Neil Rosenstech
From a Sasquatch lurking in the woods of Northwest Louisiana, to a feral girl roaming Catahoula Parish, to aliens in Pascagoula, the Gulf Coast region has encountered its fair share of bizarre, and often inexplicable, monster sightings. In the spirit of Halloween, here are some of the more notable—and bone-chilling—cryptid encounters that have been reported from the piney forests and murky swamps of our mysterious state (perhaps not far from your own backyard).
Bigfoot in Louisiana
Is Bigfoot really in Louisiana?
The "Wild Woman of Dugdemona" and other Sasquatch encounters
“The creature is said to have a humanoid face, stands between 6 and 8 feet tall, is covered in dark or reddish hair, and smells to high heaven. Bigfoot tracks usually have five toes, but researchers claim that in Northwest Louisiana and East Texas they often have three toes, with one bulbous big toe and two smaller ones.”
Bigfoot,The Historical Record
Sightings of giant, hairy, bipedal animals predate the modern era
“Although within easy range, the hunter decided to capture the Wild Man rather than shoot him. It was a bad idea. According to the newspaper, ‘The wild man . . . bounded upon him, dragged him from the saddle and tore him in a dreadful manner, gouging one of his eyes, and biting a large piece out of his shoulder. He then threw the saddle and bridle from the horse and mounted. He set off for the mountains at full speed, guiding the horse with a piece of sapling.’”
—Terry L. Jones
The Honey Island Swamp Monster
Prey of a Different Kind
In a remote corner of Honey Island Swamp, two sportsmen made a controversial discovery
"Ford never stopped searching for the monster but retreated from the public eye following the criticism. His wife Yvonne found a video he recorded in the attic after his death in 1980, grainy 8 mm footage of what looks like a large man covered in hair, walking behind rows of trees in the foreground. The family also found a letter Ford wrote describing his encounters, clearly meant for publication but boxed up along with plaster casts and the video footage. If Ford invented the swamp monster for notoriety or hunting rights, why did he hide the majority of his evidence?"
—Meghan Holmes
Rougarous and Sackabillies
Of Myths and Legends
Rougarous, Loup-garous, and sackabillies, too
“I might have left the likes of the loup-garou in childhood had Betsy not become our nextdoor neighbor. Betsy’s childhood bug-a-boo was the Sackabilly, a creature her grandmother Mae said lurked in the Pensacola night. Mae was intentionally vague when it came to describing the Sackabilly. She liked misbehaving children to provide their own horrific details. Someone bad moving around in the night with a sack was a good start.”
—Ed Cullen
Wild People of the Woods
The Wild Girl of Catahoula
Newspapers in the late nineteenth century frequently reported on a mysterious Louisiana figure known as the “Wild Girl of Catahoula”
“Much like today’s Bigfoot sightings, newspapers in the late nineteenth century frequently reported on a mysterious Louisiana figure known as the 'Wild Girl of Catahoula.' No one ever discovered the Wild Girl’s identity, although some speculated she was the abandoned child of a Gypsy woman who once lived in the area with two young girls. One of the children was reportedly deformed, and the Wild Girl’s footprints indicated she had a club foot.”
—Terry L. Jones
Louisiana's Wild Men
For whatever reason, reports of feral humans were somewhat common in the nineteenth century.
"Fletcher claimed that Bettie McCrew and her little brother were walking on the road when they saw a nude man standing nearby. The wild man screamed when he spotted the siblings and ran into the woods. Later in the day another man spotted him again on the same road and gave chase but lost him in the woods. Apparently, the stranger was never seen again, and the newspaper reported, “Whether the man is a lunatic, or some wild human being, no one knows.”"
—Terry L. Jones
Sea Monsters
Sea Serpents of the Gulf
Nessie's Southern cousins
“An early sea serpent sighting occurred during the Civil War when Union forces occupied Ship Island, Mississippi. Maj. H. P. Ritzius was part of the garrison and recalled how eight 'monster fish' swam into the harbor during the summer of 1864.”
—Terry L. Jones
Aliens in Pascagoula
Illustration by Burton Durand
The Pascagoula Abduction
Nearly 50 years after becoming one of the most credible alien abductees in history, Calvin Parker shares his story
“There was three bulky-lookin’ creatures, I still didn’t know what they were, that was coming toward us. By the time they got to us, I still couldn’t see, for the light was so bright.” Parker described two of the creatures grabbing Hickson, and one grabbing him. “And that’s when it carried me aboard the craft.”
—Alexandra Kennon
The Chupacabra
Illustration by David Norwood
Chupacabra Macabre
Reputed to suck goats’ blood, leaving dried husks, the chupacabra’s diet varies with cows, sheep, horses, pets—anything its fangs can puncture.
"So here we are, betwixt chupacabras migrating from east and west with a rumor of a chupacabra shot in Woodville, Mississippi, followed by a shooting in Simpson County substantiated by photos of the body and close ups of its double canine fangs. Current sightings range from Maine to Chile. Knowing no boundaries and seeing the world as their metaphorical oyster to suck, they’re now reported in Russia and the Philippines."
—Lucille Hume
Southern Vampires
The Evolution of the Modern Vampire
A taste of the apotropaic in the South
"A woman screams, shrill vibrations skipping into the night like a deftly tossed stone over water. Night swallows one man, and then another, like low hanging fruit, leaving the rest of the pack in a confused panic. The woman screams again, visible now under dancing light as she flees some violent scene, her clothing ripped to the level of exposure proportionate to standards of the time. In the aftermath, someone suggests vampirism, a condition dripping with superstition and misfortune, and repeats it, but none of them are reliable witnesses."
—Andrea Blumenstein
Vampire Kits
Are There Vampires in the Felicianas? If so, at least one local is ready.
"One fine wooden chest of Latin American origin, said to have been owned by author Anne Rice, is now in the St. Francisville area, fully equipped with dogwood stakes and mallet, silver dagger, small double-barrel pistol made in Buenos Aries with two silver bullets, holy water, two Bibles, two crucifixes, a rosary, mirror and other tools for dealing with vampires."
—Anne Butler
