The Flatwoods Monster
A bizarre creature, later known as the Flatwoods Monster, allegedly appeared in Braxton County, West Virginia one night in 1952 and since then, it has become one of the most fascinating mysteries of the paranormal world. Although it appeared one fall night and never returned, it has remained a mystery and engrained in local culture for over half a century. Why? Let’s find out.
It all began on September 12, 1952, when two brothers and their friends, boys at the time, were playing football and noticed a bright light in the sky. They described it as a kind of fireball that seemed to crash nearby. Being a group of intrepid boys, they wanted to explore. So, two of them grabbed their mom, 32-year-old Kathleen May, a beautician, and they also picked up some more friends. A newly minted National Guardsmen, just 17 at the time, also joined the party. They headed up the hill to where they thought the crash site would be.
When they reached the hill they saw what they described as a flying saucer that had landed at the top. Then, standing at a staggering 10 feet tall and shrouded in a strange mist laced with a metallic scent was a monster. It was green-but whether it was its skin or a strange bodysuit with a cowl is unknown. It had a strangely shaped roundish face that was totally red, and eyes that were huge and glowed orange-yellow like searchlights. It also appeared to be wearing some kind of large, voluminous skirt. Some witnesses said it had claws, but others did not remark on it. As mentioned, it was surrounded by mist but the stunned spectators couldn't agree on if the monster was actually floating, or if it was merely a distortion caused by the mist. The creature saw them hissed, and began gliding toward them. They, understandably, fled to go and get help and alert the local authorities.
Shortly after, the sheriff and a deputy made their way up the same hill but found nothing major aside from a sickening metallic smell, two large skid marks, and trampled grass. They were there, interestingly enough, because of reports of a downed aircraft in the area. But was it a downed aircraft…or a flying saucer?
The morning after the event, the field editor of the Braxton Democrat visited the site himself, news of the encounter traveling like wildfire. When he arrived, he discovered “skid marks” and “an odd, gummy deposit”
For weeks after, the group that had made the first approach had a strange collection of symptoms like nausea, irritation to their throat and sinuses, and even convulsions. Oddly enough, this reaction is in line with mild mustard gas exposure. Those who want to believe cling to this fact because whether or not it was a monster...the group was definitely exposed to something harmful to humans.
While locals hoped the event was just a strange blip and they’d move on with their normal lives soon…this would not happen. In fact, quite the opposite. The incident garnered attention on both local and national news, causing alarm among a broader population. Subsequently, it triggered an investigation by the U.S. Air Force into the UFO phenomenon, conducted as part of Project Blue Book.
But what was the Flatwoods Monster? Some believed it was just a trick of the light, local airplane beacons, and a haunting barn owl on a strange branch. It’s believed there are many similarities such as the head shape, claws, and the hiss and gliding movement.
Others choose to believe that the Flatwoods Monster really was an alien that crash-landed on our planet and got away. Others believed that while the monster was likely an alien, it did escape. Instead, the mist and smells emanating from the scene were the creature and its aircraft literally evaporating in our atmosphere and that’s why no proof was left behind.
The story of the Flatwoods Monster is certainly intriguing, but it remains one of the many unsolved mysteries of the paranormal world. While we may never know for sure what happened that night in 1952, the legend of the creature lives on and continues to captivate the imaginations of people all around the world.
The blog feature image is of Flatwoods, West Virginia depicting the sign and monument. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license. it was taken by Don Woods.
Thanks to WV Unseen Paranormal for this blogstonishing suggestion!