WEBVTT FILE 1 00:00:02.000 --> 00:00:07.000 Downloaded from YTS.MX 2 00:00:06.240 --> 00:00:07.758 In the American South 3 00:00:07.800 --> 00:00:09.408 where the wilderness stretches wide 4 00:00:08.000 --> 00:00:13.000 Official YIFY movies site: YTS.MX 5 00:00:09.450 --> 00:00:11.598 and the land holds its secrets close, 6 00:00:11.640 --> 00:00:13.188 stories of strange encounters 7 00:00:13.230 --> 00:00:15.528 have been passed down for generations. 8 00:00:15.570 --> 00:00:17.778 From the Appalachian mountains of Georgia 9 00:00:17.820 --> 00:00:19.788 to the shadowy swamps of Florida, 10 00:00:19.830 --> 00:00:23.358 these places harbor mysteries that defy explanation. 11 00:00:23.400 --> 00:00:26.868 Bigfoot, an ancient legend in the Appalachian woods, 12 00:00:26.910 --> 00:00:29.958 the skunk ape lurking in Florida swamps, 13 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:33.828 the strange tale of the Georgia Werewolf Girl, 14 00:00:33.870 --> 00:00:36.438 the ghostly white thing of Alabama. 15 00:00:36.480 --> 00:00:40.758 And in Arkansas, the massive shadowy Fouke monster. 16 00:00:40.800 --> 00:00:43.578 These creatures glimpse by only a few challenge the line 17 00:00:43.620 --> 00:00:45.093 between myth and reality. 18 00:00:46.020 --> 00:00:48.258 Are these encounters mere legend 19 00:00:48.300 --> 00:00:51.138 or could there be a truth hidden deep in the wild? 20 00:00:51.180 --> 00:00:54.318 Mysteries of the southern wild, Bigfoot and beyond. 21 00:00:54.360 --> 00:00:57.168 The unknown is out there waiting to be discovered. 22 00:01:00.300 --> 00:01:01.848 The first European 23 00:01:01.890 --> 00:01:04.068 in the new world to talk about 24 00:01:04.110 --> 00:01:08.178 what might have been Sasquatch or Bigfoot was Lee Erickson. 25 00:01:08.220 --> 00:01:12.018 There were giant hairy men that were supposedly peaceful, 26 00:01:12.060 --> 00:01:13.278 but very strange. 27 00:01:13.320 --> 00:01:16.758 And every culture has fed into that somewhat 28 00:01:16.800 --> 00:01:18.768 with unexplained stories. 29 00:01:18.810 --> 00:01:21.168 It's when history can't capture it, 30 00:01:21.210 --> 00:01:22.965 when religion can't capture it, 31 00:01:23.007 --> 00:01:25.488 and when science can't capture it, 32 00:01:25.530 --> 00:01:27.483 then folklore and legend does. 33 00:01:31.260 --> 00:01:34.638 Dr. Jeffery Wells is an eighth generation Georgian. 34 00:01:34.680 --> 00:01:36.918 He received his bachelor's degree in history 35 00:01:36.960 --> 00:01:38.748 from the University of Georgia. 36 00:01:38.790 --> 00:01:40.518 He graduated cum laude. 37 00:01:40.560 --> 00:01:42.528 He received his master's degree in history 38 00:01:42.570 --> 00:01:45.798 from Georgia College and State University in Milledgeville, 39 00:01:45.840 --> 00:01:48.138 and he earned his doctors of education 40 00:01:48.180 --> 00:01:51.618 from the American College of Education in Leadership. 41 00:01:51.660 --> 00:01:54.708 Dr. Wells is the author of "Bigfoot in Georgia" 42 00:01:54.750 --> 00:01:56.298 and "The Atlanta Ripper." 43 00:01:56.340 --> 00:01:58.308 Some of the most frightening stories 44 00:01:58.350 --> 00:02:02.658 that have ever been told have been told about encounters 45 00:02:02.700 --> 00:02:05.268 with what people now call the skunk ape. 46 00:02:05.310 --> 00:02:08.028 You could tell automatically, and they call it that 47 00:02:08.070 --> 00:02:11.448 because of the foul odor, but that's also a characteristic 48 00:02:11.490 --> 00:02:13.788 that you find in all of the literature. 49 00:02:13.830 --> 00:02:15.948 And even when you go back into history 50 00:02:15.990 --> 00:02:17.928 and look at the history of folklore 51 00:02:17.970 --> 00:02:22.128 and legend, especially in the South, they smell really bad. 52 00:02:22.170 --> 00:02:23.718 The skunk ape has been cited 53 00:02:23.760 --> 00:02:25.818 primarily in Florida swamps 54 00:02:25.860 --> 00:02:28.038 and is often described as a tall, 55 00:02:28.080 --> 00:02:32.418 hairy creature resembling an ape with a distinct foul odor. 56 00:02:32.460 --> 00:02:36.198 Local lore and eyewitness accounts depict the skunk ape 57 00:02:36.240 --> 00:02:38.748 as a reclusive nocturnal being. 58 00:02:38.790 --> 00:02:41.958 Despite skepticism, a collection of video 59 00:02:42.000 --> 00:02:45.798 and photographic evidence continues to fuel the debate, 60 00:02:45.840 --> 00:02:48.168 offering tantalizing glimpses 61 00:02:48.210 --> 00:02:52.278 of what might lurk in the shadows of Florida's wilderness. 62 00:02:52.320 --> 00:02:57.320 Some of the best video and photographs that we have 63 00:02:57.510 --> 00:03:01.668 of these alleged creatures and this phenomenon 64 00:03:01.710 --> 00:03:03.288 are of the skunk ape 65 00:03:03.330 --> 00:03:05.598 and some of the most frightening stories 66 00:03:05.640 --> 00:03:09.948 that have ever been told have been told about encounters 67 00:03:09.990 --> 00:03:12.468 with what people now call the skunk ape. 68 00:03:12.510 --> 00:03:15.198 You could tell automatically, and they call it that 69 00:03:15.240 --> 00:03:18.618 because of the foul odor, but that's also a characteristic 70 00:03:18.660 --> 00:03:20.808 that you find in all of the literature. 71 00:03:20.850 --> 00:03:23.748 And I could tell a lot of the people who come close to them, 72 00:03:23.790 --> 00:03:25.548 I could tell why, because they say 73 00:03:25.590 --> 00:03:27.768 that they're covered in long hair. 74 00:03:27.810 --> 00:03:29.568 You know, I don't necessarily think 75 00:03:29.610 --> 00:03:32.358 that they have truck stops with showers where, you know, 76 00:03:32.400 --> 00:03:35.658 Bigfoot Sasquatch, the skunk ape can get a key go in 77 00:03:35.700 --> 00:03:37.758 and take a shower, you know what I mean? 78 00:03:37.800 --> 00:03:40.218 So living in the environments 79 00:03:40.260 --> 00:03:42.168 in which they have been reportedly sighted, 80 00:03:42.210 --> 00:03:44.718 I can imagine that they smell bad. 81 00:03:44.760 --> 00:03:46.818 And most of your wild animals out there 82 00:03:46.860 --> 00:03:48.168 carry a certain odor, 83 00:03:48.210 --> 00:03:51.198 even white-tailed deer are not the most pleasant-smelling 84 00:03:51.240 --> 00:03:53.358 when you get right up to them. 85 00:03:53.400 --> 00:03:56.556 But the skunk ape is said to be a little smaller. 86 00:03:56.598 --> 00:04:00.168 I've read some of the stuff that some of the, 87 00:04:00.210 --> 00:04:02.373 I would call scholars in the field 88 00:04:02.415 --> 00:04:06.378 when they talk about this, such as Dr. Jeff Meldrum 89 00:04:06.420 --> 00:04:08.178 and others who've investigated this, 90 00:04:08.220 --> 00:04:11.658 have said there is some variation in size. 91 00:04:11.700 --> 00:04:14.658 Southern Sasquatches, the Southern phenomenon 92 00:04:14.700 --> 00:04:17.328 tends to be a little different. 93 00:04:17.370 --> 00:04:20.898 There's some issues with toes and the morphology, 94 00:04:20.940 --> 00:04:23.928 and of course, the environment in which they live. 95 00:04:23.970 --> 00:04:26.088 In Georgia, a lot of the sightings 96 00:04:26.130 --> 00:04:29.178 tend to happen in the mountainous regions of Georgia. 97 00:04:29.220 --> 00:04:32.538 And we know in Florida, there are just are no mountains. 98 00:04:32.580 --> 00:04:35.658 So this would be more of a swamp animal 99 00:04:35.700 --> 00:04:37.278 if this animal does exist. 100 00:04:37.320 --> 00:04:39.438 This is a creature that has been born and bred 101 00:04:39.480 --> 00:04:41.613 and still lives and breeds in the swamp. 102 00:04:42.480 --> 00:04:44.658 Now, these animals, according to those 103 00:04:44.700 --> 00:04:49.038 who investigate deeply, like my friend Matt Pruitt, say 104 00:04:49.080 --> 00:04:51.048 that they do travel along waterways 105 00:04:51.090 --> 00:04:53.208 because that naturally is where they're going to be able 106 00:04:53.250 --> 00:04:54.978 to drink and find food. 107 00:04:55.020 --> 00:04:57.618 But they also tromp into places 108 00:04:57.660 --> 00:05:01.038 that might not necessarily be that close to water, 109 00:05:01.080 --> 00:05:04.368 such as farmland and places like that 110 00:05:04.410 --> 00:05:06.948 because they can find plants 111 00:05:06.990 --> 00:05:10.038 and things like that, some subsistence there. 112 00:05:10.080 --> 00:05:13.947 The skunk ape also tends to scare the living you know what 113 00:05:13.989 --> 00:05:17.838 out of people who see it because of its appearance. 114 00:05:17.880 --> 00:05:19.308 And some have even said 115 00:05:19.350 --> 00:05:23.238 that it has a very distinctly primate type appearance. 116 00:05:23.280 --> 00:05:27.528 Some people have described it almost like a giant baboon. 117 00:05:27.570 --> 00:05:31.638 Some people have described it almost like a giant orangutan. 118 00:05:31.680 --> 00:05:35.268 Don't know specifically if any of that's valid. 119 00:05:35.310 --> 00:05:37.338 The one of the scariest stories, I think 120 00:05:37.380 --> 00:05:39.048 that was told about an encounter 121 00:05:39.090 --> 00:05:42.528 with the skunk ape was a family that went out 122 00:05:42.570 --> 00:05:44.538 basically looking for this animal, 123 00:05:44.580 --> 00:05:47.958 just I guess you would call, not for kicks, 124 00:05:48.000 --> 00:05:51.198 but just out of just true curiosity. 125 00:05:51.240 --> 00:05:53.268 And they got separated 126 00:05:53.310 --> 00:05:57.768 and the young man actually was out in the swampy area, 127 00:05:57.810 --> 00:06:01.908 in the densely forested area of where they were traveling 128 00:06:01.950 --> 00:06:03.378 and where they were looking. 