The Mothman

I'm sure many of you have seen the 2002 movie The Mothman Prophecies starring Richard Gere and Laura Linney. That movie was based on a real creature seen in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. The myth of the Mothman began on November 12, 1966 in West Virginia. In a local cemetery, five men were preparing a grave for burial when they spotted a "brown human being" lift off from nearby trees and flew over their heads. The men were mystified by the sighting. The unidentified creature looked more like a man with wings rather than a bird. However, those five men wouldn't be the last ones to see it.

Three days later, two married couples saw it as they were driving past an abandoned TNT plant near Point Pleasant, West Virginia. They claimed to have seen two large eyes attached to something shaped like a man with big wings folded against its back. When the creature moved toward the plant door, the couples panicked and sped away. Later on, they saw the same creature on a hillside near the road. As they were traveling over 100 miles per hour, the creature flew next to the car, keeping up with their speed. They reported to Deputy Sheriff Millard Halstead that it followed them down Highway 62, all the way to the Point Pleasant city limits. They weren't the only group that saw the creature that night. The other four witnesses claimed to have seen the "bird" three different times.

However, those sightings were pretty mild compared to the one Newell Partridge had. Around 10:30 that same evening, Partridge, who lived about 90 miles from Point Pleasant, saw a weird pattern fill his television screen followed by loud, whining sounds from outside. "It sounded like a generator winding up," he stated. Dumbfounded by what was going on, he walked outside finding his dog, Bandit, facing the hay barn, 150 yards from the house. Partridge turned his flashlight in that direction and spotted two red circle-like eyes that were moving like red orbs. He believed they did not belong to that of any animal and the sight of them frightened him. Bandit was an experienced hunting dog and protective of his territory. So, it was no surprise that he shot off in pursuit of the glowing eyes.

Partridge tried to stop him but he didn't pay any attention. Instead, Partridge went back in the house for his gun but was too scared to return outside. He ended up sleeping that night with his gun propped up next to the bed. Bandit was no where to be seen the next morning. Partridge read in the newspaper about the sightings and especially took notice of a statement from a Roger Scarberry, a member of the group who spotted the strange "bird' at the TNT plant. He stated that they saw the body of a large dog laying on the side of the road and a few minutes later, on their way back out of town, the dog was gone. Newell Partridge believed that it may have been Bandit, who was never seen again.

A press conference was held in the county courthouse on November 16th where the couples from the TNT plant sighting repeated their story. Deputy Halstead, who had known the four people all of their lives, took them very seriously and many reporters did as well. They dubbed the unexplained creature as the "Mothman", after a character from the popular Batman television series.

The abandoned TNT plant became the lair of the Mothman which was an excellent place to hide. The area was made up of several hundred acres of woods and large concrete domes where high explosives were stored during World War II. A network of tunnels honeycombed the area and made it possible for the creature to move about without being seen. In addition to the manmade labyrinth, the area was also comprised of the McClintic Wildlife Station, a heavily forested animal preserve filled with woods, artificial ponds and steep ridges and hills. Much of the property was almost inaccessible and without a doubt, Mothman could have hid for weeks or months and remained totally unseen. The only people who ever wandered there were hunters and fishermen and the local teenagers, who used the rutted dirt roads of the preserve as a lovers lane spot.

Researchers, investigators and "monster hunters" from all over flock to the area, but the most well-known of them all was author John Keel. He has written about unexplained anomalies including Mothman, making him a controversial figure for decades. Despite how "colorful" he can get, he was still considered a respectful man. Keel became the major chronicler of the Mothman case. Keel arrived at Point Pleasant in December 1966 and immediately began collecting reports from witnesses. Apparently, Mothman wasn't the only unexplained thing in Point Pleasant. Reports of UFOs, television and phone problems, unexplained lights in the skies, and short-lived poltergeists could also be found there.

So who was Mothman? One explanation was Mothman was actually a sandhill crane from Canada. Whatever it may have been, the numerous credible witnesses prove it was no hoax. Even if he was real, it doesn't explain all the other strange events in Point Pleasant. John Keel believed it was a "window" area but could that be explanation for all the other strange occurrences in America? Who knows. He also blamed the events on the legendary Constalk Curse which was placed on Point Pleasant in the 1770s.

But the question is: Does Mothman still exist today? Some would say yes. A recent sighting was on September 11, 2001. Steve Moran was taking pictures of the rescue operation from Greenwich Street when he captured something interesting near the towers. Do you think it's Mothman or is the picture a fake? Does anyone have any Mothman stories they would like to share?