''Failing at this is one of my biggest regrets,'' Haast said. Reptile World Serpentarium in St. Cloud | VISIT FLORIDA I have watched tv programs about him on Animal Planet and the Discovery Channel. When the show headed to Florida, Haast convinced his parents to let him go. How One Man Survived 20 Venomous Snake Bites - Ripley's Believe It or Not! Luckily though, I see from visiting one of the links that there is an attraction to view snake milking in St. Today, out of print, it's coveted by collectors and sells on eBay for more than $100, a testament to Haast's popularity. Before moving to South Florida, she began her career in South Bend, Indiana and spent six years in Jacksonville as a reporter and weekend anchor. He was born in 1910 in Paterson, N.J., to German-American parents -- his father was a mechanic, his mom a housewife. While the legendary name of W.E. Oh my gosh..I worked on Bill and Nancy's house in P.G 15-20 years agomold issueshumidity problems..put an air exchanger in their snake area to control odorbut had strict guidelines to maintain high humidity. My girlfiends and I would catch 7 - 8 foot Indio snakes and we would beg my mother to drive us over to the Serpentarium so we could sell the snakes to Dr. Haas. See, when a poisonous snake bites you, and his fangs (having hypodermic-like hollow holes at their points) inject their venom , they are in fact "digesting" you while you diethe venom is softening up your tissue, destroying it, making you easier to eat, digesthence Mr. Haas' fingers were so deformed? The boy's father and uncle jumped into the ?it and tried to pry open the crocodile's mouth. Some questions, like the one a decade ago from Cruz, the venom unit founder, mean the difference between life and death. It is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays, closed on Mondays. Many times Haast donated his blood to be used in treating snake-bite victims when a suitable anti-venom was not available. He started extracting venom from his snakes when he was 15 years old, and dropped out of school when he was 16 years old. Through his pioneering efforts and unswerving dedication to the idea that venoms could be used to help relieve human suffering, he has singularly done more to advance the use of venoms in science and medicine than any other person in history by pioneering the concept of bringing snakes from around the world, housing them under strict laboratory conditions, and making their venoms available to the scientific community in a standardized and reliable form for over 60 years. His unique contribution to medicine earned him widespread recognition. Boy Dies After Falling Into Crocodile Pit - The New York Times The original Miami Serpentarium, located south of Miami, was in operation from 1947 to 1984. The guy that answered the phone was very calm, and told me to just leave it alone and that it would probably just be on it's way. I am transferring my old pictures to new albums and came across our photos at The Serpentarium in 1973 when we were there with our family while on vacatin. Now close to 60, a S. Floridian I can still remember driving by that concrete cobra many times. To this day it is one of our most treasured possesions. He had so much venom in him that we were told even a bee sting could kill him. Others joined Haast. I never forgot Mr. Haast and his snakes, and, to this day, I am not scared of snakes or any other animals. Besides his wife, the former Nancy Harrell, he is survived by two daughters, three grandchildren, two great-grandchildren and two great-great-grandchildren. ''I can no longer open my hands wide or make a fist,'' Haast explained. ''I know a lot of people in Miami still remember the Serpentarium and wonder what became of me, that's why I'm talking to you,'' said Haast, who would only be interviewed by telephone. 0. I told my mother how I'd really like to get an Indigo and she kind of shrugged it off. Mr. Haast and a Miami doctor treated more than 6,000 people with a snake-venom serum that they and their patients contended was effective against multiple sclerosis and arthritis. The same year, a copperheads bite put him in the hospital for a week. And modern medical researchers are proving him right snake venom fractions are becoming recognized as potent medicines. From The Miami Herald, August 3, 2006 FLASHBACK | THE MIAMI SERPENTARIUM 'Miami snakeman' is 95 and still injects himself with venom BY LUISA YANEZ lyanez@MiamiHerald.com IN PUNTA GORDA: Bill Hasst sold his Miami Serpentarium site in Pinecrest in 1984, and settled in southwest Florida. I was hurt, she said. Yep, I was a snake kid, read all the books in my library, found "Cobras In His Garden" and was as surprised as my parents when Bill Haast wrote back to me a few times. My hands served me well.'' He was back at it next week when we came again to fill the popcorn machines. Haast eventually returned home, married and enrolled in airplane-mechanic school, but Florida called. I can still recall watching a 12 or 14 ft gator, said to have been the largest but for its missing tail. It was 2006 and he was still extolling the virtues of venom, saying he injected himself weekly with a cocktail from five snakes cobras, cottonmouths, kraits, mambas and rattlers homeopathy the Food and Drug