129 00:06:03.420 --> 00:06:05.928 And he came face to face with this animal. 130 00:06:05.970 --> 00:06:07.578 It stood up and there it was. 131 00:06:07.620 --> 00:06:10.788 And so he got so frightened, he yells and runs 132 00:06:10.830 --> 00:06:13.368 and the father tries to find where he is. 133 00:06:13.410 --> 00:06:15.468 And for a few minutes, the father said 134 00:06:15.510 --> 00:06:17.928 that he didn't really think his son would survive that, 135 00:06:17.970 --> 00:06:19.998 because if that's what it was, 136 00:06:20.040 --> 00:06:22.758 these animals have been said to be territorial 137 00:06:22.800 --> 00:06:24.408 and very dangerous. 138 00:06:24.450 --> 00:06:25.428 And that's something else 139 00:06:25.470 --> 00:06:28.188 that I've read a lot about sightings. 140 00:06:28.230 --> 00:06:30.978 And some of the experts, like Dr. Meldrum 141 00:06:31.020 --> 00:06:33.498 and others have said that, you know, 142 00:06:33.540 --> 00:06:35.928 they are territorial in the sense that they will try 143 00:06:35.970 --> 00:06:38.508 to move you away from where they are. 144 00:06:38.550 --> 00:06:40.878 They do not want that encroachment. 145 00:06:40.920 --> 00:06:44.613 They do not want competition for food sources. 146 00:06:44.768 --> 00:06:45.799 They do not.. 147 00:06:45.919 --> 00:06:47.448 They just don't wanna be bothered. 148 00:06:47.490 --> 00:06:50.118 And so in a lot of instances, they will do things 149 00:06:50.160 --> 00:06:52.458 to scare you rather than attack. 150 00:06:52.500 --> 00:06:55.188 But the skunk ape is not the only beast 151 00:06:55.230 --> 00:06:57.318 that's been spotted in the south. 152 00:06:57.360 --> 00:06:59.748 In the heart of Southern Arkansas. 153 00:06:59.790 --> 00:07:01.638 Near the small town of Fouke, 154 00:07:01.680 --> 00:07:04.068 a legend has lingered for decades. 155 00:07:04.110 --> 00:07:08.208 The Fouke monster, also known as the Boggy Creek Monster, 156 00:07:08.250 --> 00:07:09.918 is said to roam the swamps 157 00:07:09.960 --> 00:07:12.678 and dense woods surrounding the town. 158 00:07:12.720 --> 00:07:15.228 Described as a massive ape-like creature covered 159 00:07:15.270 --> 00:07:16.548 in dark shaggy hair, 160 00:07:16.590 --> 00:07:18.948 the Fouke monster has become one of the most 161 00:07:18.990 --> 00:07:21.048 well-known cryptics in the South. 162 00:07:21.090 --> 00:07:23.688 First gaining national attention In 1971, 163 00:07:23.730 --> 00:07:25.848 the creature was thrust into the spotlight 164 00:07:25.890 --> 00:07:27.978 when a local family claimed to have been attacked 165 00:07:28.020 --> 00:07:29.808 by something terrifying. 166 00:07:29.850 --> 00:07:32.598 The family described a seven foot tall humanoid figure 167 00:07:32.640 --> 00:07:35.208 with glowing eyes and an overpowering stench 168 00:07:35.250 --> 00:07:37.248 that stalked their property. 169 00:07:37.290 --> 00:07:38.388 Rattling the windows, 170 00:07:38.430 --> 00:07:41.088 and even attempting to break into their house. 171 00:07:41.130 --> 00:07:43.338 When they fled, the creature reportedly 172 00:07:43.380 --> 00:07:46.638 left behind large three towed tracks. 173 00:07:46.680 --> 00:07:48.558 This was not the first sighting. 174 00:07:48.600 --> 00:07:50.448 For years, residents of Fouke 175 00:07:50.490 --> 00:07:54.318 had spoken in hushed tones about encounters in the woods. 176 00:07:54.360 --> 00:07:56.748 And along the banks of Boggy Creek. 177 00:07:56.790 --> 00:07:59.298 Hunters, fishermen, and travelers alike 178 00:07:59.340 --> 00:08:02.838 had all claimed to see the creature, always at dusk 179 00:08:02.880 --> 00:08:06.558 just before dawn, as it moves silently through the trees. 180 00:08:06.600 --> 00:08:10.488 Despite the numerous sightings, no one has ever been able 181 00:08:10.530 --> 00:08:12.168 to capture the Fouke monster. 182 00:08:12.210 --> 00:08:14.628 Still, the legend grew, especially 183 00:08:14.670 --> 00:08:17.206 after the release of the 1972 Cult Classic film, 184 00:08:17.248 --> 00:08:20.898 "The Legend of Boggy Creek," which dramatized the events 185 00:08:20.940 --> 00:08:24.318 and sparked nationwide interest in the mysterious creature. 186 00:08:24.360 --> 00:08:27.768 While skeptic dismiss it as a misidentified bear 187 00:08:27.810 --> 00:08:30.948 or a figment of the imagination, many who have lived 188 00:08:30.990 --> 00:08:34.188 in Fouke swear there is something still moves in the shadows 189 00:08:34.230 --> 00:08:35.748 of Boggy Creek. 190 00:08:35.790 --> 00:08:37.938 An elusive creature that has managed 191 00:08:37.980 --> 00:08:40.068 to stay just out of reach. 192 00:08:40.110 --> 00:08:41.778 The Crompton Booger is one 193 00:08:41.820 --> 00:08:43.998 that is quite unique in Georgia. 194 00:08:44.040 --> 00:08:45.498 So the way the story goes, 195 00:08:45.540 --> 00:08:47.838 and a good friend of mine, Matt Pruitt, who used to be 196 00:08:47.880 --> 00:08:50.568 with the BFRO, I don't know if he is anymore or not, 197 00:08:50.610 --> 00:08:52.728 and he's written extensively 198 00:08:52.770 --> 00:08:57.108 and done lots of guest appearances about his research 199 00:08:57.150 --> 00:08:59.058 into this phenomenon that he grew up 200 00:08:59.100 --> 00:09:01.518 and was raised in that area, white county 201 00:09:01.560 --> 00:09:05.688 and that vicinity where you have Sasquatch sightings, 202 00:09:05.730 --> 00:09:09.468 you have reports coming in from something weird 203 00:09:09.510 --> 00:09:11.718 in those woods up there in the mountains. 204 00:09:11.760 --> 00:09:14.988 So he was kind of raised around the corner 205 00:09:15.030 --> 00:09:17.028 from Bigfoot country or right in the middle of it. 206 00:09:17.070 --> 00:09:19.278 I don't know, it depends on where he was. 207 00:09:19.320 --> 00:09:21.228 But he left that area 208 00:09:21.270 --> 00:09:26.270 and moved to the Pacific Northwest just to do more research. 209 00:09:26.550 --> 00:09:29.538 That's ground zero for American Sasquatch tree. 210 00:09:29.580 --> 00:09:34.278 But what happened in 1961, according to the report, 211 00:09:34.320 --> 00:09:37.908 is some children were playing in the yard. 212 00:09:37.950 --> 00:09:41.478 The mother had moved in back in with her parents 213 00:09:41.520 --> 00:09:43.218 and brought her children along, 214 00:09:43.260 --> 00:09:45.318 I can't remember if she'd gone through a divorce 215 00:09:45.360 --> 00:09:46.968 or the father had passed. 216 00:09:47.010 --> 00:09:49.188 But at any rate, the father was not with them 217 00:09:49.230 --> 00:09:52.878 and was not present in the home during that time. 218 00:09:52.920 --> 00:09:54.798 Well, this home, like a lot of homes 219 00:09:54.840 --> 00:09:57.018 that were built in the early 1900s, 220 00:09:57.060 --> 00:09:59.538 and during the World War II era, 221 00:09:59.580 --> 00:10:02.148 it was built up on bricks. 222 00:10:02.190 --> 00:10:05.808 And so there was a big area underneath the home. 223 00:10:05.850 --> 00:10:09.348 My great-grandmother's house was the same way. 224 00:10:09.390 --> 00:10:11.148 The difference is my great-grandmother 225 00:10:11.190 --> 00:10:12.318 didn't have a basement. 226 00:10:12.360 --> 00:10:14.058 This house did. 227 00:10:14.100 --> 00:10:16.608 Well, the basement was somewhat open, 228 00:10:16.650 --> 00:10:19.578 and from the report, apparently you could see 229 00:10:19.620 --> 00:10:21.978 from the bottom in through to the basement. 230 00:10:22.020 --> 00:10:25.308 There was an opening of some sorts where you could see. 231 00:10:25.350 --> 00:10:28.998 So these kids were out playing out and about, 232 00:10:29.040 --> 00:10:33.078 and one day underneath the house, several of them noticed 233 00:10:33.120 --> 00:10:37.878 that there was a gorilla-like animal underneath, 234 00:10:37.920 --> 00:10:40.578 and it was smiling at them. 235 00:10:40.620 --> 00:10:42.168 And then when it got darker 236 00:10:42.210 --> 00:10:45.873 or it went into the dark, it had red glowing eyes. 237 00:10:46.740 --> 00:10:48.798 So they were a little frightened, 238 00:10:48.840 --> 00:10:52.068 but the smile tended to calm them down a little bit. 239 00:10:52.110 --> 00:10:53.958 But one of the things 240 00:10:54.000 --> 00:10:58.368 that happened later on was they found tracks 241 00:10:58.410 --> 00:10:59.568 near the home. 242 00:10:59.610 --> 00:11:01.368 And this was in a rural area, 243 00:11:01.410 --> 00:11:04.968 so I imagine there was probably some farmland around it. 244 00:11:05.010 --> 00:11:07.248 Well, apparently, it had been stealing apples 245 00:11:07.290 --> 00:11:10.728 off their apple tree on that farm or in that area, 246 00:11:10.770 --> 00:11:14.628 and they found the core of the apple near the footprints. 247 00:11:14.670 --> 00:11:16.885 So on my blog, I actually said, you know, 248 00:11:16.927 --> 00:11:21.018 "How dare he not at least reimburse them for their apples? 249 00:11:21.060 --> 00:11:25.008 You know, they're hard to grow in many places." 250 00:11:25.050 --> 00:11:29.583 So the other thing is, is it would steal eggs. 251 00:11:30.450 --> 00:11:32.808 And it stayed under the house off and on. 252 00:11:32.850 --> 00:11:34.758 There were multiple sightings, 253 00:11:34.800 --> 00:11:37.308 and they called it the Crompton Booger. 254 00:11:37.350 --> 00:11:41.028 Booger is the name that was assigned back in those days 255 00:11:41.070 --> 00:11:43.008 to anything that might scare you 256 00:11:43.050 --> 00:11:46.188 that looked like a wooly animal. 