ScienceToday

19. A sinkhole opened in Louisiana, fueling conspiracy theories in the state.

In 2012, a 34-acre sinkhole opened in Bayou Corne, Louisiana, and is still growing. The New York Times described the incident as the day “the earth opened up — a voracious maw 325 feet across and hundreds of feet deep, swallowing 100-foot trees, guzzling water from adjacent swamps and belching methane from a thousand feet or more beneath the surface.” Some even said they “caught a glimpse of hell in it.”

Some, however, assume that this sinkhole is connected to the entire Gulf of Mexico, hinting at a potentially cataclysmic event that will swallow up the entire region. In other words, everything between Texas and Florida is going to be sucked into the hole. However, there is no scientific evidence that this is valid.

20. When people couldn’t find the remains of the sixth governor of Maine, Enoch Lincoln, the conspirators had theorized its whereabouts.

Enoch Lincoln was a popular poet and early advocate of black and women’s rights in New England. In 1826 he was elected the sixth governor of Maine, and during his term, he selected the current site of Maine’s capital. His body was placed in a crypt when he died in 1829. In 1991, no remains were identified in an examination of the crypt.

Lincoln ‘s body was missing, and this sparked a series of conspiracy theories. Others say that state workers may have cleansed the tomb and then neglected to bring the body back, while others say that the governor was never buried there. His body has never been found.