Administration would never endorse. When he had enough, he opened the Serpentarium in Miami in 1946. I stood, many times, on the grass in the little circle just feet from the Cobra at milking time. He later received commendations from President Gerald Ford and Miami Mayor Stephen Clark. He shot the 1800-pound crocodile nine times with a Luger pistol, yet it was still an hour before it died. I lived just across the road from Bill's place in 1959 thru 1961 and went. Their daughters, Nya and Shantee probably do not even remeber me (it was in the early seventies). According to the report, Cox fled the scene but later responded to the Miami-Dade Police Departments Homicide Bureau where he provided a video-recorded statement. Besides the mayor's key, they gave him a firefighter's helmet bearing the unit's name: Venom 1. In the area of the Serpentarium, pigmy rattlesnakes abounded. I lived on Homestead AFB 1960-66 and as a kid visited the Serpentarium many times. Thinking back, that have been Cookie. Make a one-time donation today for as little as $1. 'There is no reason to visit Miami. I'm very glad I did. Teen killed in northwest Miami-Dade, police search for shooter Senseing this the king made an immediate move toward the door to challenge. My oldest brother had met a girl who, I believe, had worked at the Miami Serpentarium. I'm sure they still carry around enough guilt, even after all this time, without you adding to it. One particular snake that I remember from my childhood visits to the Serpentarium was a big, oversized Florida Eastern Diamond Back rattlesnake. I've outlived all my friends down there.' Supposedly, this Timacuan sub-species and the nearby Mexican Bush Master are the largest poisonous snakes in the world and Bill Hass had both of them in his World famous Serpentarium. From 1947 until 1984, he operated the Miami Serpentarium, a tourist attraction south of Miami, Florida, where he extracted venom . He gathered 400 cobras and took his findings to a University of Miami researcher. Legend has it that the Timacuan indians who lived there before the European settlers arrived, revered these snakes as Gods. As soon as it was handed back to an embarassed little girl, one of the boys said, "Now you have to look and see if it punched your bus ticket!" MIAMI, Sept. 3 (UPI)A 6yearold boy tumbled into a crocodile pit at the Miami Serpentarium today and a 14 foot, 1,800pound African crocodile snapped its jaws around the child's middle and dragged him to his death in a small lagoon. (Different venoms require different antidotes.). Linkedin. There were others I recall, Monkey Jungle, Parrot Jungle, but none had the that eye catching element of suspense like The Serpentarium. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. I somehow got to this page from an old email I found and did the Google thing for " Bill "Miami Snakeman" Haast " and here I find myself with those shared memories. 25 39.145 N, 80 19.797 W. Marker is in Pinecrest, Florida, in Miami-Dade County. A krait anti-venom was shipped from India, but when it arrived after a 48-hour flight, he refused to accept it. You could have a snake for 30 years and the second you leave his cage door cracked, hes gone, he told Outside magazine in 1997. I contacted him while the car was in shop and $2200.00 later it was mine. Sincerely, an understanding and appreciative person! VENOM `POSTER BOY' The medical establishment -- and the Food and Drug Administration -- never bought into Haast's enthusiasm for the lethal snake juice as treatment for multiple sclerosis, lupus, arthritis and Parkinson's disease. [2] After closing the Serpentarium, he opened the Miami Serpentarium Laboratories, a facility in Punta Gorda, Florida that produced snake venom for medical and research use. MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. - The person who shot and killed a 15-year-old boy is on the run. 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. In an enclosure) his parents should have supervised him much better. ''I hit him over the head, trying to get him to let go.'' The snake had disappeared, but I estimate that the snake, which had at least a one foot girth, was 14 feet or more. Haast saw that a boy had fallen into the crocodile pit. According to his arrest report, Archie Cox Jr., of Miami, was taken into custody April 3 on a second-degree murder charge. During its heyday, it attracted about 50,000 Florida visitors a year. Mr Haast came out at my parents request after thrilling us with a great show. I recently saw Mr. Hasst on wild kingdon with Jack Hanna (aired 1997 maybe). In 1982 when I was twelve I moved from England to Hollywood, Fl with my family. Haast and his teenage son, Bill Jr., began constructing snake pits, the beginning of the Serpentarium. I was a nurse in the ICU at Variety Children's Hospital on at least three of Haast's admissions after snake bites. "[7], Haast turned 100 in December 2010[10] and died on June 15, 2011.