A terrifying man-bird hybrid of sorts with glowing red eyes. That is the common description of the creature christened “The Mothman” by the press, named after a character from the popular Batman television series. Since its first reported sighting back in 1966, many subsequent reports and wild speculations have ensued. However, conclusive photographic evidence or proof of this creature’s existence remains elusive to date.

Where It All Began…

The creature was first sighted on 12 November 1966 at a cemetery in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. The five men who were preparing a burial site on that fateful day all swore they saw a grey, winged, man-like creature with large glowing red eyes located at what would normally be the creature’s chest flying over them. It was described to be about six feet tall and wider than a man. This first report marked the beginning of the Mothman enigma.

Things began to heat up three days later, when the media picked up the second reported sighting of the Mothman. Filed on 15 November 1996 by two young couples from Point Pleasant, namely Roger and Linda Scarberry as well as Steve and Mary Mallette, they collectively claimed to have seen a “large creature roughly the size of a ten-foot flying man with wings and glowing red eyes”, when they were exploring an area outside town known as “the TNT Area”, the site of a former World War II munitions plant.

Part of the TNT Area

Interestingly, all four unanimously maintained that those glowing red eyes had a “hypnotising” effect on them. In fact, they only awoke from their stupor when the creature made a sudden, mad dash towards an open door in the plant. With fear registering and adrenaline kicking in, all four ran back to their car and sped towards town.

As they were making their escape, the creature or one very similar to it came back and gave chase. It was flying low and kept up with the car despite them accelerating. It only stopped its pursuit when they hit town. According to the couples, upon nearing the town, the creature suddenly backed off, dropped the chase and flew away in the opposite direction.

It is speculated that the creature might have decided to cut its losses and go back for the body of the dead dog near the city limits which the couples recalled seeing during their frantic escape. Intriguingly, not only did the investigating police officer fail to come across any dead dog, he also encountered strange problems with his radio. When he arrived on site, it began emitting such loud screeching sounds that he had to turn it off.

The unidentified dog was widely linked to Newell Partridge, who also reported experiencing strange unexplained phenomenon at the outskirts of Pleasant Point on the same fateful day of 15 November 1966. According to Partridge’s report, his television went berserk at around 10:30pm. The screen abruptly went blank for a few seconds before emitting a loud sharp whining noise followed by the sudden display of herringbone patterns. At the same time, he heard his dog, Bandit, howling non-stop on the porch. It was very unusual for Bandit to howl continuously unless there was something disturbing outside since he was a big German Shepherd trained as a guard and hunting dog.

Artist’s sketch of the Mothman based on the testimonies of eye-witnesses

Assuming that it was a wild animal intruding, Partridge picked up his gun and headed out to the porch. Seeing Bandit run towards the family’s barn, about 150 yards away, Partridge followed suit. It was there where he saw “two circle-like eyes” glowing red through the night, prompting him to run back and take cover in his house.

Venturing out at daylight, he only found Bandit’s tracks in a circular pattern, indicating that he had probably gone round and round barking at something in the air. Bandit was never seen again and his disappearance remains unsolved.

After the second report, the police and media were inundated with an influx of depositions and testimonies of similar encounters with the Mothman. The following are but a few examples of sightings within the first year:

• 18 November: Two firemen, Paul Yoder and Ben Enochs reported sighting the Mothman in the TNT Area.

• 21 November: Richard West, from Charleston, reported seeing a six-foot tall figure with a wingspan of six to eight feet and red eyes perched on top of his neighbour’s roof. It remained there for a while before taking off straight up, “like a helicopter.”

• 25 November: Tom Ury reported spotting the Mothman while he was driving along Route 62, near the TNT Area. It was early morning when he saw a large, greyish figure standing in a field before it suddenly lifted straight into the air and flew over his car.

• 26 November: Ruth Foster of St. Albans reported having sighted the Mothman standing in her yard near her porch. Interestingly, her description of the Mothman was similar to that of Richard West.

• 27 November: Connie Carpenter reported seeing a greyish bird-like humanoid figure standing on the golf course near Mason when she was on her way home from church before it too flew away.

• 4 December: Five pilots at Gallipolis airport in Ohio reportedly saw a giant grey bird flying at about 70mph. Its wings were not moving and it had a longish neck.

By late 1966, the number of reported Mothman sightings were steadily dwindling. In fact, official reports of Mothman sightings were few and far between, especially after the collapse of the Silver Bridge at Point Pleasant on 15 December 1967. Intriguingly, it was only after the Silver Bridge’s collapse that Mothman sightings extended beyond the borders of Point Pleasant. Mothman sightings began emerging from different parts of the world, along with a disturbing pattern of sightings occurring just before or at major disasters and tragedies.

Return of the Mothman?

Although John Keel’s 1975 book “The Mothman Prophecies” and a Richard Gere movie of the same name helped to further the legend of this winged beast, in reality there were no further reported sightings of the Mothman after 1968.

John Keel’s 1975 book “The Mothman Prophecies”

That is, until 20 November 2016 when an unidentified man came forward and released to local news station, WCHS, photographs of what he believed to be the Mothman, taken while he was driving on State Route 2. The station proceeded to air the pictures on 21 November 2016.

