11-26-1966

Is Mysterious Creature Balloon Or Crane?

The Athens Messenger
Athens, OH
Sunday, November 26, 1966

Point Pleasant - Rumors are flying through Mason County faster than the "thing," which has been spoted by several people in various locations.

The "thing" is described as being six feet tall, soars with a pair of wings with a 10-foot span, has red eyes six inches apart and leaves a print like a hoof mark.

Two young married couples first spotted the "thing" Tuesday night in a 10,000-acre section east of Point Pleasant. The sector contains the McClintic Wildlife Sanctuary and and abandoned government TNT plant.

Since that time the flying creature has been seen in various parts of West Virginia and Ohio. Each description contains the phrase "red eyes, six inches apart."

The thing has caused a sudden interest in the remote TNT plant area and nightly motorists plow bumper-to-bumper over the dusty, dirt roads in hopes of spotting the creature.

Monday morning quarterbacks have taken three approaches to the sightings. They either laugh at the sighters, give theories about the creature or they contend they've seen it themselves.

The latest theory about the creature was advanced by Dr. Robert Smith, associate professor of biology at West Virginia University. Smith said the descriptions of the creature fit that of the huge sandhill crane.

Smith said the crane stands six feet or better, has a huge wing span and has red forehead feathers.

However, Ohio University Zoology department officials gave a different view concerning the sandhill crane theory.

Ohio U. officials said there has never been a known sighting of a sandhill crane in this part of the country.

In his book, "The Sandhill Cranes," Lawrence H. Walkinshaw, says the crane normally inhabits the plains of _____ and the flat country o_____ Michigan, Minnesota, _____sin and the Dakotas.

The birds migrate e_____ to the Gulf Coast, bu_____ grate down the Missippii Valley. Like some other birds, the crane migrates at night.

The sandhill drane is grey-brown in color and has a red forehead.

Members of the Proctorville-Fairland High School Science Interest Club have another theory. Students of the Lawrence County school say the creature could be one of the two gas filled balloons they've released to study air currents.

The 4 x 7 balloons were released about 30 miles west of (missing approximately 25 words)

poke," a member of the heron family.

Others contend the creature could be one of the wild geese, which live on the ponds of the wildlife sanctuary. The geese stand about two and a half to three feet tall.

One man said the description fit his "mother-in-law exactly, especially the red eyes, six-inches apart."

Another Point Pleasant man said the creature is something from the moon, chased down to earth by recent moon launch-_____

_____es who first _____Mr. and Mrs. _____nd Mr. and _____e, disagreed _____ theory about the sandhill crane.

After viewing a picture of the bird, one of them commented, "My God, that's not the thing we saw. This thing could never chase us as it did."

Mrs. Mallette said, "I just wish Dr. Smith could see the thing."

The "thing" appeared in a road near an abandoned power plant at the TNT facility. The four spotted the "thing" five different times as it chased them at speeds of 100 miles an hour toward Point Pleasant.

One thing for certain, the remote, lonely roads in the TNT area aren't suited for late night astronomy studies now and the sweethearts of the area are up in arms.