257 00:11:46.230 --> 00:11:48.708 They would call it a wooly booger, 258 00:11:48.750 --> 00:11:51.708 or they would call it a devil, 259 00:11:51.750 --> 00:11:54.348 or a hant, a demon. 260 00:11:54.390 --> 00:11:57.018 If you go all around the south, it's so interesting. 261 00:11:57.060 --> 00:11:59.658 You're going to find roads called, 262 00:11:59.700 --> 00:12:02.478 or areas called Booger holler 263 00:12:02.520 --> 00:12:08.675 or booger run, booger road or demon run, or devil's hollow. 264 00:12:08.880 --> 00:12:12.198 And a lot of times it's because of this phenomenon, 265 00:12:12.240 --> 00:12:13.968 it's what people have seen. 266 00:12:14.010 --> 00:12:18.138 And so I suspect those kids probably got a fright 267 00:12:18.180 --> 00:12:20.598 and a good time all in one summer. 268 00:12:20.640 --> 00:12:23.388 I can tell you that the most frightening part of this 269 00:12:23.430 --> 00:12:26.988 is that these children would tell the mother 270 00:12:27.030 --> 00:12:28.068 and the grandparents 271 00:12:28.110 --> 00:12:31.728 that it would look in the window at night in their bedrooms 272 00:12:31.770 --> 00:12:33.588 and in parts of the house. 273 00:12:33.630 --> 00:12:35.988 Although they never said that it tried to break in 274 00:12:36.030 --> 00:12:38.358 or do them any harm, I would imagine 275 00:12:38.400 --> 00:12:40.728 that based on what I've read here in this report, 276 00:12:40.770 --> 00:12:43.098 it was probably just curious. 277 00:12:43.140 --> 00:12:45.318 One thing to note that I have pulled out 278 00:12:45.360 --> 00:12:50.328 of some of these reports is that in a lot of instances, 279 00:12:50.370 --> 00:12:53.088 these animals tend to be amused by children 280 00:12:53.130 --> 00:12:55.248 or either protective of them. 281 00:12:55.290 --> 00:12:57.318 So I don't necessarily know 282 00:12:57.360 --> 00:12:59.328 if they were any in any true danger 283 00:12:59.370 --> 00:13:02.928 if this is all authentic, but if I were a parent, 284 00:13:02.970 --> 00:13:05.268 I certainly wouldn't take my chances. 285 00:13:05.310 --> 00:13:08.628 Now, Mr. Pruitt, who investigated this, was able to talk 286 00:13:08.670 --> 00:13:12.408 to one of those children about 10 or 12 years ago 287 00:13:12.450 --> 00:13:13.968 as an adult. 288 00:13:14.010 --> 00:13:17.418 And he said that the gentleman still had a very good memory 289 00:13:17.460 --> 00:13:19.128 and was able to talk about it 290 00:13:19.170 --> 00:13:21.513 as if it just happened recently. 291 00:13:23.460 --> 00:13:25.428 The South is a land rich with his history 292 00:13:25.470 --> 00:13:27.528 and lore where stories are passed down 293 00:13:27.570 --> 00:13:29.538 from generation to generation. 294 00:13:29.580 --> 00:13:32.358 For every legend of Bigfoot or the skunk ape, 295 00:13:32.400 --> 00:13:34.398 there are true encounters that continue 296 00:13:34.440 --> 00:13:36.498 to haunt those who've lived through them. 297 00:13:36.540 --> 00:13:39.048 One such account comes from the remote mountains 298 00:13:39.090 --> 00:13:42.288 of North Georgia in the early 1970s 299 00:13:42.330 --> 00:13:45.138 where a lone woodsman claimed he came face-to-face 300 00:13:45.180 --> 00:13:46.833 with something unexplainable. 301 00:13:47.850 --> 00:13:49.518 He was no stranger to the wilderness, 302 00:13:49.560 --> 00:13:52.098 spending his days working in the forest. 303 00:13:52.140 --> 00:13:55.398 Logging, hunting, and surviving off the land. 304 00:13:55.440 --> 00:13:59.148 But one evening, just before dusk, while returning 305 00:13:59.190 --> 00:14:02.328 to his cabin near the Chattahoochee National Forest, 306 00:14:02.370 --> 00:14:04.698 he noticed movement in the trees. 307 00:14:04.740 --> 00:14:08.568 What he saw next left him frozen in place, 308 00:14:08.610 --> 00:14:12.078 a massive hair covered figure standing upright 309 00:14:12.120 --> 00:14:14.568 silently watching from the shadows. 310 00:14:14.610 --> 00:14:17.028 The creature stood over seven feet tall, 311 00:14:17.070 --> 00:14:20.058 its eyes gleaming faintly in the dying light. 312 00:14:20.100 --> 00:14:23.208 The woodsman clutching his rifle, watched as a creature, 313 00:14:23.250 --> 00:14:26.448 simply turned and melted back into the forest, 314 00:14:26.490 --> 00:14:29.238 leaving behind only a trail of enormous footprints 315 00:14:29.280 --> 00:14:30.978 in the soft dirt. 316 00:14:31.020 --> 00:14:34.368 When he reported the encounter, it was met with doubt, 317 00:14:34.410 --> 00:14:35.808 but he wasn't the only one 318 00:14:35.850 --> 00:14:38.868 who had seen something unusual in those woods. 319 00:14:38.910 --> 00:14:41.688 Over the years, others had reported strange sightings 320 00:14:41.730 --> 00:14:45.198 in the same area, mysterious figures seen at dusk, 321 00:14:45.240 --> 00:14:48.948 never fully understood and never quite forgotten. 322 00:14:48.990 --> 00:14:50.868 These stories, whether believed or not, 323 00:14:50.910 --> 00:14:53.268 remind us that the south holds secrets, 324 00:14:53.310 --> 00:14:54.978 secrets that linger in the spaces 325 00:14:55.020 --> 00:14:57.978 between the known and the unknown. 326 00:14:58.020 --> 00:15:01.518 For those who experience such moments, they become part 327 00:15:01.560 --> 00:15:04.398 of the landscape just as real as the mountains 328 00:15:04.440 --> 00:15:06.113 and the forest themselves. 329 00:15:08.760 --> 00:15:12.048 So this is called the Legend of the Georgia Werewolf Girl, 330 00:15:12.090 --> 00:15:16.548 and her name was Emily Isabella Burt, B-U-R-T. 331 00:15:16.590 --> 00:15:19.300 And this takes place down in southwest Georgia 332 00:15:20.442 --> 00:15:22.278 in a county called Talbot County. 333 00:15:22.320 --> 00:15:24.798 The county seat is Talbotton. 334 00:15:24.840 --> 00:15:26.958 It's a small rural area of Georgia, 335 00:15:27.000 --> 00:15:31.218 and was even more so back in the mid-1800s, 336 00:15:31.260 --> 00:15:32.718 the mid-19th century. 337 00:15:32.760 --> 00:15:35.928 Now, this community today has about 5,500 people. 338 00:15:35.970 --> 00:15:39.648 But it's right next door, not far from Columbus, Georgia. 339 00:15:39.690 --> 00:15:41.598 And that's one of your larger cities in Georgia 340 00:15:41.640 --> 00:15:44.718 of about 200,000 people, roughly the size, if you will, 341 00:15:44.760 --> 00:15:46.338 of Montgomery, Alabama. 342 00:15:46.380 --> 00:15:49.248 And the metropolitan area in Columbus 343 00:15:49.290 --> 00:15:52.098 spills over into Phoenix City, Alabama 344 00:15:52.140 --> 00:15:54.888 and gets you up pretty close to Talbot, Georgia. 345 00:15:54.930 --> 00:15:58.248 So about 300,000 people live in that area. 346 00:15:58.290 --> 00:16:00.768 But back in that day, it was sparsely populated 347 00:16:00.810 --> 00:16:03.588 and the Burt family was a well-to-do family, 348 00:16:03.630 --> 00:16:07.668 they owned a lot of farmland, they had means. 349 00:16:07.710 --> 00:16:11.778 But in 1847, the patriarch of that family, 350 00:16:11.820 --> 00:16:16.758 Joel Burt passed away in his 40s. 351 00:16:16.800 --> 00:16:19.758 Well, he left a widow who was 37 years old, 352 00:16:19.800 --> 00:16:21.978 and her name was Mildred Burt. 353 00:16:22.020 --> 00:16:23.598 And he left four children. 354 00:16:23.640 --> 00:16:26.328 There was Joel, who was named after him, the only son. 355 00:16:26.370 --> 00:16:30.138 There was Emily, also called Emmie, E-M-M-I-E. 356 00:16:30.180 --> 00:16:31.278 There was Sarah, 357 00:16:31.320 --> 00:16:34.548 and then there was Mildred named after her mother. 358 00:16:34.590 --> 00:16:36.258 There are some conflicting stories 359 00:16:36.300 --> 00:16:38.058 about what all this family did. 360 00:16:38.100 --> 00:16:40.908 There's one story that says that all of those children, 361 00:16:40.950 --> 00:16:43.068 Joel, Mildred, Sarah, and Emmie 362 00:16:43.110 --> 00:16:45.318 were sent to Europe for school. 363 00:16:45.360 --> 00:16:48.858 Another part of the story says only Emmie was sent to Europe 364 00:16:48.900 --> 00:16:53.028 to Paris because she suffered from lycanthrope 365 00:16:53.070 --> 00:16:55.818 which is like werewolf-like syndromes. 366 00:16:55.860 --> 00:16:58.758 Banging at the moon, large canine teeth, 367 00:16:58.800 --> 00:17:01.068 some hairy issues, problems with hair, 368 00:17:01.110 --> 00:17:03.588 and prowling around in the midst of the night 369 00:17:03.630 --> 00:17:05.733 attacking things you ought not to attack. 370 00:17:06.870 --> 00:17:09.288 So you see how the legend in folklore 371 00:17:09.330 --> 00:17:11.658 kinda rocks back and forth. 372 00:17:11.700 --> 00:17:15.738 Well, about the middle of the 1800s when Emily was, 373 00:17:15.780 --> 00:17:20.028 or Emmie was a young woman, one of her sisters' beaus, 374 00:17:20.070 --> 00:17:23.448 boyfriend, whose name was George, 375 00:17:23.490 --> 00:17:26.868 came and told the family that he was having some problems 376 00:17:26.910 --> 00:17:30.708 with his sheep, that some animal was attacking his sheep 377 00:17:30.750 --> 00:17:33.138 in the middle of the night and he was losing livestock. 378 00:17:33.180 --> 00:17:36.498 Now, that would be almost like taking our cars 379 00:17:36.540 --> 00:17:38.088 where we could not get to work 380 00:17:38.130 --> 00:17:41.328 or our technology where we could not remote in. 381 00:17:41.370 --> 00:17:44.358 Back in the day, if you stole a man's horse, 382 00:17:44.400 --> 00:17:46.578 that was almost like taking his livelihood. 383 00:17:46.620 --> 00:17:51.228 So now something is directly attacking the actual livestock. 