[1]. Everyone sold them to the Serpentarium for $1.25/Ft, good money in those days. A secret of his success was the immunity he had built up by injecting himself every day for more than 60 years with a mix of venoms from 32 snake species. Anyone can read what you share. The animal was of no harm to anyone other than the fool who would allow his self to fall in. It was buried on the grounds. I wish you could have seen that crowd move as that snake reared itself and advanced toward Bill as it poured itself onto the concrete floor. The incident did not end Haast's interest in venom research. After the CBS News program 60 Minutes did a report on the subject in December 1979, interest in the serum surged. Lee Martines - Growing up in Miami in the 40s and 50s I would visit the Serpentarium every couple of years and always marveled at the variety of snakes and the process of extracting the venom from the poisonous ones. If you wish to purchase venoms, we invite you to telephone (800) 248-5050 or e-mail nancy@miamiserpentarium.com and we will be happy to be of service. Well he is alive and well at the age of 97or 98 and still apparently working with snakes; he said he felt there would come a time when he would not be able work with them but I guest he still is. I first heard of Bill Haast around 1955, when reading a "man's magazine" (as they were called back then, probably Argosy. Mr. Haast, who was director of the Miami Serpentarium Laboratories, a snake-venom producer near Punta Gorda, Fla., died of natural causes on Wednesday at his home in southwest Florida, his wife, Nancy, said. He bought his first exotic snake, a diamondback rattler, from a catalog. ''I would hide them in my tool box,'' he said. I'm recommending this site to my grandson, Piers and now that I'm a snowbird residing in Ft. Myers part time, I'll keep watching for news of your 100th birthday party! I introduced myself and got my wife and kids to meet him too. He would shove the snake's fangs into the top of a vial and watch the venom trickle down. The snake would bite the mouse, he said in an interview with The Miami Herald in 1984. In the first chapter a bunch of young boys are headed to a swimming hole; one boy races ahead and dives in. THE BAND FROM SOUTH MIAMI HIGH RODE WITH THE COBRA TO THE SCHOOL ON A FLAT BED TRUCK WITH THE BAND HAPPILY PLAYING AND BEATING THEIR DRUMS--SUDDENLY--SEVERAL CARS AHEAD OF ME THE SNAKE --WHICH WAS PLANTED STRAIGHT UP--SUDDENLY FELL APART ON THE TRUCK --JUST SORT OF DISENTAGRATED --AND THE BOTTOM WAS RUINED--BUT A SMALL PART INCLUDING THE HEAD REMAINED-AND APPEARED UNDAMAGED---AND I PRESUME--MADE IT SAFELY TO THE SCHOOL--J. MUDD. Today Dec26, 2008 I am looking at his picture some 45 years later and hooks the same. Cookie broke free and took the boy underwater. My mother took my brother and I to the serpentarium in 1977. Back in the 1980's, I lived in the Pepperwood S/D (about one block south of Kendell Drive, just west of Palmetto Expy). He landed a job with Miami-based Pan American Airways. WHEN WE WENT TO THE SERPENTARIUM, WE WERE IN THE CROWD WITH MOSTLY OUT OF TOWNERS. I am so glad to have found this site. He's truly an amazing man who has lived a life of exemplary devotion to his work. To preserve these articles as they originally appeared, The Times does not alter, edit or update them. We looked out and could see both Bill and Nancy peeking out from their office with a big grin! He loved his animals and was deeply committed to bringing them to the world in an educated, and respectful manner. Boy, 3, dies after being shot inside home in Calumet Heights Among them a zoo director from Des Moines, a local construction worker and a Venezuelan father. That gave him a chance to use his toolbox to smuggle snakes, including his first cobra. "Bill Haast, a Man Charmed by Snakes, Dies at 100", "Owner destroys crocodile that killed boy, may close serpentarium", "Icon: Bill Haast Snake handler, venom researcher, age 97", "100 years and kicking: Happy Birthday, Bill Haast", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bill_Haast&oldid=1079333500, Pages with login required references or sources, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 26 March 2022, at 06:33. So, on a trip to visit my parents in Miami, when Scot was two (1977), we took him to the Miami Serpentarium. For the first five years Bill, Clarita, and his son were the only staff. A significant historical year for this entry is 1946. The self-described "poster boy for the benefits of venom" briefly operated a bona fide cancer research laboratory on the property and before invention of . I still miss the animals. When my family came to Miami in1961, they left me in Lakeland, Florida with my aunt and uncle, who happened to be an avid hunter/fisherman. It was the story of Bill's adventure with the blue krait bite. . Great job on the article! And we often talked of many things when she came in to South Dixie Amoco to have the well-maintained car serviced. There was something unique and special about living old Miami, Its individuals like Bill and The Serpentarium that paved Miami's history in a way like no other place in the world. "He was into it for the science on how snake venom affected the body," said his grandniece, who worked at The Serpentarium as a teen in the 1980s. As my mother was paying our admission, a worker rushed over to tell us that we were going to miss the King cobra show. Teen arrested in connection with fatal shooting in northwest Miami-Dade But I must say he had a good sense of humor too. Drivers passing the former site of the Miami Serpentarium