I remember the fairytale of "The Three Billygoats." There was a creepy creature called a troll who lived under a bridge the billygoats had to cross.
I was a child many decades ago. I also remember creatures called gnomes. Fortunately, I didn't believe in any of these creatures because they appeared in fairytales and we all know that fairytales are not for real. I am not sure that these characters had supernatural powers, but they were the antagonists in many a fairytale.

Thank you.
@Yakcal, your response might not be very helpful to me as I want something more typical, recocnisable to everyone, but Getchegume is interesting as well, so thank you. :))

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Please forgive me my mistakes. If there are any.

I would say most typically children in America would have nightmares about witches, who tend to be villains in stories, along with (less common) ogres or trolls. They would also definitely know wolfmen, vampires and also men who might be trying to catch them or kill them, like a serial killer.

You could also safely say wild animals such as lions, tigers, bears, and also mean dogs.

I am native from the midwest U.S. I read a lot of fairy tales as a kid. Now most fairy tales are influenced by Disney, where the villain might be an evil stepmother or a wizard. But witches I think would be the most universal.

don't know if this fits your mold but;

the wizard of oz, the tin man, the wicked witch of the west, the good witch, the scarecrow, the cowardly lion and the rest of the cast.

Thank you all for the answers and for the link, Jyrkkä Jätkä.
I haven't finished searching for more information about the creatures you mentioned but for the time being I'm thinking of gnomes, witches and dragons as the most typical, and suitable for my story, too.
However, the ones I found on the free dictionary site are interesting as well. And inspiring. E.g. the squonks, really.

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Please forgive me my mistakes. If there are any.

From http://hundredmythologyhaiku.blogspot.com

Identified as the protector and guardian spirit of Mount Katahdin in what is now the state of Maine, the Pamola is characterised as having the head of a moose, the body of a human and the talons and wings of an eagle.

A spectacular bird creature from Native American tradition, tribes such as the Abenaki and Penobscot respect Pamola as a thunder god who brings cold weather and comes down hard on the humans it resents. Terrified of the antler-toting spirit, climbing the great mountain was considered taboo in native culture and to dissuade intruders the flying moose clouds obscures the peaks with lightning storms and clouds. Even though hikers appear to ignore the spirit, you'd be hard-pressed to consider a winged moose weather lord anything but compelling and worthy of kudos. The powerful Pamola of American folklore deserves praise and veneration indeed.

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I don't know half of you half as well as I should like; and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve.

The first to come in mind from Polish (Slavic) mythological creatures is Baba Yaga.
The origin of this witch-like old hag is presumably influence of the neighbour Finnic people.

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I don't know half of you half as well as I should like; and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve.

@dingdong, there's no target readership, I'm not going to publish it. Why do I care for there being in the story creatures that would really match the setting then, you might ask. Well, I just want to create a world that is complete, doesn't lack anything, doesn't contain elements from some other world. Why isn't the setting Polish, then, if I am and so it would be easier this way? Well... I don't really know. Seems I just wanted some other landscape, some other place. And also to get to know a bit of American folklore.
Hope those of you who were so kind to respond to my request don't feel disappointed by that that I am not a professional writer.
Want something fearsome from Poland? Here you are. :)
Bazyliszek, which you are probably familiar with, but may not know that it was killed in Poland ;) according to Wikipedia - by a man, but in a poem by Tadeusz Kubiak it is a girl who outwits Basilisk.
Here is the poem. It's one of the best poems I remember from childhood. pl-pl.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=256484424422585&id=249178698486491
The Wawel Dragon, which still dwells in Cracow and even earns money for the city by breathing fire in front of tourists. :P
There are also devils, e.g. Boruta, and witches.
And there is Safanduła, a cow good for threatening children who don't want to eat. And łaski, creatures that attack children who walk into forests without their parents' permission, and strangle them to death. But these two are not so much recognisable throughout Poland.

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Please forgive me my mistakes. If there are any.

Yeah I know it's odd. :) Even this story is a bit odd. I know it wouldn't be amusing for anybody, and quite possibly it wouldn't be wholly understandable as well. That's why I won't try to publish it.
I like writing. Isn't that a good motivation?
Thank you for encouragement. :) But I don't want encouragement.

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Please forgive me my mistakes. If there are any.

Mullan,
create your own creature like Tolkien created the whole world and its history.
Have fun!
(if it's fun enough, share it with others by publishing it ;-)

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I don't know half of you half as well as I should like; and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve.

@dindong, you didn't take offence for my not wanting encouragement, did you?
I sometimes do publish what I write (so I'm not that different:)). When I feel like doing so and if I think the piece in question might be interesting for other people. But that's not the case with the story I'm writing (actually wrote, but still haven't decided as to the names). This story means something to me, but it wouldn't be interesting to others.
@Jyrkkä Jätkä, the creatures don't play such an important role in my story, they just pass through a character's mind, and it's only their names that are mentioned... but, hmm, if I don't find anything I like, I may make something up. :)

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Please forgive me my mistakes. If there are any.

Dingdong mentioned the the judge for beer. Well, the matron goddess of beer was Sumerian Ninkasi. Not a monster, though ;-)
If you want to study the creatures from different cultures google "******* mythology" or "******* folklore".

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I don't know half of you half as well as I should like; and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve.

Jyrkkä Jätkä, I have done some googling for Native American legends. They're really quiant. :)
dingdong, some people take offense when somebody doesn't want something they offer. Although I don't understand it, I've grown so accustomed to it (elderly Polish women are the best from the best at it) that I might have begun to see it everywhere.
Thanks again for all responses.

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Please forgive me my mistakes. If there are any.

[Off Topic] Pardon me but I found this very interesting, Yackal, do you have any online reference for this word usage?



This is interesting Yakcal, I haven't found that usage yet, I've always heard Gitche Gumee as the Chippewa name for Lake Superior, well at least since I first heard Gordon Lightfoot's, "Ballad of the Edmund Fitzgerald", one of the best American ballads ever.

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I am pleasantly surprised that Washington Irving's Knickerbocker Tales is still read outside of New England and New York. I never would have guessed that it had much influence beyond the Hudson Valley anymore.

ETA:

The Wikipedia article calls the character "Brom Bones," yet I recall it written as "Brawn Bones". Perhaps it is my memory, or perhaps a different recension.

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"Sometimes I sits and thinks, and sometimes I just sits." - Satchel Paige

A recent edition:


Like Chris, many kids fear the Evil Monkey in their closet.


Be afraid.

Be very afraid.

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"Be without fear in the face of your enemies. Be brave and upright that God may love thee. Speak the truth always, even if it leads to your death. Safeguard the helpless, and do no wrong". (Knight's Oath, Kingdom of Heaven)

The ghost dance:




I think that the difficulty with finding 'typically American' supernatural creatures is that America is such a mixture of cultures - an area with many Polish people would have heard of one set from their parents, Chinatown would have a completely different set, as would an area where the population were mainly from England or Africa.

To cover the majority of children now, you would have to include the 'dementor', Voldemort, orcs, Nazgul - though the last two may be only relevant to older readers.

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Though lovers be lost, love shall not, and Death shall have no dominion. - Dylan Thomas