384 00:17:51.270 --> 00:17:54.558 And eventually over time, the story unfolded 385 00:17:54.600 --> 00:17:59.178 where it was not only sheep being attacked, it was cattle. 386 00:17:59.220 --> 00:18:01.638 So as he talked to the Burt family, 387 00:18:01.680 --> 00:18:04.038 and now keep in mind the father's dead. 388 00:18:04.080 --> 00:18:06.064 Emmie was only like six or seven years old 389 00:18:06.106 --> 00:18:07.968 when her father died. 390 00:18:08.010 --> 00:18:09.978 And she was not the oldest 391 00:18:10.020 --> 00:18:14.058 nor the youngest in the family of the siblings. 392 00:18:14.100 --> 00:18:15.858 They all got very concerned. 393 00:18:15.900 --> 00:18:18.978 As a matter of fact, the matriarch Mildred Burt wondered 394 00:18:19.020 --> 00:18:22.158 what was this animal that was causing all this problems? 395 00:18:22.200 --> 00:18:24.768 And in her estate, in her husband's estate, 396 00:18:24.810 --> 00:18:28.518 he had also bequeathed her a fair amount of firearms, 397 00:18:28.560 --> 00:18:33.560 which I mean in the south and in the 1800s sure, I mean, 398 00:18:33.780 --> 00:18:36.618 farmers and hunters, it's pretty common. 399 00:18:36.660 --> 00:18:39.918 So she decided to arm herself 400 00:18:39.960 --> 00:18:43.218 and figure this thing out as well. 401 00:18:43.260 --> 00:18:46.818 Meanwhile, Emmie, Emily Burt, 402 00:18:46.860 --> 00:18:51.860 had an uncanny interest in reading about the supernatural. 403 00:18:51.930 --> 00:18:55.098 And she enjoyed all of the stories that were told 404 00:18:55.140 --> 00:18:59.418 and was very curious about what this animal was herself. 405 00:18:59.460 --> 00:19:03.858 She also suffered from long canine teeth, bushy eyebrows, 406 00:19:03.900 --> 00:19:06.228 very dark hair which they said she inherited 407 00:19:06.270 --> 00:19:07.353 from her father. 408 00:19:09.090 --> 00:19:11.928 The sharp canine teeth, which I believe 409 00:19:11.970 --> 00:19:15.978 to be an exaggeration, that not withstanding, 410 00:19:16.020 --> 00:19:18.513 but bushy eyebrows and dark colored hair, 411 00:19:19.410 --> 00:19:20.838 very common, very common. 412 00:19:20.880 --> 00:19:23.898 And I've seen a picture of her as a young woman, 413 00:19:23.940 --> 00:19:26.988 and I can't really make out bushy eyebrows. 414 00:19:27.030 --> 00:19:30.108 And the hair doesn't look extraordinarily dark. 415 00:19:30.150 --> 00:19:33.318 But we do know that in the south, you know, 416 00:19:33.360 --> 00:19:36.258 there was a lot of mixed ancestry with Native Americans, 417 00:19:36.300 --> 00:19:38.208 and you have mixed ancestry 418 00:19:38.250 --> 00:19:40.818 amongst it with African Americans, dark hair 419 00:19:40.860 --> 00:19:44.388 amongst whites was not all that uncommon. 420 00:19:44.430 --> 00:19:46.848 And they just said, you know, 421 00:19:46.890 --> 00:19:49.858 the folklores tell us that she inherited that 422 00:19:49.900 --> 00:19:52.038 from her father, 423 00:19:52.080 --> 00:19:54.618 but she also suffered from something else that was strange. 424 00:19:54.660 --> 00:19:57.918 She suffered from restless nights where she liked to get up 425 00:19:57.960 --> 00:20:02.598 and wander around in the dark, in the woods. 426 00:20:02.640 --> 00:20:06.648 So her mother gave her an elixir that was filled with opium, 427 00:20:06.690 --> 00:20:08.523 but that didn't cure everything. 428 00:20:09.390 --> 00:20:13.398 So over the next few months, 429 00:20:13.440 --> 00:20:16.488 they got together, the boyfriend, 430 00:20:16.530 --> 00:20:20.388 the sister's beau, got together a local posse. 431 00:20:20.430 --> 00:20:23.028 They're all armed and they're going out to stop 432 00:20:23.070 --> 00:20:25.848 whatever this is, is killing livestock. 433 00:20:25.890 --> 00:20:29.358 Because it begins to happen to other farmers. 434 00:20:29.400 --> 00:20:33.378 Now, none of them suspect at that time, from what I've read, 435 00:20:33.420 --> 00:20:35.538 that it was anything supernatural 436 00:20:35.580 --> 00:20:38.568 or that there was a werewolf in the woods. 437 00:20:38.610 --> 00:20:41.118 So one night, apparently, 438 00:20:41.160 --> 00:20:43.368 they're out hunting whatever this is, 439 00:20:43.410 --> 00:20:47.568 tracking it, and in the midst they see this large upright 440 00:20:47.610 --> 00:20:50.388 wolf-like character creature 441 00:20:50.430 --> 00:20:53.538 with a human-like face growling, standing 442 00:20:53.580 --> 00:20:57.348 and towering, you know, above the landscape. 443 00:20:57.390 --> 00:20:59.388 So they open fire. 444 00:20:59.430 --> 00:21:00.438 Two stories here. 445 00:21:00.480 --> 00:21:02.568 One, the hand gets blown off. 446 00:21:02.610 --> 00:21:03.828 I believe it's the left hand, 447 00:21:03.870 --> 00:21:06.648 the other one the hand is just injured. 448 00:21:06.690 --> 00:21:10.488 Well, it howls and screams loudly, runs off. 449 00:21:10.530 --> 00:21:13.323 But later that day when the sun comes up, 450 00:21:14.310 --> 00:21:18.138 Mrs. Mildred Burt, her mother, finds Emily 451 00:21:18.180 --> 00:21:21.498 with two stories here, a missing left hand, 452 00:21:21.540 --> 00:21:23.688 which in my mind is probably not true 453 00:21:23.730 --> 00:21:27.048 because she would have bled to death, more than likely. 454 00:21:27.090 --> 00:21:29.118 The other story, which sounds more plausible, 455 00:21:29.160 --> 00:21:31.008 just bullet wounds. 456 00:21:31.050 --> 00:21:34.308 So they wrap it up, take her to a local doctor. 457 00:21:34.350 --> 00:21:38.508 And he tells them supposedly about a doctor in Europe, 458 00:21:38.550 --> 00:21:41.358 in Paris who could treat like lycanthrope. 459 00:21:41.400 --> 00:21:43.938 Now keep in mind that Mrs. Mildred Burt 460 00:21:43.980 --> 00:21:47.088 had taken her child, Emily Burt previously 461 00:21:47.130 --> 00:21:50.088 to a local dentist, according to the story, 462 00:21:50.130 --> 00:21:53.148 to see what he could do about those canine teeth. 463 00:21:53.190 --> 00:21:54.678 And he told them there was really nothing 464 00:21:54.720 --> 00:21:56.508 they could do about them. 465 00:21:56.550 --> 00:21:58.488 So the medical community 466 00:21:58.530 --> 00:22:01.668 seems to kind of have been involved in this too. 467 00:22:01.710 --> 00:22:04.248 So all of a sudden Emily goes missing. 468 00:22:04.290 --> 00:22:05.568 And when people ask, 469 00:22:05.610 --> 00:22:09.108 she's in Paris visiting French relatives. 470 00:22:09.150 --> 00:22:11.020 Now I taught with a young man 471 00:22:12.722 --> 00:22:14.298 who was a distant cousin of the Burke family. 472 00:22:14.340 --> 00:22:16.398 And he said, this legend has been told 473 00:22:16.440 --> 00:22:18.918 for years in their family. 474 00:22:18.960 --> 00:22:21.948 And it's the legend of Emily Burt, 475 00:22:21.990 --> 00:22:23.898 the Georgia Werewolf Girl. 476 00:22:23.940 --> 00:22:26.598 She lived to be about 70 years old. 477 00:22:26.640 --> 00:22:31.638 She comes back from Europe, from Paris, her mother dies 478 00:22:31.680 --> 00:22:33.918 in the late 1800s 479 00:22:33.960 --> 00:22:36.768 And a couple of her siblings die before she dies. 480 00:22:36.810 --> 00:22:41.388 And so she moves in with her sister in Marietta, 481 00:22:41.430 --> 00:22:44.928 the widowed Mildred, the namesake of the mother. 482 00:22:44.970 --> 00:22:47.088 And there she dies and they bring her home 483 00:22:47.130 --> 00:22:50.238 back to Talbot County, near Woodland, Georgia, 484 00:22:50.280 --> 00:22:53.718 between two communities out in the rural area 485 00:22:53.760 --> 00:22:56.718 and they bury her in a family cemetery 486 00:22:56.760 --> 00:23:00.078 where, well there are several families in that cemetery. 487 00:23:00.120 --> 00:23:02.748 Now, you know as well as I do in the south, 488 00:23:02.790 --> 00:23:06.588 cemeteries are considered to be sacred ground. 489 00:23:06.630 --> 00:23:10.188 Anyone who's cursed, vampires, werewolves, 490 00:23:10.230 --> 00:23:14.058 demonic possession, they can't be buried in those places. 491 00:23:14.100 --> 00:23:15.768 But she certainly was. 492 00:23:15.810 --> 00:23:19.728 And she was a woman of means owned about 300 acres of land. 493 00:23:19.770 --> 00:23:23.088 When she died, her estate was fairly sizable. 494 00:23:23.130 --> 00:23:26.268 And her monument, you can tell they spent money. 495 00:23:26.310 --> 00:23:29.448 So they were fairly well off she was when she died. 496 00:23:29.490 --> 00:23:31.098 So they brought her back from Marietta 497 00:23:31.140 --> 00:23:34.218 and buried her on sacred ground. 498 00:23:34.260 --> 00:23:37.308 And nowhere has there ever been any mention 499 00:23:37.350 --> 00:23:40.998 that Emily Burt was a mean vicious person 500 00:23:41.040 --> 00:23:44.808 or that she was not well respected in that community. 501 00:23:44.850 --> 00:23:47.928 Every report that we've read, all of the obituaries, 502 00:23:47.970 --> 00:23:50.778 the news articles, she was very well-rounded. 503 00:23:50.820 --> 00:23:54.453 She was very well-read and she was very well-respected. 504 00:23:55.350 --> 00:23:56.958 Another part of the story goes 505 00:23:57.000 --> 00:23:58.878 that when the posse was out hunting, 506 00:23:58.920 --> 00:24:01.428 they actually went to an old man. 507 00:24:01.470 --> 00:24:05.808 It's always an old man who was from Eastern Europe. 508 00:24:05.850 --> 00:24:08.808 Now that's where Transylvania is from in Romania, right? 