A drowning death at Lake Lanier has social media once again questioning why people continue to find leisure on the doomed waters.
On Wednesday, 74-year-old Matthew Mayo was boating with his wife on Lake Lanier when a freak accident forced him into the water. According to authorities, his seat became unbolted somehow from the floor, causing him to drop out of the boat. He did not resurface, and his body had to be recovered using boat-mounted SONAR. Mayo was found a while later in six feet of water. He is the second recorded drowning at the lake this year. However, since its creation in 1956, there have been an estimated 700 deaths, with approximately 200 of them occurring from 1994 until now.
Given the muddy history of the lake, speculation has swirled for years that the lake is haunted. While the origins of the story vary, many historians have pointed to the 1912 rape and murder of a young white girl in the area as the event that kicked off the legend. Allegedly, residents of a Black town known as Oscarville were reportedly chased away by white mobs after the girl was found dead. As the tale goes, some drowned in the Chattahoochee River while trying to get away. Then, in 1956, thousands of acres were flooded to create the lake, which ultimately displaced hundreds of remaining Black families. Countless graves are said to now be under the water. Some have reported a ghostly presence in the area, while unexplained accidents and deaths have occurred.
No matter your beliefs, it’s clear that Lake Lanier is not the ideal spot for hanging out.
Lake Lanier is trending again so here is my reminder of why you shouldn’t swim there . pic.twitter.com/rU4Wg5hFF9
— Aliah Sheffield (@AliahSheffield) May 31, 2024
Spirits at Lake Lanier every time they see people getting in https://t.co/Zv9G0DGe3u pic.twitter.com/Ldjp7IXNNA
— D0N C00LI0 (@DonCoolio1942) May 31, 2024
Yall: I aint worried about no Lake Lanier…
Lake Lanier: pic.twitter.com/l1fFalaJpW
— Big Girl Slay 💋 (@Biggirlslay) May 30, 2024
Lake Lanier got ANOTHER one!!??? pic.twitter.com/iDLi4ztk3s
— I’m tired of this church… (@MannyKSoul) May 30, 2024
Y'all gotta stop playing in & with Lake Lanier bc the ancestors have started unscrewing bolts. pic.twitter.com/UHGSOkxx7Z
— DropMeOff🛸 at°the°Next°Galaxy (@LadyDreaG) May 31, 2024
And y'all STILL gon carry your asses to Lake Lanier and play in their faces. SMH. pic.twitter.com/zYuuTmuuV0
— 🥀𝓣𝓲𝓪🥀 (@NoAverageJoint) May 31, 2024
Not only is Lake Lanier built over cemeteries, but it was built as a result of racists/ the kkk murdering a town of over 1,000 black people, driving them out by burning homes and churches etc. then building a lake on top. https://t.co/ba4CdvfjMA
— Maya Angelique👑 (@moneyymaya) May 25, 2021
Lake Lanier really be taking souls and y’all just go willingly??? Nobody forcing y’all at gunpoint or nothing??
— THANOS (@cishhhhh) May 30, 2024
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