South Amboy and the 1916 NJ Shark Attacks
The movie Jaws is said to be based on the shark attacks along the coast of NJ in 1916. The first attack occurred on July 1st in Beach Haven and the last three on July 12th in Matawan Creek. What is not as widely known was the event that occurred two days later in South Amboy.
July 14, 1916 - SOUTH AMBOY was the site where two men, Michael Schleisser and John Murphy, left the local dock to go fishing in a small eight-foot motorized rowboat. While in Raritan Bay, their boat was jolted by a huge shark tangled in their fishing net. As the shark trashed and began to attack, Schleisser grabbed the broken oar that he coincidently brought on the boat and started beating the shark. Using all his strength to avoid becoming another victim of the vicious attacks, he killed the shark with a final frantic blow from the oar. The 350 pound, seven and a half feet long great white shark was towed back to the South Amboy dock. When cut open, the 15 pounds of human flesh and bone in its stomach were presumed to belong to the NJ victims of the prior two weeks. Although unable to confirm this shark as the one that caused the last five attacks, no further incidents were reported that summer. It remains uncertain if more than one shark caused the attacks and the type of shark, although many suggested the Bull or Great White. For more information on the South Amboy connection: • The book “Close to Shore” by Michael Capuzzo • “Jaws – The Shocking Truth” on REELZ (specifically mentions South Amboy and has clips of the Great Beds Lighthouse and the Raritan Bay – very cool!)
THE SHARK ATTACKS - The cool coastal waters of New Jersey likely provided welcome relief against the excessive heat that hit the state in the summer of 1916. The year would go down in history for something far beyond a summer heatwave as July began by claiming the first of five shark victims; only one would survive. July 1st - Beach Haven, Long Beach Island, Ocean County, NJ, the first attack. Charles Vansant, 23, of Philadelphia, vacationing with his family at the Engleside Hotel, heard the warning cries of beachgoers too late to avoid the shark that attacked him from behind. Despite the human chain that ultimately pulled him from the jaws of the shark to the shore, nothing could save him, including the efforts of his father, Dr. Eugene L. Vansant, who helplessly witnessed the event. Massive blood loss from a severed femoral artery proved fatal. July 6th - about 45 miles north in Spring Lake, Monmouth County, NJ, the second attack occurred. Charles Bruder, 27, a Swiss bell captain at the Essex & Sussex Hotel, had both legs bitten off by a shark while swimming 130 yards from the beach as hundreds watched. Lifeguards pulled him to the shore, where he died about ten minutes later. July 12th - three more became victims of shark attacks just 30 miles north in a freshwater inlet of Raritan Bay called Matawan Creek in Monmouth County, NJ, about a mile inland from the Atlantic Ocean. The third victim was Lester Stillwell, 11, swimming off Wyckoff Dock when the shark dragged him under the water. The fourth victim was Stanley Fisher, 24, who made several heroic attempts to retrieve Lester’s body from the creek. On his last attempt, he was attacked and died later that day. The fifth victim was Joseph Dunn, 12, swimming with other boys not far from the Wycoff dock. After hearing warning cries, he was trying to getting out of the water when grabbed by the shark and dragged underwater. His older brother and another friend saved his life by pulling him out of the jaws of the attacking shark. Although his lower left was “cut to ribbons from knee to the ankle,” he survived the attack, and his leg was saved.
Following what became known as “twelve days of terror,” residents, law enforcement, and government officials waged war on sharks - killing as many as possible with any means necessary, including guns and dynamite. President Woodrow Wilson, former Governor of New Jersey who regularly vacationed at the Jersey shore, instructed the Coast Guard to kill as many sharks as possible.
Many believe the movie Jaws, inspired by the book of the same name, was based on the New Jersey shark attacks of 1916. The similarities are evident, including the reluctance to close beaches to protect summer tourism. During the time, the general belief was that sharks did not attack humans, which was a drastic contrast to the truth.
