Daily National Intelligencer (Washington City [D.C.]), June 10th 1818

The Shower of Fish

From The Charleston Times

I felt really happy when I came to the conclusion of the paragraph, entitled “Another Wonder,” to find, that the shower of fish which fell on the Boston Common, was not larger than could be consumed by the population.

I was present, some years ago, where the conversation turned on the raining of frogs and fish, and much scepticism was expressed by many of the company, when a gentleman from Scotland (whose veracity no one disputed) asserted that, just as he was leaving his own country for this, there fell such an immense shower of herrings that the surrounding inhabitants seriously apprehended some malignant distemper. As respects that fall of herrings, my dear sir, (said a gentleman who came from the same place) I can set you perfectly at ease – two days after you left Scotland, the sky darkened – the wind bellowed – and there fell such a tremendous shower of salt and water, that the herrings were all in pickle before night!

Disclaimer: This 1818 newspaper article was published prior to 1931. Under United States copyright law (specifically the 95-year rule), this work has entered the public domain and is thus free to use or republish. It is presented here as an interesting and folkloric newspaper oddity.

Source(s): https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn83026172/1818-06-10/ed-1/?sp=2

Categories: Newspapers, Sky Fallings