Old Hitler is infamous in local waters as one of the biggest hammerhead sharks ever seen. No one is sure when the tales of his size and cunning began being told, but it is said he could be up to 24 feet long. There have been stories of tarpon weighing more than 200 pounds, bitten in half like they were sardines. Boat hulls cracked in half, props chewed to ribbons, fishermen’s hands almost severed by hot line being held by unsuspecting anglers. All deeds done by Old Hitler, according to legend. According to accounts of years gone by, more than one casual swimmer in local waters has seen the huge black shadow in the water. One story tells of a man relaxing in an inner tube just off the beach, who looked around just in time to see what appeared to be a submarine coming toward him in the water. Onlookers report the man paddled to shore quicker than if he had an outboard motor on the tube, jumped onto land and ran away, never looking back. Another story from the Charlotte County Sheriff ’s Office tells of a helicopter on a routine flight over the south end. The pilot saw the huge countenance in the water, swimming slowly toward a group of people in the water. With no other way to alert the swimmers, and after many attempts, the chopper landed on the beach and got everyone out of the water. Another man on the same helicopter ride said the shark was so big, swimming in not much more than six feet of water, he got stuck in the sand and had to wedge himself sideways to break free. So if you happen to be in or around Boca Grande Pass and you see a giant hammerhead with a notch in his dorsal fin, it just might be the notorious Old Hitler In one of the oldest commercial buildings downtown there lives a horrific apparition under old wooden floorboards. How he got there – or who trapped him there – is a mystery, but during a renovation project just a few years ago he was spotted. He has been described as having a bulging protuberance of a forehead, opaque, sightless eyes and sharp snaggle teeth. He apparently snapped at the finger of a construction worker before scurrying away into the darkness under the building. Needless to say, it will be awhile before any more renovation on that building takes place. Old Hitler ... The demon under the floor ...
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