I'm visiting NYC and today came across an urban "legend" thats been around here for 75 years - Alligators roaming beneath the city in the sewers! Apparently, a bunch of young boys were clearing some snow and dumping it into a manhole when they saw some movement. They got some rope and pulled out what turned out to be a 6 to 7 foot long Alligator. When it started being a bad Alligator, the boys thrashed it with their shovels and killed it.
Sound like a conjured up story, but apparently this story was published in the New York Times and since then this has lived on. A book titled "The World Beneath the City" was also written around this subject which helped make the story live on as a legend. Experts deny the possibility of this as they claim Alligators cannot survive in the harsh winter, the pollution, lack of light and the scarcity of food in the sewers.
Nonetheless, this story has lived on and given rise to a bunch of T-Shirt designs. On Feb 9 2010, Manhattan Borough President proclaimed the day to be celebrated as the "Alligators in the sewers" day to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the urban legend.
Here's a related articly from NY times for reference: http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C01E3D9163BF937A15752C1A96F9C8B63&scp=1&sq=alligators+in+the+sewer&st=nyt
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