509 00:24:08.850 --> 00:24:11.898 So you already got the vampires in this thing 510 00:24:11.940 --> 00:24:15.558 and supposedly, he knew what this was. 511 00:24:15.600 --> 00:24:17.328 And he said, "This is a lichen trope 512 00:24:17.370 --> 00:24:19.098 and here's how you deal with it. 513 00:24:19.140 --> 00:24:20.868 Take some of your silverware 514 00:24:20.910 --> 00:24:24.138 and your silver jewelry, melt it down." 515 00:24:24.180 --> 00:24:25.975 Stephen King would've loved it. 516 00:24:26.017 --> 00:24:28.968 "Melt it down, create silver bullets, shoot, 517 00:24:29.010 --> 00:24:30.588 and you've got him." 518 00:24:30.630 --> 00:24:34.998 It'll kill the person and it'll kill the animal two in one. 519 00:24:35.040 --> 00:24:39.858 So what do we have to make of this story? 520 00:24:39.900 --> 00:24:43.548 Have no idea how this started, none whatsoever, 521 00:24:43.590 --> 00:24:47.718 but it has become somewhat injurious to the Burt family. 522 00:24:47.760 --> 00:24:49.698 In the early 2000s, a group 523 00:24:49.740 --> 00:24:55.286 called the Southeastern Paranormal Research Institute, SPRI, 524 00:24:55.638 --> 00:24:59.118 they investigated and pretty much came to the conclusion 525 00:24:59.160 --> 00:25:01.038 that this was all pure myth and legend, 526 00:25:01.080 --> 00:25:02.538 that none of this was true. 527 00:25:02.580 --> 00:25:06.258 There's no evidence of Emily Burt being a werewolf. 528 00:25:06.300 --> 00:25:09.528 And they've even adopted the Owen's Cemetery 529 00:25:09.570 --> 00:25:12.078 where she's buried and cleaned it up. 530 00:25:12.120 --> 00:25:14.228 And I don't know if they still has have a presence there 531 00:25:14.270 --> 00:25:16.668 or not, but they did a good deed. 532 00:25:16.710 --> 00:25:18.828 But after researching this, 533 00:25:18.870 --> 00:25:21.168 they concluded, there's nothing to see here. 534 00:25:21.210 --> 00:25:22.908 We'll move along. 535 00:25:22.950 --> 00:25:24.828 People still continue to question 536 00:25:24.870 --> 00:25:27.918 that conclusion because they wanna know, 537 00:25:27.960 --> 00:25:31.128 why did she go missing for a certain period of time, 538 00:25:31.170 --> 00:25:35.118 who would've created a story about werewolves? 539 00:25:35.160 --> 00:25:38.598 Back in that day, werewolves in the American South, 540 00:25:38.640 --> 00:25:43.638 werewolf folklore, it didn't quite saturate the landscape 541 00:25:43.680 --> 00:25:45.678 like other tall tales did. 542 00:25:45.720 --> 00:25:48.228 Yes, you do have some creatures of the night, 543 00:25:48.270 --> 00:25:51.228 creatures in the woods, and as we've said before, 544 00:25:51.270 --> 00:25:53.508 you have Sasquatch and Bigfoot sightings 545 00:25:53.550 --> 00:25:54.648 that go all the way back 546 00:25:54.690 --> 00:25:59.088 into that area of time and in that area of space. 547 00:25:59.130 --> 00:26:02.718 But you know, where did that come from? 548 00:26:02.760 --> 00:26:07.488 You know, why all of a sudden did this take place 549 00:26:07.530 --> 00:26:11.448 and envelop the life of Emily Isabella Burt? 550 00:26:11.490 --> 00:26:14.118 What happened in that family to give rise 551 00:26:14.160 --> 00:26:15.948 to this kind of legend? 552 00:26:15.990 --> 00:26:19.428 Was there actually some sort of creature, 553 00:26:19.470 --> 00:26:22.128 supernatural or natural, it doesn't matter. 554 00:26:22.170 --> 00:26:24.948 Stealing and maiming the livestock? 555 00:26:24.990 --> 00:26:27.738 The cemetery today is on private property. 556 00:26:27.780 --> 00:26:30.738 So if you go to try to visit, be aware of the fact 557 00:26:30.780 --> 00:26:33.708 that is it's private property and be respectful. 558 00:26:33.750 --> 00:26:35.988 But that is one of the most enduring legends 559 00:26:36.031 --> 00:26:37.684 in Georgia folklore. 560 00:26:38.910 --> 00:26:41.598 In the quiet backwoods of Northern Alabama, 561 00:26:41.640 --> 00:26:45.618 there's a story that has been for generations. 562 00:26:45.660 --> 00:26:49.368 It's a tale of something that haunts the forest and hills. 563 00:26:49.410 --> 00:26:53.028 Something too strange to fit neatly into local folklore. 564 00:26:53.070 --> 00:26:55.308 They call it the white thing. 565 00:26:55.350 --> 00:26:58.698 A creature so elusive that its existence has been debated 566 00:26:58.740 --> 00:27:00.618 for over a century. 567 00:27:00.660 --> 00:27:02.598 Reports of the white thing stretch back 568 00:27:02.640 --> 00:27:04.608 as far as anyone can remember. 569 00:27:04.650 --> 00:27:06.558 Some say it's an animal, 570 00:27:06.600 --> 00:27:08.658 others claim it's more human-like 571 00:27:08.700 --> 00:27:10.938 covered in thick snow, white fur. 572 00:27:10.980 --> 00:27:13.698 It's always seen from a distance darting through the trees 573 00:27:13.740 --> 00:27:15.168 or standing motionless at the edge 574 00:27:15.210 --> 00:27:18.858 of the forest disappearing before anyone can get too close. 575 00:27:18.900 --> 00:27:20.508 The first documented encounters 576 00:27:20.550 --> 00:27:22.608 came from the late 1800s. 577 00:27:22.650 --> 00:27:25.758 Farmers in the hills of northern Alabama would tell stories 578 00:27:25.800 --> 00:27:28.818 of a large ghostly figure that moved like a predator, 579 00:27:28.860 --> 00:27:31.368 yet was eerily silent. 580 00:27:31.410 --> 00:27:32.688 Livestock would go missing 581 00:27:32.730 --> 00:27:35.718 and strange howls would echo through the night. 582 00:27:35.760 --> 00:27:39.948 In one particularly chilling account from the early 1900s, 583 00:27:39.990 --> 00:27:42.048 a farmer claimed to have come face-to-face 584 00:27:42.090 --> 00:27:44.748 with a creature while hunting near his property. 585 00:27:44.790 --> 00:27:48.738 He described it as over seven feet tall, standing upright 586 00:27:48.780 --> 00:27:50.298 and covered with fur. 587 00:27:50.340 --> 00:27:53.388 So white it was almost blended into the moonlight, 588 00:27:53.430 --> 00:27:55.788 but it wasn't just the size that frightened him, 589 00:27:55.871 --> 00:27:57.056 it was the way it moved. 590 00:27:57.960 --> 00:28:00.648 Over the years, sightings have continued. 591 00:28:00.690 --> 00:28:02.658 Each as frightening as the last, 592 00:28:02.700 --> 00:28:05.658 and each adding a new layer to the mystery. 593 00:28:05.700 --> 00:28:07.248 Some describe the white thing 594 00:28:07.290 --> 00:28:09.828 as an oversized wolf standing on all fours, 595 00:28:09.870 --> 00:28:12.978 but moving with unnatural speed in silence. 596 00:28:13.020 --> 00:28:15.438 Others say it walks upright like a man, 597 00:28:15.480 --> 00:28:19.008 but with features far too animalistic to be human. 598 00:28:19.050 --> 00:28:20.328 There are even those who claim 599 00:28:20.370 --> 00:28:22.458 to have heard the white things howl. 600 00:28:22.500 --> 00:28:24.348 A high pitch scream that cuts 601 00:28:24.390 --> 00:28:27.168 through the night air sending shivers down the spine 602 00:28:27.210 --> 00:28:29.508 of anyone unlucky enough to hear it. 603 00:28:29.550 --> 00:28:33.018 Witnesses described it as the scream of a woman twisted 604 00:28:33.060 --> 00:28:35.658 and distorted into something unnatural. 605 00:28:35.700 --> 00:28:37.968 But when search parties follow the sound 606 00:28:38.010 --> 00:28:40.728 into the woods, they find nothing. 607 00:28:40.770 --> 00:28:42.408 Despite the ongoing reports, 608 00:28:42.450 --> 00:28:46.218 the white thing has never been caught or photographed. 609 00:28:46.260 --> 00:28:50.178 It remains a creature of shadows seen only in brief moments 610 00:28:50.220 --> 00:28:52.428 and always just out of reach. 611 00:28:52.470 --> 00:28:55.608 Some locals believe it's a spirit, a ghostly figure 612 00:28:55.650 --> 00:28:57.558 that protects the woods. 613 00:28:57.600 --> 00:29:00.708 Others think it's a rare unknown species that has managed 614 00:29:00.750 --> 00:29:03.588 to avoid detection for all these years. 615 00:29:03.630 --> 00:29:07.248 Whatever it is, the white thing has cemented itself 616 00:29:07.290 --> 00:29:09.648 in folklore of northern Alabama. 617 00:29:09.690 --> 00:29:13.338 It's more than just a cryptid, it's part of the landscape. 618 00:29:13.380 --> 00:29:17.238 It's much a part of these woods as the trees and the hills. 619 00:29:17.280 --> 00:29:19.938 As long as there are people living in these quiet corners 620 00:29:19.980 --> 00:29:23.088 of the south, the stories will continue. 621 00:29:23.130 --> 00:29:26.958 Whispers of a creature that roams the night always seen 622 00:29:27.000 --> 00:29:28.653 but never fully understood. 623 00:29:29.550 --> 00:29:31.278 The south is full of mysteries, 624 00:29:31.320 --> 00:29:33.498 but fewer is enduring as a white thing. 625 00:29:33.540 --> 00:29:37.248 Whether a ghost an animal or something else entirely, 626 00:29:37.290 --> 00:29:39.468 it remains one of the most elusive figures 627 00:29:39.510 --> 00:29:40.878 in southern folklore. 628 00:29:40.920 --> 00:29:43.758 Seen, heard, and feared by generations 629 00:29:43.800 --> 00:29:45.243 who call this place home. 630 00:29:46.530 --> 00:29:47.778 Bigfoot. 631 00:29:47.820 --> 00:29:50.298 Long whispered to roam the shadowy forest 632 00:29:50.340 --> 00:29:53.418 of the Pacific Northwest has also been spotted 633 00:29:53.460 --> 00:29:55.398 in the wilderness of Georgia 634 00:29:55.440 --> 00:29:58.698 deep in the heart of the peach state where the pines tower 635 00:29:58.740 --> 00:30:01.128 and the river's murmur secrets, 636 00:30:01.170 --> 00:30:04.308 a new chapter in the Bigfoot saga emerges 637 00:30:04.350 --> 00:30:07.818 In the rural part of Georgia in Macon County 638 00:30:07.860 --> 00:30:10.068 and the county seat there is Montezuma 639 00:30:10.110 --> 00:30:11.808 and it's over in the southwest portion 640 00:30:11.850 --> 00:30:14.538 of the state going toward Albany and Columbus 641 00:30:14.580 --> 00:30:16.548 and that region of Georgia. 