on South Dixie Highway. He suddenly dropped his hook and reached in with his hand, and grabbed it then swung it over the heads of the audience. His powerful blood also rescued 21 snake-bite victims. My friend Jim Danaaldson who procured and trained animals for the film industry had set up a Reptile Exposition at Devonshire downs and I was an exhibiter . My mother was deathly afraid of snakes but she was a real trooper driving us to Dr. Haas, all the while saying, you better not let that snake go in this car! This subspecies, restricted to the Florida Keys, obviously was named for Bill Haast. I came upon a reference to a varieth of the black racer that bears the name Coluber constrictor haasti. Although Haast did not have antivenin for that snake, he knew a collector who did and who provided the 15 vials of antivenin that saved the victim's life. Children shrieked in horrified glee. Miami-Dade police are investigating after a 16-year-old boy was fatally shot late Tuesday night at an apartment complex. He moved his venom-gathering operation to Utah. People were lining up for a show. However, sometime in my teens I developed a real fear of snakes, somewhat unusual since there were no poisonous varieties in my area. Living In Ms. we had plenty of cotton mouths copperheads and assorted others. Marker is on South Dixie Highway (U.S. 1) 0.1 miles north of Southwest 128th Street, on the right when traveling north. I was 16 yrs.old and going outside at night with no shoes on and stepped on the snake in the dark. Police in northwest Miami-Dade County investigate after a teenager was shot and killed. She would take some of her snakes to Bill Haast. What amemorable time, nobody was dissapointed and we all calmed down and talked quietly afterwaeds. "He's like an icon to people that know him," Cruz said. I remeber in 1970 when I went to JFK junior high in miami we went on a field trip to the serpentarium I am now 50 years old and never forgot the place.I did make a serious mistake while there that people I tell find hard to believe.there was this hudge round pit with a wall around it, in it was what looked to me like a large stone grey statue of a crcodile well I went in there touched it and one eye opened and I was out of that pit like a rocket.this crocodile was at least 15 feet long it must have been sleeping lucky for me.Bill left a lifetime of memories for a 13 yearold kid the man truely is a legend that has no equal in the reptile world. We would eat the snakes, along with all the fish and snapping turtles we could catch from the Lakeland area lakes. I could see their fears fade as they got the nerve to touch a real snake and realize that is wasn't slimy. In the late 40's and early 50's I lived in Marathon on the Keys. I'm sorry I can never take my grandchildren there. As far as how many times, that will be determined by the autopsy results by the ME office.. The findings were very encouraging, Haast said. I have such respect for Mr. Haast and for all of his work. For years, Haast tried to prove that venom could treat multiple sclerosis, lupus, arthritis and Parkinson's disease. His cane was an exotic mixture of ebony and ivory. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. Bowker, of New York, pleaded guilty for his role in arranging for 22 snakes to be delivered to the Serpentarium in an apparent swap for the same number of American alligators. It remains in my library to this day. [4] As of 2008 he continued to have his wife inject him with small amounts of snake venom. I read here about the boy who was killed after falling into the crocidile pit. So long Mr. Haast, you were a great man. The medical examiner . Boy Dies After Falling Into Crocodile Pit, https://www.nytimes.com/1977/09/04/archives/boy-dies-after-falling-into-crocodile-pit.html. My uncle made a point to tell me to look up this site. First responders rushed him to Jackson Memorial Hospital, where he died. ''I knew it was over then.'' He was 100 years old. houses for rent in ely, iowa. I then got a "thank you". I visited many times in the 60's - 70's. Amanda Batchelor is the Digital Executive Producer for Local10.com. I, and many other people, really enjoy reading the comments that are left under the photos. As a kid, it was a thrill to see the man himself up close. By then Cookie, the 12-foot, 2,000-pound crocodile, had the boy in its mouth. Haast has already been etched into history, it has been said upon learning of his passing on June 15, 2011, that "there are some people who should never die.". The snake attraction soon failed during the Depression, so Mr. Haast went to work for a bootlegger in the Everglades, where he was pleased to find plenty of snakes. When walking down a hallway, I passed an open door. Haast, then 66, heard the screams and came. The great legendary Bill Haast, pioneer of venom production for venom research since 1946, was founder and director of the world renowned Miami Serpentarium Laboratories As a young teenager in the mid 1960's I was very interested in all types of reptiles. including an 8-year-old boy. My scary moment at the Serpentarium was to see the salt water crock in a deep pit jump up and snap a chicken before it hit the ground! The cheerleaders and marching band of South Miami High, home of the Cobras, screamed and pounded their feet. His near-fatal snakebites became legend in the news media, particularly after the total passed 100 in the mid-1960s. But in 1980 the Food and Drug Administration banned the product as useless after saying that numerous deficiencies had been found in Mr. Haasts manufacturing process. (2011 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All rights reserved. Eventually Bill charmed that snake and on one of its downstrikes quicker than the snake could react Bill had it behind the head and then as a finale milked a big load of venom. In 1946 Haast decided he had enough money saved to start his snake farm. As a young Canadian boy back in the 1960`s. I can't imagine more suitable place than South Florida for Bill Haas's Serpentarium. 