What Is A Mothman?

What is a mothman? There is no shortage of creepy beasts in American legends. In fact, their folklore seems to thrive on the abundance of fantastic creatures and horrifying monsters, from Bigfoot to the chupacabra. What is a mothman? Taking its place as one of the most popular, and yet also the most disturbing, is the Mothman. In this article, you’ll learn what is a mothman?

First Reported Sighting

What is a mothman? This monster was first reportedly seen on November 12, 1966, in Clendenin, West Virginia. A group of five grave diggers were working when they saw something that couldn’t be explained away. A vaguely human creature with huge brown wings appeared and lifted off from the nearby trees.

Three days later, a couple out driving through the TNT area at night saw the creature too. Frightened, they sped up to over 100 miles an hour, but the creature easily kept up and continued to tail them until they reach town. They reported this to the town’s deputy sheriff Millard Halstead.

The next day, Deputy Halstead and the couple held a press conference to share the news, and the strange creature was dubbed the Mothman. By the end of the night, another sighting was reported within the TNT area, when Marcella Bennett was driving to her friend’s house.

Bennett was just getting out of her car carrying her baby when she saw the creature creeping forward from the shadows. In her shock, she dropped her baby, but she quickly recovered and ran inside and locked the door. It was reported that the Mothman still walked up to the front porch and peered inside, though it was gone when the police arrived. From then on, there were plenty of reports of the Mothman terrorizing the residents.

Humanoid Creature

The Mothman is described as a humanoid creature with glowing red eyes and giant moth wings. Said to be over 7 feet tall, its wingspan is estimated to be at least 10 feet in length. Some describe the Mothman as having a very small head closely connected to its body, with no neck to speak of. Some even said that the Mothman had no head, and its two eyes just protrude above his torso. Headless or not, the accounts agree that the Mothman’s eyes very big and creepy.

Its flying capabilities became a point of defense for those saying that the Mothman was indeed real. It was, after all, able to deftly weave between forest areas and shoot straight to the sky quickly, something that even now is still beyond our own current capabilities with tech like solo-flight jet-packs. For this reason, many believe that the appearance of the Mothman couldn’t have been a mere prank.

Origin Theories

Many people believe that the Mothman was an alien. After all, its first sighting was during the dawn of space flights. During this era, there were plenty of reported UFO sightings and conspiracies. It’s no wonder that the story of the Mothman spread as quickly as it did.

Additionally, before the appearance of the Mothman, there was a report regarding the Grinning Man. It happened on November 22, 1966, merely 10 days before the Mothman sighting. Woodrow Derenberger was driving in West Virginia when he was pulled over by a vehicle he thought to be a car. However, upon closer inspection when he got out of his own car, he realized that the vehicle was a strange contraption resembling a “kerosene lamp chimney.”

Grinning Man

From this contraption came a figure he thought to be a man, wearing a coat of metallic blue color. According to Woodrow, the man said it meant no harm—which wouldn’t have been as disturbing as it was were it not for a small detail: the man’s lips weren’t moving at all. He was grinning, hence the name the Grinning Man.

The man introduced himself as Indrid Cold and told Woodrow that he came from another galaxy. They talked for about 10 minutes, after which Cold instructed Woodrow to report their encounter to the authorities. The latter did so, and his account was corroborated by witnesses who indeed saw him talking to a strange man and were able to describe the contraption from which it came.

Aside from the alien angle, there’s also the theory that the Mothman was a mutated monster. Thought beastly and scary, it was said that the Mothman was very much of this Earth. Its appearance was the result of mutations via chemicals left over in the TNT area back in World War II.

The Mothman and the Silver Bridge

The Silver Bridge collapsed on December 15, 1967, more than a full year after the first sighting of the Mothman. Before and during this terrible event, many reported to have seen the Mothman atop the bridge. This tragedy led to the death of 46 people as their cars tumbled down to the river below.  This was the last time the Mothman was seen in Point Pleasant. From that point on, sightings of the Mothman coincided with tragic events.