19-Foot Alligator: The Fascinating True Story

McIlhenny said he shot the sizable beast out of compassion, that given the location and size of the gator, it would have died of exposure. He later observed the gator had no teeth, just stumps down to the bone, and clearly was very old. Just looking at the gator, however, McIlhenny knew he had to

McIlhenny said he shot the sizable beast out of compassion, that given the location and size of the gator, it would have died of exposure. He later observed the gator had no teeth, just stumps down to the bone, and clearly was very old. Just looking at the gator, however, McIlhenny knew he had to somehow get a record of what he'd found. Being an amateur scientist, he decided to measure the gator.

Using his 30-inch gun barrel, he started at the tail and worked his way up to the snout, marking with his knife as he went until he got to the business end. The verdict? An astounding 19 feet 2 inches! McIlhenny measured the gator twice more to check  his work, and yep — 19 feet 2 inches. In case you're wondering, 19 feet 2 inches is 234 inches, which means he laid the barrel of his gun down about eight times on that gator.

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