Wildlife - who needs it?

This morning the fellow who spreads fertilizer and weed killer on our yard left a note about a "very large" snake that was STILL in our backyard. He apparently lives under the patio/deck. So that wasn't the note I was hoping for on the door knob this morning and it really got me to thinking. Mark called the guy to try to get more information and I guess the guy has never actually seen the snake, so that made me feel a lot better. I thought, what does he know? However, I was calling around about opossum removal so I asked a few questions about snakes also (to a place called the skunk whisperer - super nice people) he said that there was an over the counter remedy that really works. Snake away. I was very encouraged I thought, we probably don't really have a snake, but it we do I will spread this stuff and that will take care of it. I was pretty much calmed down - I'll admit I was on the phone a good 1/2 hour with mom and dad which greatly helped my calm. They are really good people to turn to if wanting to brush off some minor wildlife problems. By the time Mark got home I was feeling great about it. I met him at the door and was telling about all of this as we watched it starting to rain out the kitchen window. Mark suddently points, "Do you see that?" I saw it and wished I hadn't. The tail of a snake hanging over our gutter. We watched in HORROR as it poked its gross little head over the gutter and looked through the window at us. Mark ran outside, grabbed a hoe and tried to kill it, but it snuck into this little space where the roof meets. I was not calm at this point and felt the need to call the parents again. They assured me it was not in the house, unless, my mom pointed out, it could get in the attic and down the fireplace. Plus, snakes are really good for mice, so really nothing to worry about. I watched the crack like a hawk and eventually the snake tries to sneak back out. Much yelling and screaming and Mark with the hoe again trying to kill it, but it made a swift retreat. I sit in the kitchen to watch for the snake and talk to Nancy for about 45 minutes about all my many many wildlife problems. The snake barely every pokes his head out.

See those beady little eyes?

It got dark and I was giving up. Then Mark told me it was out and I held the flashlight for him (from a great distance) and was helpfully shrieking "KILL IT KILL IT KILL IT KILL IT" and he did. I was so proud of him and so happy I almost cried. The gutter took a little bit of a beating, but it was worth it. The final measurement was over 3 feet long. These pics do not do it justice. This thing looked like photos of the Loch Ness monster hanging over that gutter.

Someone who knows better than me - what kind of snake is this?