642 00:30:16.590 --> 00:30:20.058 There comes a sighting, there comes a report. 643 00:30:20.100 --> 00:30:23.208 A gentleman and his father and the owner of the property 644 00:30:23.250 --> 00:30:26.718 where the sighting took place are involved. 645 00:30:26.760 --> 00:30:29.718 And this was also on the Bigfoot field research 646 00:30:29.760 --> 00:30:33.618 organization, otherwise known as BFRO website. 647 00:30:33.660 --> 00:30:36.318 And it was researched by another gentleman that I know, 648 00:30:36.360 --> 00:30:40.788 David Bakara who actually owns the Bigfoot Museum, 649 00:30:40.830 --> 00:30:44.468 Bigfoot Expedition Museum up in Cherry Log, Georgia, 650 00:30:44.510 --> 00:30:45.738 in the North Georgia Mountains 651 00:30:45.780 --> 00:30:48.588 not far from Blue Ridge and Ellijay. 652 00:30:48.630 --> 00:30:52.698 And David researched this, spoke with the individual 653 00:30:52.740 --> 00:30:56.328 who was there and first saw it. 654 00:30:56.370 --> 00:30:58.068 So this man and his father 655 00:30:58.110 --> 00:31:00.610 and the property owner were barbecuing a hog 656 00:31:01.560 --> 00:31:03.138 in mid-afternoon. 657 00:31:03.180 --> 00:31:05.688 And this gentleman who made the report looks up 658 00:31:05.730 --> 00:31:09.738 and in up on the ridge, he sees 659 00:31:09.780 --> 00:31:12.978 what looks like a creature that he would later on describe 660 00:31:13.020 --> 00:31:15.108 as a bigfoot-like creature. 661 00:31:15.150 --> 00:31:17.358 So he signals to his father 662 00:31:17.400 --> 00:31:19.875 and he signals to the property owner and he points it out 663 00:31:19.917 --> 00:31:22.518 and the property owner basically says, "Oh yeah, 664 00:31:22.560 --> 00:31:25.548 I see him on the property all the time." 665 00:31:25.590 --> 00:31:27.828 And as they start talking about it 666 00:31:27.870 --> 00:31:30.528 and get kind of distracted by what they're doing there, 667 00:31:30.570 --> 00:31:32.448 and then they look back up, it's gone. 668 00:31:32.490 --> 00:31:35.718 The report also goes on to say 669 00:31:35.760 --> 00:31:38.448 that they didn't hear it come up, 670 00:31:38.490 --> 00:31:40.818 nor did they hear it leave. 671 00:31:40.860 --> 00:31:45.708 And the area where he was was surrounded by pasture 672 00:31:45.750 --> 00:31:50.058 and fields where livestock are raised. 673 00:31:50.100 --> 00:31:53.058 And so it's kind of interesting, 674 00:31:53.100 --> 00:31:56.088 they were barbecuing a hug, which is a very common thing 675 00:31:56.130 --> 00:32:00.588 to do in Georgia and in the south, we love our barbecue pork 676 00:32:00.630 --> 00:32:02.928 and a lot of people have raised livestock 677 00:32:02.970 --> 00:32:06.558 like that raise swine and they'll kill one and then clean it 678 00:32:06.600 --> 00:32:09.738 and barbecue it up for family reunions or church gatherings 679 00:32:09.780 --> 00:32:11.478 or just to have. 680 00:32:11.520 --> 00:32:13.968 And so with all that livestock being near, 681 00:32:14.010 --> 00:32:16.698 it makes you wonder if he was attracted this animal, 682 00:32:16.740 --> 00:32:20.388 if it were true and this is the creature that it was, 683 00:32:20.430 --> 00:32:22.810 if he were attracted by the smell 684 00:32:23.273 --> 00:32:25.818 of the pork being barbecued. 685 00:32:25.860 --> 00:32:26.868 There's a picture. 686 00:32:26.910 --> 00:32:30.738 You can actually go to the report and you can see a picture. 687 00:32:30.780 --> 00:32:34.128 If this were a bigfoot-like creature, it looked 688 00:32:34.170 --> 00:32:37.368 to be pretty big, and it looks very broad, 689 00:32:37.410 --> 00:32:39.738 but I can't make much out of the photographs, 690 00:32:39.780 --> 00:32:42.978 so I'd rather the viewers actually judge for themselves. 691 00:32:43.020 --> 00:32:45.498 In the summer of 1988, the quiet town 692 00:32:45.540 --> 00:32:48.768 of Bishopville, South Carolina became the center of one 693 00:32:48.810 --> 00:32:52.338 of the strangest cryptid sightings in the south. 694 00:32:52.380 --> 00:32:55.728 The legend of the lizard man of escape or swamp. 695 00:32:55.770 --> 00:32:59.838 A 17-year-old was driving home late at night when his car 696 00:32:59.880 --> 00:33:02.778 broke down near the edge of escapee or swamp. 697 00:33:02.820 --> 00:33:04.608 While changing a flat tire, 698 00:33:04.650 --> 00:33:07.638 he claimed he saw something emerge from the shadows, 699 00:33:07.680 --> 00:33:11.628 something large and unlike anything he had ever seen before. 700 00:33:11.670 --> 00:33:14.928 The creature as he described it, was seven feet tall, 701 00:33:14.970 --> 00:33:18.968 covered in green, scaly skin, and had glowing red eyes. 702 00:33:19.010 --> 00:33:21.708 In a panic, Davis jumped into his car, 703 00:33:21.750 --> 00:33:24.888 but the creature reportedly attacked, scratching the vehicle 704 00:33:24.930 --> 00:33:27.888 and trying to tear it apart as he sped away. 705 00:33:27.930 --> 00:33:29.838 When Davis finally reached home, the side 706 00:33:29.880 --> 00:33:32.328 of his car was covered with deep claw marks 707 00:33:32.370 --> 00:33:34.638 and the side mirrors had been ripped off. 708 00:33:34.680 --> 00:33:37.218 The story of the lizard man quickly spread 709 00:33:37.260 --> 00:33:39.858 and it wasn't long before other locals came forward 710 00:33:39.900 --> 00:33:41.448 with their own sightings. 711 00:33:41.490 --> 00:33:44.298 People claim to see the lizard man stalking the swamps 712 00:33:44.340 --> 00:33:46.668 in nearby roads, moving swiftly 713 00:33:46.710 --> 00:33:48.228 through the thick underbrush, 714 00:33:48.270 --> 00:33:51.813 leaving behind strange three toed footprints in the mud. 715 00:33:52.770 --> 00:33:55.488 Local law enforcement even investigated the reports, 716 00:33:55.530 --> 00:33:59.238 but no definitive evidence of the creature was ever found. 717 00:33:59.280 --> 00:34:01.458 Despite the lack of physical proof, 718 00:34:01.500 --> 00:34:03.468 the legend continued to grow. 719 00:34:03.510 --> 00:34:04.908 And for months, bishopville 720 00:34:04.950 --> 00:34:07.368 was overrun with media attention. 721 00:34:07.410 --> 00:34:10.968 Cryptid hunters and curious tourist eager to catch a glimpse 722 00:34:11.010 --> 00:34:12.768 of the mysterious creature. 723 00:34:12.810 --> 00:34:15.468 Those sightings have tapered off in recent years. 724 00:34:15.510 --> 00:34:17.658 The story of the lizard man remains a fixture 725 00:34:17.700 --> 00:34:19.188 of local folklore. 726 00:34:19.230 --> 00:34:20.868 Some believe it was nothing more 727 00:34:20.910 --> 00:34:22.938 than a misidentified animal. 728 00:34:22.980 --> 00:34:25.878 While others are convinced there is something truly unusual 729 00:34:25.920 --> 00:34:28.458 hiding in the swamps of South Carolina. 730 00:34:28.500 --> 00:34:32.268 Whether it's myth or reality, the lizard man of escape 731 00:34:32.310 --> 00:34:35.238 or swamp continues to capture the imagination of those 732 00:34:35.280 --> 00:34:37.188 who hear the tale reminding us 733 00:34:37.230 --> 00:34:41.808 that sometimes, the unexplained is never far from home. 734 00:34:41.850 --> 00:34:45.798 In Georgia, another hotbed of strange activity 735 00:34:45.840 --> 00:34:49.218 that does give me pause and make me a little nervous 736 00:34:49.260 --> 00:34:52.398 because I've been there to the actual locations. 737 00:34:52.440 --> 00:34:53.808 In the '70s and '80s, 738 00:34:53.850 --> 00:34:56.538 there's a phenomenon called the Belt Road Booger 739 00:34:56.580 --> 00:34:58.878 and the Happy Valley Horror. 740 00:34:58.920 --> 00:35:00.888 But quickly with the Fayetteville episode, 741 00:35:00.930 --> 00:35:03.948 there was a young woman who was driving home in the dark, 742 00:35:03.990 --> 00:35:07.533 wasn't raining, there was nothing that inhibited her sight, 743 00:35:07.575 --> 00:35:09.018 of course the darkness. 744 00:35:09.060 --> 00:35:11.238 But she was driving with her headlights on. 745 00:35:11.280 --> 00:35:14.538 This large beast-like grayish haired animal 746 00:35:14.580 --> 00:35:17.178 just walks across the road 747 00:35:17.220 --> 00:35:19.938 in front of her as she's moving along. 748 00:35:19.980 --> 00:35:22.908 And it didn't turn around and look at her, 749 00:35:22.950 --> 00:35:25.788 but it was frightening enough where she decided 750 00:35:25.830 --> 00:35:28.638 that she'd better report it to the BFRO. 751 00:35:28.680 --> 00:35:30.468 And I believe she actually reported it 752 00:35:30.510 --> 00:35:32.718 to her local authorities. 753 00:35:32.760 --> 00:35:36.438 Very little evidence other than the sighting, 754 00:35:36.480 --> 00:35:40.128 but it's an area of Georgia that it was an 755 00:35:40.170 --> 00:35:43.064 and may still be a hotbed of activity 756 00:35:43.106 --> 00:35:45.678 for these reports and sightings. 757 00:35:45.720 --> 00:35:48.888 Back in the 1970s, Coweta County 758 00:35:48.930 --> 00:35:52.120 and the Newnan area in an area called Happy Valley 759 00:35:52.980 --> 00:35:56.478 and in an area called the Belt Road, experienced 760 00:35:56.520 --> 00:35:59.118 what was called the Belt Road Booger Phenomenon 761 00:35:59.160 --> 00:36:01.818 and the Happy Valley Horror Phenomenon. 762 00:36:01.860 --> 00:36:02.898 And what this is, 763 00:36:02.940 --> 00:36:05.928 and it actually got into the local papers. 