FOIA: Sutton, West Virginia Monster Sighting - September 14, 1952

Sutton_W_Va_Monster_Sep_1952.pdf
Sutton, West Virginia Monster Sighting - September 1952
Newspaper clippings and Interview notes regarding the sighting of a "monster" in Sutton, West Virginia in September 1952
Document date: 1952-09-14
Department: USAF - Blue Book
Author: Unknown
Document type: Newspaper Articles, Report
pages: 8


Archivist's Notes: Two different Newspaper articles and Investigator notes on the Monster sighting, which claims witnesses saw a foul smelling monster after tracking what was either a meteorite or UFO landing on a hill. Includes a blank Reporting Sheet for Saucer Observers and a map of Air Defense Identification Zones in the Northeast.





[edit on 2/14/2008 by JacKatMtn]

I'm very familiar with the Sutton sighting in West Virginia. As the OP stated this document includes the articles from two different news papers and also the investigation that followed.

In September 12, 1952 in a little town called Flatwood, West Virginia some young school boys saw a fiery UFO streak across the sky and apparently land on a nearby hilltop. Heading to the site they gathered some more people in their way and that's were they saw a pulsating red light, smelling a nauseating mist and in the moment they turned there flashlights on encountered a pair of shining eyes, revealing a huge creature which hissed and glided at them causing the group to leave in panic. The two leading the group, Lemon and Neil Nunley, got to the top of the hill first and observed a "big ball of fire" fifty feet to their right. Others in the group said it was the size of a house. The day after investigators discovered skid marks and an oily substance that they thought it came from the UFO.

Some testimony may differ from one other but they are all consistent when it comes to the sighting of the monster and the unidentified object. There is an inconsistency in the regard of the number of object; some say were 7 green fireballs and some say it was just one red in color.

The conclusion from Air Force investigators about t he object seen by thousands in Virginia and West Virginia was a meteor. As for the creature the official explanation was a normal animal that came out of the woods in that particular moment.

Personally I don't know any animal 10 feet tall in that area (the hight 10 feet is consistent in all testimonies).

I forgot to add something else. Years back after the event, the researcher and writer John A. Keel while investigating mothman's sightings interviewed a couple who claimed that on the evening following the original sighting, and ten to fifteen miles to the southwest of it, they encountered a ten foot tall creature emitting a foul odor. It approached their stalled car then returned to the woods. Moments later, a luminous, pulsating sphere arose from the trees and ascended into the sky.

Here are some of the photos of that time. In the first is Kathleen May, one of the key witnesses, holding the drawing made by an artist for "We the People" TV show, aired on September 19, 1952.





Here on the left, four of the Flatwoods boys who witnessed the 'monster.' Left to right: Tommy Hyer, Freddie May, Edison May (front), and Neil Nunley (rear). Eleven-year-old Freddie May drew a picture (right) of the Flatwoods Monster shortly after the incident.



This depiction (shown here as a composite with background terrain) of the Flatwoods Monster was drawn by a New York TV show staff artist and broadcast on national television during Mrs. Kathleen May's live appearance on "We The People" on September 19, 1952.

The Flatwoods Monster case is one of the more bizarre UFO cases. What I find interesting is the descriptions of it sound like they come from a science fiction novel of the era, yet all the witnesses had corroborating stories. It was supposedly 10 feet tall with a green body and red face and green light shown from its eyes. There was also trace evidence in the form of an odor and matted grass with skid marks on the ground. At the time of the incident all the witnesses complained of a foul odor like sulfur burning that was so overwhelming it made them sick.

Truly a unique case that has been investigated by the like of John Keel who wrote “The Mothman Prophecies”, and Stanton Freedman who believes the monster was a mechanical device of some kind.

This document contains several articles written about the incident and stated that the witnesses were questioned and their testimony held up even when they tried to trip them up. They even included the lyrics to a song about the monster that has now become a legend.

Related ATS Discussions:
The truth about the Flatwoods Monster
Flatwoods Monster

Related website:
www.flatwoodsmonster.com...

I wonder if the odor is what made them ill. Or was it a chemical that smelled that made them all ill.

a couple of years a go, a similar creature was described by a Mexican police man in Monterrey, Mexico, but everybody here in Mexico calls them "witches" o "brujas". as long as I remember 4 sightings have happened with the same descriptions a a few videos have been recorded, I leave this link with english subtitles in order for you to check it out. the descriptions are given by police officers

es.youtube.com...