If you find yourself in rural Connecticut, lost on a wooded road oddly named Dracula Drive, keep an eye out for the Melon Heads. They appear as small, bulbous-headed humanoids. These feral beings are said to have a penchant for cannibalism, a practice they do not hesitate to employ on those who wander into their territory.
Legends of the Melon Heads vary, spanning across the states of Ohio, Michigan, and Connecticut, though the commonly repeated origin is that they were abused children from a tragically mismanaged orphanage. There, they were subject to the twisted experiments of Dr. Crow, who injected their heads with mysterious fluids, causing their hydrocephalus. Legend holds that the children retaliated, killed Dr. Crow, and burned down the orphanage. Thus, resigned to their monstrosities, they retired to a life of devouring travelers on lonely, wooded roads.
Another more Lovecraftian origin states that they were an isolated and inbred family living in a dilapidated mansion in the woods. Generations of inbreeding caused their physical deformations and mental deterioration. Eventually, they burned the mansion down and took up residence in a nearby system of caves, from which they launched their cannibalistic sorties against humanity.
Ohio has a strong claim to the Melon Head legend, centered around Wisner Road in Kirtland. Their variations sometimes cite the government as being behind Dr. Crow’s experiments. Michigan folklorists claim Felt Mansion and the nearby Junction Insane Asylum are ground zero for the story. Connecticut variants often name Dracula Road as the location, despite the fact that no such road exists, and with literally hundreds of rural roads that might qualify by description.
Though a definitive answer seems unlikely to be found, the Melon Heads legend endures. Because, at its core, the story is darkly plausible. Not in the sense of bloodthirsty monsters roaming the dark woods, but that in our not-so-distant past, the abuses of institutionalized medicine, orphanages, and asylums for the mentally ill were all too familiar. In fact, we are not so removed to believe that there aren’t others like Dr. Crow plying their craft today.
Jason Roberts is a Seattle-based author noted for his acclaimed western horror series The Dead Wind Trilogy as well as other works of cosmic horror infused with historical fiction. His web-based series, Dark Distractions, examines paranormal mysteries, unexplained phenomena, and all things strange.