555 waverly avenue, brooklyn. Haast eventually sold his family home to buy the land on South Dixie Highway where the Serpentarium would rise. While the rest of the crew was out having fun in the exotic locales, he bought exotic snakes. One day, a six-year-old boy fell into the crocodile pit at Miami Serpentarium and was killed by "Cookie", a 12-ft-long crocodile that had been living in the pit for 20 years without incident. Glad to see many others share great memories of the Serpentarium. [8], Haast closed the Serpentarium in 1984, and moved to Utah for a few years. I followed his instructions and he was right. San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers said Saturday . Inside, the snake shows were pure drama with no frills, no fanfare, no drum roll, no silence please, no ladies and gentleman. I feel sorry for the young generations that they will never get to see the true mastery of Bill Haast with his serpents. I have returned to see his show at thye Serpentarium and have watched him with his wife on the Merv Griffith show & others ( I think also the Jonny Carson Show) many years later. The last time I saw him he told me never to get bit again and offered me a job. Anyone can read what you share. Bridgette Matter joined the Local 10 News team as a reporter in July 2021. When she got in the car she said she had a suprise for me. Unfortunately, in 1977 a six-year-old boy fell into the crocodile pit at Miami Serpentarium and was killed by "Cookie", a 12-ft-long crocodile. Great memories. The substance is an essential ingredient in making a serum to treat snakebite victims. I notified the person at the gate and soon Mr. Haast himself came out, grabbed the gator, and put him back in the pit. Is it the venom? He received his first cobra bite less than a year after he started his immunization program. THAT WAS THE MOST MEMORIBLE PART OF THAT VACATION. My Dad would take me there often, we lived in South Miami (as I do againlong story). For some in Miami, though, the whole debate has stirred up painful memories of another tragic incident. William "Bill" Haast, director of the Miami Serpentarium Laboratories (which he operated from 1947 to 1984) died June 15 at the age of 100. . This tornado also picked up a dredge crane, working on one of the drainage canals, and placed it across the canal without any significant damage. He flew around the world to donate his antibody-rich blood to 21 different snakebite victims. The giant concrete-and-stucco cobra was donated to South Miami Senior High but fell apart during its move to the school. The boy's father and another man, Nicolas Caulineau, jumped into the pit and straddled the crocodile. Venezuela made him an honorary citizen after he went deep into the jungle to give a boy a pint of blood. In fact, his poison-proof plasma saved over 21 people. The Miami Serpentarium, established in1946 as the first-of-it's kind premier and pioneering venom production laboratory in the world, was originated by the Founding Director, W. E. And a bit crazy. The victims mother identified him as Barry Ellis, an eighth-grade student at Horace Mann Middle School. So it was that the world-renowned Miami Serpentarium began it's life in the vivid imagination of the mind of Bill Haast, on long, tedious flights somewhere over the atlantic ocean during World war II, and it became the pioneering and premier venom production center of the world. On September 3, 1977, a 6-year-old boy sitting atop the wall surrounding the Serpentarium's alligator and crocodile pit fell into the pit, and a 12-foot crocodile lunged ten feet and grabbed the boy. LIVES SAVED But if a life was lost at the Serpentarium, Haast wants it known that transfusions from his immunized blood to snake victims helped save 21 lives. I think one of the two men was Mr. Haast himself. We watched the show (I don't remember if the presenter was Mr. Haast), and afterwards, Scot was encouraged to touch several snakes. As I was sitting there I heard a big CHOMP and turned around to see one huge animal falling back into the pitmissed me by about a foothorseshoes and hand-grenadeseh? The Serpentarium was a magical place and Mr. Haast was a very interesting fellow. I remember it sliding around my leg and shaking my leg till it feel off. In the 1970s, along with his friend, respected Miami physician Ben Sheppard, Haast distributed PROven, a venom-based serum. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. If you need help with the Public File, call (954) 364-2526.