.

We went camping a lot.

They would tell us scary stories around the campfire.

And the one that I heard was the story of the Jersey Devil.

So legend has it that back in 1735, there was a family who was one of the first settlers

of New Jersey as a colony.

Her name was Mary Leeds.

She was also known as Mother Leeds because she had 12 children.

She got pregnant again.

She didn't want the child.

And when she was in labor, she cried out to the heavens.

She raised her fist and she cried out,

let this one be a devil.

And at first, everything seemed normal.

It was just a normal baby.

But then within minutes, the baby transformed and grew large black bat-like wings and grew long black talons.

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