As the images were rather grainy and merely showed the silhouette of a two-legged, winged creature flying over the tree tops, some sceptics questioned their authenticity, especially given that the timing of their release was very close to the 50^th anniversary of the Mothman myth.

Some have even ventured the opinion that the 2016 photographs were produced with the intention of generating hype and drawing attention to the anniversary.

Alleged picture of the Mothman captured in November 2016

Possible Theories and Explanations

The Mothman has invoked as many explanations as there are sightings, ranging from the scientific to the radical. The following are but some of the more popular explanations bandied about by sceptics and believers alike:

• Barn owl: When fully extended, the wingspan of these owls makes them appear larger than they actually are. Their eyes can also appear to be mounted on headless torsos and do reflect a distinctly eerie red when lights shine on them. Thus, many have tried to dismiss the Mothman myth as mistaken sightings of barn owls.

• Mutated crane: This theory stems from the nature of the Mothman’s lair i.e. the TNT area which is believed to still house secret chemicals. Proponents of this theory claim that the Mothman arose when a crane came into contact with these chemicals and was accidentally subjected to genetic mutation.

• Secret experiment: The Mothman has been said to be the result of a top secret government experiment at a secret laboratory within the labyrinthine TNT area. This theory has been further compounded with reports of the infamous “Men in Black” visiting witnesses who reported sightings of the Mothman.

• Aliens: This theory garnered much attention in view of paranormal researcher John Keel’s compilation of strange phenomenon which accompanied sightings of the Mothman. These phenomenon were commonly associated with UFO folklore, such as mysterious energy fields, glowing orbs, weird animal behaviour, disappearances, technological failures, loss of time, and the anonymous “Men in Black”. Many were also swayed by this theory due to the fact that the residents of Point Pleasant were victims of electrical problems.

• Messenger of Doom: In light of the disasters and tragedies that occurred whenever the Mothman made its appearance, it has been speculated that the creature was either predicting the disastrous events or the one causing them.

Mothman: Messenger of Doom?

The Fascination with the Mothman Enigma Continues…

It is unlikely that the Mothman phenomenon will fade away anytime soon. Regardless of whether you believe in its existence or otherwise, the Mothman is likely to continue attracting public curiosity and attention as can be seen in the following examples:

Mothman Statue

Mothman statue

In 2003, a 12-foot-tall steel statue of the Mothman, created by artist and sculptor Bob Roach, was unveiled.

The installation of this statue pretty much guarantees that the Mothman will be sticking around for quite a while, at least as a tourist attraction in Point Pleasant.

Address
Fourth St.,
Point Pleasant,
West Virginia 25550.

Mothman Festival

The allure of the Mothman culminated in Point Pleasant holding its first Annual Mothman Festival in 2002. It is a two-day event held on the 3^rd weekend of September. The festival takes place in the heart of Point Pleasant on historic Main Street, where the famous Mothman Statue and Mothman Museum are.

Festivities include talks by guest speakers, vendor exhibitions, a mothman pancake-eating contest, and hayride tours focusing on notable areas of Point Pleasant.

Mothman Museum

Located right next to the Mothman Statue, the Mothman Museum first opened its doors to the public in 2005. It is a one of a kind museum dedicated to all things related to the Mothman. It is open seven days a week (excluding gazetted major holidays in America) and boasts of having the largest collection of props and memorabilia from the movie “The Mothman Prophecies”. It also houses a souvenir store and operates an online store for those who wish to lay their hands on Mothman memorabilia.

The only Mothman Museum in the world

One of the many Mothman replicas greeting you at the entrance to the Mothman Museum

The souvernir store at the Mothman Museum

Address
400 Main Street,
Point Pleasant,
West Virginia 25550.

The Mothman Museum is located just off Interstate 35, less than 1 mile from the Point Pleasant exit. You can also look for the Mothman Museum highway signs at the Point Pleasant exits.

Admission Fees

• Adults: USD3.00
• Children (10 years old and under): USD 1.00

Operation Hours

• Monday-Friday 12:00 pm – 5:00 pm
• Saturday 11:00 am – 5:00 pm
• Sunday 12:00pm – 5:00 pm

The following are just some of the exhibits at the Mothman Museums.

Original police depositions handwritten by eyewitnesses, documenting their respective encounters with the Mothman

Mothman memorabilia

Movie memorabilia and props that were used in the filming of the Mothman Prophecies by Sony Pictures.

Photos and materials from rare vintage archives about the Mothman phenomenon that haunted Point Pleasant almost 50 years ago.

 
Source/References:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mothman
• http://www.mothmanmuseum.com/
• http://www.snopes.com/mothman-returns-to-point-pleasant-west-virginia/
• http://wchstv.com/news/local/man-photographs-creature-that-resembles-legendary-mothman-of-point-pleasant
• http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/mothman-statue
• http://www.qsl.net/w5www/mothman.html
• http://skepdic.com/mothman.html
• http://www.ufoevidence.org/documents/doc1703.htm
• http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/12036
• http://www.alternativeinsight.com/Mothman.html
• http://cryptidz.wikia.com/wiki/Mothman