764 00:36:05.970 --> 00:36:08.268 And a journalist down there, a local journalist, 765 00:36:08.310 --> 00:36:11.748 did quite a few stories on this and pursued it. 766 00:36:11.790 --> 00:36:13.278 And I was able to talk to him. 767 00:36:13.320 --> 00:36:16.008 I was able to use a lot of his news reports, 768 00:36:16.050 --> 00:36:19.068 pulled those out of the Coweta County 769 00:36:19.110 --> 00:36:20.898 Historical Society's records 770 00:36:20.940 --> 00:36:22.728 when I was writing my book 771 00:36:22.770 --> 00:36:25.578 and was able to make contact with him by phone. 772 00:36:25.620 --> 00:36:28.128 And he could remember things very clearly 773 00:36:28.170 --> 00:36:30.858 because he said it had such a drastic impact 774 00:36:30.900 --> 00:36:34.278 on that community and him as a journalist. 775 00:36:34.320 --> 00:36:38.058 But people were experiencing things like a creature, 776 00:36:38.100 --> 00:36:42.063 an animal, a large upright bipedal creature, hairy, 777 00:36:42.900 --> 00:36:46.368 very human-like features, but also ape-like features. 778 00:36:46.410 --> 00:36:48.168 What does that sound like? 779 00:36:48.210 --> 00:36:50.028 Coming up on their porches, 780 00:36:50.070 --> 00:36:52.668 chasing their livestock on their farms, 781 00:36:52.710 --> 00:36:56.148 walking across front yards and backyards 782 00:36:56.190 --> 00:36:58.218 and tromping through the woods on the Belt Road, 783 00:36:58.260 --> 00:37:00.468 crossing the Belt Road 784 00:37:00.510 --> 00:37:02.388 and over in what they call Happy Valley. 785 00:37:02.430 --> 00:37:03.708 And there are some streams 786 00:37:03.750 --> 00:37:05.898 and creeks that run through those areas. 787 00:37:05.940 --> 00:37:08.958 And back in those days, it was pretty good farmland. 788 00:37:09.000 --> 00:37:10.668 You didn't have the urban sprawl 789 00:37:10.710 --> 00:37:12.108 and the suburban sprawl 790 00:37:12.150 --> 00:37:14.928 that you see down in those areas today. 791 00:37:14.970 --> 00:37:17.118 So a friend of mine who happened 792 00:37:17.160 --> 00:37:20.748 to be the librarian at the campus at which I taught 793 00:37:20.790 --> 00:37:22.398 at that time, writing the book, 794 00:37:22.440 --> 00:37:24.193 she's familiar with all of that 795 00:37:24.235 --> 00:37:26.448 'cause she was born and raised in that area, 796 00:37:26.490 --> 00:37:28.428 but she lived over in Fayette County. 797 00:37:28.470 --> 00:37:32.088 So I followed her, I had her take me to these areas. 798 00:37:32.130 --> 00:37:34.908 She said, "I can tell you right where all this happened." 799 00:37:34.950 --> 00:37:37.398 And she said, "If you give me a little bit more time, 800 00:37:37.440 --> 00:37:39.258 I'll see if I can get the people up 801 00:37:39.300 --> 00:37:40.938 that some of this happened to 802 00:37:40.980 --> 00:37:42.798 and they might be able to talk to you." 803 00:37:42.840 --> 00:37:44.568 Well, I really didn't necessarily need that 804 00:37:44.610 --> 00:37:45.738 because the journalist 805 00:37:45.780 --> 00:37:48.918 that I mentioned had done such a thorough job. 806 00:37:48.960 --> 00:37:51.438 Every detail I needed was right there. 807 00:37:51.480 --> 00:37:53.238 So we went down and took some pictures 808 00:37:53.280 --> 00:37:55.549 and I believe some of them are in the book. 809 00:37:55.591 --> 00:37:57.828 It's a beautiful area. 810 00:37:57.870 --> 00:38:01.908 But one in particular, a lady said that she's home 811 00:38:01.950 --> 00:38:04.428 and on her front porch, which was, you know, wooden, 812 00:38:04.470 --> 00:38:07.158 most front porches in that day were, 813 00:38:07.200 --> 00:38:09.198 she could hear something coming up the steps. 814 00:38:09.240 --> 00:38:11.898 And she went to the window and looked 815 00:38:11.940 --> 00:38:13.968 and there was this huge tall, 816 00:38:14.010 --> 00:38:16.968 hairy creature on the front porch. 817 00:38:17.010 --> 00:38:19.788 And it destroyed her plants, her potted plants 818 00:38:19.830 --> 00:38:22.248 and her hanging baskets. 819 00:38:22.290 --> 00:38:23.928 Some people down in that area 820 00:38:23.970 --> 00:38:27.423 also reported missing livestock, missing pets, 821 00:38:28.860 --> 00:38:31.878 college students coming home for the summer 822 00:38:31.920 --> 00:38:34.158 out and about having a good time during the summer. 823 00:38:34.200 --> 00:38:36.498 I mean, you gotta get it in during the summer at home 824 00:38:36.540 --> 00:38:39.078 because you're gonna go back to college and study 825 00:38:39.120 --> 00:38:41.718 and work hard during the rest of the school year, right? 826 00:38:41.760 --> 00:38:43.698 So you don't have time to party. 827 00:38:43.740 --> 00:38:45.918 So they're hanging out during the summer 828 00:38:45.960 --> 00:38:47.508 and at night they come in late 829 00:38:47.550 --> 00:38:50.328 and some of them reported seeing something strange 830 00:38:50.370 --> 00:38:53.178 cross the road and hanging out in the woods 831 00:38:53.220 --> 00:38:54.408 as they're driving home. 832 00:38:54.450 --> 00:38:56.808 Again, it's rural. 833 00:38:56.850 --> 00:38:59.988 Elderly people are coming in at night 834 00:39:00.030 --> 00:39:02.748 from being out and about and visiting with friends. 835 00:39:02.790 --> 00:39:06.108 Some of them report seeing the very same thing. 836 00:39:06.150 --> 00:39:08.358 And it all tends to match up. 837 00:39:08.400 --> 00:39:11.448 The same description runs through everyone, 838 00:39:11.490 --> 00:39:14.748 It's a common thread through those reports. 839 00:39:14.790 --> 00:39:16.878 So Fayetteville, Coweta County, 840 00:39:16.920 --> 00:39:19.008 those areas right in their South Fulton 841 00:39:19.050 --> 00:39:22.338 with the Crompton booger, that's an area that tended 842 00:39:22.380 --> 00:39:25.398 to have somewhat of a more than usual amount 843 00:39:25.440 --> 00:39:27.618 of reports from the late '60s 844 00:39:27.660 --> 00:39:29.958 which I know the Crompton Booger was a little earlier than 845 00:39:30.000 --> 00:39:32.568 that all the way up into the mid-'80s. 846 00:39:32.610 --> 00:39:35.890 And some still come in from that area from time to time 847 00:39:36.780 --> 00:39:40.128 For centuries, the Altamaha River has been a lifeline 848 00:39:40.170 --> 00:39:42.588 for the coastal communities of Georgia, 849 00:39:42.630 --> 00:39:46.788 stretching over 130 miles through marshes forest and swamps. 850 00:39:46.830 --> 00:39:49.638 It's home to a variety of wildlife, 851 00:39:49.680 --> 00:39:51.738 but hidden deep beneath the surface, 852 00:39:51.780 --> 00:39:56.688 some say lurk something much larger and far more mysterious. 853 00:39:56.730 --> 00:40:00.948 The Altamaha, as many call it, or Alti. 854 00:40:00.990 --> 00:40:03.108 First mentioned by early settlers 855 00:40:03.150 --> 00:40:05.148 of the Native Muskogee people, 856 00:40:05.190 --> 00:40:08.208 Altamaha has become George's version 857 00:40:08.250 --> 00:40:09.678 of the Loch Ness monster. 858 00:40:09.720 --> 00:40:12.018 Described as a massive serpent-like creature 859 00:40:12.060 --> 00:40:15.198 with long flat body and large flippers. 860 00:40:15.240 --> 00:40:17.988 Alti has reportedly been seen swimming 861 00:40:18.030 --> 00:40:21.318 through the rivers dark water since the 18th century. 862 00:40:21.360 --> 00:40:24.618 When timberman and fishermen reported strange sightings, 863 00:40:24.660 --> 00:40:28.458 they spoke of a creature 20 to 30 feet long moving swiftly 864 00:40:28.500 --> 00:40:31.518 through the water, sometimes surfacing just long enough 865 00:40:31.560 --> 00:40:35.088 to reveal its grayish green skin and snake-like form 866 00:40:35.130 --> 00:40:37.488 before disappearing into the depths. 867 00:40:37.530 --> 00:40:40.098 And more recent years sightings have continued, 868 00:40:40.140 --> 00:40:41.598 particularly near Darien, 869 00:40:41.640 --> 00:40:44.958 where the Altamaha River meets the coastal marshes. 870 00:40:45.000 --> 00:40:47.778 One local describes seeing a large hump moving 871 00:40:47.820 --> 00:40:50.868 against the tide, the water rippling in a way, no fish 872 00:40:50.910 --> 00:40:52.548 or gator could have caused. 873 00:40:52.590 --> 00:40:55.698 Another claims to have seen Alti in broad daylight. 874 00:40:55.740 --> 00:40:59.868 Its head resembling that of a seal watching from a distance 875 00:40:59.910 --> 00:41:02.103 before slowly sinking below the water. 876 00:41:03.000 --> 00:41:05.448 Though there are no definitive photographs 877 00:41:05.490 --> 00:41:07.998 or physical evidence of the Altamaha, 878 00:41:08.040 --> 00:41:10.908 the legend persists fueled by the stories 879 00:41:10.950 --> 00:41:13.638 passed through generations of locals. 880 00:41:13.680 --> 00:41:16.308 Some say Alti is nothing more than a myth, 881 00:41:16.350 --> 00:41:19.398 a tale born from the south's love of storytelling. 882 00:41:19.440 --> 00:41:22.968 But there's believe that somewhere beneath the murky waters 883 00:41:23.010 --> 00:41:26.988 of the Altamaha, the creature still swims waiting to be seen 884 00:41:27.030 --> 00:41:28.713 by those brave enough to look. 885 00:41:30.060 --> 00:41:34.188 In the south, some mysteries are larger than life. 886 00:41:34.230 --> 00:41:37.488 Tales of strange creatures lurking in the shadows. 887 00:41:37.530 --> 00:41:40.758 But not all southern legends are born in the deep woods 888 00:41:40.800 --> 00:41:42.228 or murky swamps. 889 00:41:42.270 --> 00:41:45.798 Sometimes, they come from the most unexpected places 890 00:41:45.840 --> 00:41:48.228 like a tail of a sitting US president 891 00:41:48.270 --> 00:41:51.498 and a strange encounter on a quiet Georgia Lake. 892 00:41:51.540 --> 00:41:53.328 It's the story of Jimmy Carter 893 00:41:53.370 --> 00:41:55.218 and the infamous Killer Rabbit. 894 00:41:55.260 --> 00:41:56.898 An odd piece of history 895 00:41:56.940 --> 00:41:58.938 that has left many scratching their heads 896 00:41:58.980 --> 00:42:01.248 wondering just what happened that day. 897 00:42:01.290 --> 00:42:03.528 Well, probably the most famous president, 898 00:42:03.570 --> 00:42:05.778 the most Georgians is gonna be Jimmy Carter. 899 00:42:05.820 --> 00:42:08.238 He served as governor, state senator. 900 00:42:08.280 --> 00:42:11.778 He was an all around good guy down in Plains, Georgia. 901 00:42:11.820 --> 00:42:14.448 So he hails from the southwestern portion 902 00:42:14.490 --> 00:42:19.098 of the state in 1979 on April the 20th, 1979, 903 00:42:19.140 --> 00:42:22.278 President Carter, and he was sitting president in the midst 904 00:42:22.320 --> 00:42:26.868 of a very tough reelection battle that he eventually lost, 905 00:42:26.910 --> 00:42:28.188 was home in plains. 906 00:42:28.230 --> 00:42:30.078 And he was on a pond in a rowboat 907 00:42:30.120 --> 00:42:31.938 or canoe, whatever you wanna call it, 908 00:42:31.980 --> 00:42:34.618 doing his thing fishing, having a good time 909 00:42:34.660 --> 00:42:39.288 in a, you know, nice spring climate down in Plains, Georgia. 910 00:42:39.330 --> 00:42:41.478 And all of a sudden, and he had his paddle, 911 00:42:41.520 --> 00:42:43.568 he had his boat paddle with him. 912 00:42:43.610 --> 00:42:45.168 He looks out across the water 913 00:42:45.210 --> 00:42:47.838 and here comes a rabbit swimming toward him 914 00:42:47.880 --> 00:42:51.498 and it's not something you see every day. 915 00:42:51.540 --> 00:42:55.038 So President Carter actually said that it was hissing 916 00:42:55.080 --> 00:42:56.418 and baring its teeth 917 00:42:56.460 --> 00:42:59.838 and just absolutely looked strange and weird. 918 00:42:59.880 --> 00:43:02.478 So he takes the paddle and hits the water 919 00:43:02.520 --> 00:43:03.918 and then that doesn't work. 920 00:43:03.960 --> 00:43:06.018 It doesn't scare the rabbit away. 921 00:43:06.060 --> 00:43:07.788 And so he takes the paddle 922 00:43:07.830 --> 00:43:10.758 and he, you know, pushes water out toward it 923 00:43:10.800 --> 00:43:13.158 to try to direct it somewhere else. 924 00:43:13.200 --> 00:43:16.638 And it did, it went somewhere else and disappeared. 925 00:43:16.680 --> 00:43:19.548 I mean, this was kinda fantasized 926 00:43:19.590 --> 00:43:21.693 or you know, sensationalized. 927 00:43:22.905 --> 00:43:26.238 When it gets retold that it actually jumped in the boat 928 00:43:26.280 --> 00:43:27.078 and attacked him 929 00:43:27.120 --> 00:43:29.568 and that he had to beat it to death with the paddle. 930 00:43:29.610 --> 00:43:30.468 That's not true. 931 00:43:30.510 --> 00:43:33.108 I mean, he just would've had to have done that, 932 00:43:33.150 --> 00:43:34.848 I imagine if it jumped into the boat 933 00:43:34.890 --> 00:43:37.068 'cause he was a little frightened of this. 934 00:43:37.110 --> 00:43:38.418 And I would have been too. 935 00:43:38.460 --> 00:43:40.818 That's not normal behavior for rabbits. 936 00:43:40.860 --> 00:43:45.588 I mean, in April is traditionally Easter season, 937 00:43:45.630 --> 00:43:49.008 so all of a sudden, you see the Easter Bunny coming 938 00:43:49.050 --> 00:43:51.558 across the pond. 939 00:43:51.600 --> 00:43:54.168 I'm sure that's going to elicit a little bit of nervousness, 940 00:43:54.210 --> 00:43:55.908 especially when you have the press over 941 00:43:55.950 --> 00:43:58.638 behind the wood line, they can see 942 00:43:58.680 --> 00:44:00.828 that they can't get close enough. 943 00:44:00.870 --> 00:44:04.608 So the press really didn't know what was going on. 944 00:44:04.650 --> 00:44:06.558 But when he gets back to Washington, 945 00:44:06.600 --> 00:44:08.838 he tells some of the White House staff, 946 00:44:08.880 --> 00:44:11.898 they're standing out on a balcony at the White House 947 00:44:11.940 --> 00:44:15.648 and you know, just kind of having good casual conversation. 948 00:44:15.690 --> 00:44:17.808 And he tells some of the White House staff, 949 00:44:17.850 --> 00:44:19.698 his close personnel about what happened. 950 00:44:19.740 --> 00:44:21.378 Well, they didn't believe him. 951 00:44:21.420 --> 00:44:24.438 So he got the picture and showed it to them. 952 00:44:24.480 --> 00:44:26.508 And the first picture 953 00:44:26.550 --> 00:44:28.998 where you see President Carter in the boat, 954 00:44:29.040 --> 00:44:32.118 you see his back, but you know that it's Jimmy, you can tell 955 00:44:32.160 --> 00:44:34.248 and he's got on a cap, I think it's green. 956 00:44:34.290 --> 00:44:37.518 And then you see something coming along the water, 957 00:44:37.560 --> 00:44:40.398 but you can't quite make out what it is. 958 00:44:40.440 --> 00:44:44.658 So President Carter had, you know, this blown up 959 00:44:44.700 --> 00:44:46.338 and zeroed in a good bit. 960 00:44:46.380 --> 00:44:47.718 And you can definitely tell 961 00:44:47.760 --> 00:44:50.508 that that is a bunny, it's a rabbit. 962 00:44:50.550 --> 00:44:52.608 So they all believed him. 963 00:44:52.650 --> 00:44:56.238 Well, some of his White House staff thinking 964 00:44:56.280 --> 00:45:01.280 that it was no big deal at all, shared it with White House, 965 00:45:01.800 --> 00:45:04.608 some of the members of the White House Press Corps. 966 00:45:04.650 --> 00:45:05.733 Big mistake. 967 00:45:06.750 --> 00:45:10.818 So one of them actually talked about it 968 00:45:10.860 --> 00:45:12.618 to other members of the press. 969 00:45:12.660 --> 00:45:14.958 And all of a sudden in what apparently 970 00:45:15.000 --> 00:45:17.673 was a very dead news cycle, 971 00:45:18.630 --> 00:45:22.113 began to put it out there front and center. 972 00:45:23.100 --> 00:45:26.178 This turned into what was called Rabbit Gate. 973 00:45:26.220 --> 00:45:27.948 And his political opponents 974 00:45:27.990 --> 00:45:31.698 and what he thought were his friends in the press, 975 00:45:31.740 --> 00:45:35.358 began to criticize him for being somewhat of a weakling. 976 00:45:35.400 --> 00:45:38.508 I mean, President Carter can't defend the nation, 977 00:45:38.550 --> 00:45:41.838 can't even defend himself against a rabid rabbit. 978 00:45:41.880 --> 00:45:44.973 Interestingly enough, as that story got out, 979 00:45:46.074 --> 00:45:47.178 a zoologist actually 980 00:45:47.220 --> 00:45:49.578 at the University of Maryland commented on that. 981 00:45:49.620 --> 00:45:50.778 And he said that the president 982 00:45:50.820 --> 00:45:52.908 really misunderstood what was going on. 983 00:45:52.950 --> 00:45:56.478 The rabbit wasn't trying to attack him, he was just trying 984 00:45:56.520 --> 00:45:59.418 to find the most convenient dry place. 985 00:45:59.460 --> 00:46:01.728 I mean, rabbits don't belong in water. 986 00:46:01.770 --> 00:46:04.068 And other scientists said they felt like 987 00:46:04.110 --> 00:46:05.838 that it might be that the rabbit was trying 988 00:46:05.880 --> 00:46:07.668 to get away from some prey 989 00:46:07.710 --> 00:46:09.348 or some predator that the rabbit 990 00:46:09.390 --> 00:46:11.208 might have been prey. 991 00:46:11.250 --> 00:46:12.041 Scared, yeah. 992 00:46:12.083 --> 00:46:13.608 And was afraid and needed to jump 993 00:46:13.650 --> 00:46:15.888 in the boat with the president of the United States, 994 00:46:15.930 --> 00:46:17.720 whom I would imagine, 995 00:46:17.762 --> 00:46:21.528 the rabbit would think would be the safest place to be. 996 00:46:21.570 --> 00:46:23.838 But unfortunately, the president of the United States 997 00:46:23.880 --> 00:46:26.253 wasn't looking for fishing company that day. 998 00:46:27.330 --> 00:46:30.078 The American South, where the land is old 999 00:46:30.120 --> 00:46:32.418 and the stories are older still. 1000 00:46:32.460 --> 00:46:35.088 For generations, people have shared tales of creatures 1001 00:46:35.130 --> 00:46:38.718 that defy explanation from the towering forest of Georgia 1002 00:46:38.760 --> 00:46:41.088 to the quiet swamps of South Carolina. 1003 00:46:41.130 --> 00:46:43.308 These wild places hold secrets that slip 1004 00:46:43.350 --> 00:46:45.258 just beyond our reach. 1005 00:46:45.300 --> 00:46:49.818 Bigfoot, the skunk ape, the white thing, the Fouke monster. 1006 00:46:49.860 --> 00:46:51.438 These aren't just legends. 1007 00:46:51.480 --> 00:46:53.778 They're encounters passed down by those 1008 00:46:53.820 --> 00:46:56.238 who have felt something in the wild. 1009 00:46:56.280 --> 00:46:59.328 Could these creatures be relics of a forgotten time? 1010 00:46:59.370 --> 00:47:01.698 Or are they reflections of our fear given life 1011 00:47:01.740 --> 00:47:03.288 by the shadows? 1012 00:47:03.330 --> 00:47:06.408 As long as the wilds of the south endure 1013 00:47:06.450 --> 00:47:09.348 so too will the stories of these encounters, 1014 00:47:09.390 --> 00:47:12.888 challenging what we think we know about the world? 1015 00:47:12.930 --> 00:47:15.288 These are the mysteries of the southern wild, 1016 00:47:15.330 --> 00:47:18.798 bigfoot and beyond, the truth may remain hidden, 1017 00:47:18.840 --> 00:47:20.358 but it's always out there waiting 1018 00:47:20.400 --> 00:47:22.453 for those brave enough to seek it.