Saturday, September 19, 2009 Inside Putnam County Magazine traveled to Point Pleasant via scenic Route 62. We found parking was easy, the crowd enthusiastic and everyone enjoying the festival events. Our first stop was with the Turtleman, Ernie Brown, Jr. from Lebanon, Kentucky. The Turtleman catches live snapping turtles by hand and for the reasonable $1.00 admittance; we were entertained with a demonstration including a 40-pound snapping turtle and information on several turtle species found in the area. Ernie the Turtleman seen on televisions Kentucky Afield and One Hour Roadtrips delivered a lively, funny, informative show. You really should take a look at the Turtleman videos for his amazing daring turtle catching and his views on the conservation of turtles. Next, we visited a few of the booths by paranormal authors, researchers, and local historians. We were honored to meet Bob Roach and his daughter Kelly. Mr. Roach is the artist who created the Mothman statue that stands in the city square. Down the street at Riverfront Park are two more of his amazing sculptures. Statues of Chief Cornstalk and Colonel Andrew Lewis, who led opposing forces during the Battle of Point Pleasant, stand proudly and solemnly keeping watch over the Ohio River. There were plenty of food, souvenir, and informational booths on the main square along with live bands entertaining at the Riverfront Stadium. The event also included a Haunted House and a panel of speakers hosted by Ghostly Talk Radio at the historic State Theatre on Main Street. During the 2-day event, you could meet local witnesses who have appeared on the SCI-FI channel, Travel channel, and Unsolved Mysteries. At the meetings the public is invited to hear stories and have, questions answered about real encounters with the Mothman. Along with information, the information booth provided Tram tickets, Mothman TNT Hayrides, and Mothman Museum Bus Tours. We chose the Mothman TNT Hayride scheduled for 7:30PM at the West Virginia Farm Museum grounds located 6 miles north on Fairgrounds Road directly off Route 62. The Farm Museum site included a food area, live music and a great hayride. The TNT area reported to be the location of one of the first Mothman sightings was our boarding area. The hayride included the Men in Black warning us along the trail, strange lights and noises in the woods, creepy red eyes peering from old ammunition buildings and Inside Putnam County Magazine’s own official sighting of the Mothman. Inside Putnam County Magazine gives this day tripping festival applause and encourages everyone to enjoy a day trip from Putnam County to visit the 2010 Mothman Festival in Point Pleasant. The published festival planned months in advance can be found at www.mothmanlives.com along with the projected schedule of events.People reported a strange creature in the late 1960s in Point Pleasant West Virginia. The sightings were numerous in numbers and they all claimed to have seen a similar moth like creature that seemed intent on inflicting fear and madness. Throughout this time there were also reports of UFO sightings and strange looking outsiders they deemed the “Men in Black” snooping mysteriously around the area. In 1975, John A. Keel released his book “The Mothman Prophecies” a non-fiction collection of eyewitness accounts of the bizarre and possibly paranormal phenomena which supposedly occurred in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. For eight years Point Pleasant has held a Mothman festival bringing together the witnesses, believers, paranormal researchers and the curious. This year unfortunately will be a tribute to the author of “The Mothman Prophecies” by his many fans. The death of John A. Keel occurred on July 3, 2009. Sightings at the 2009 Mothman Festival
by: Deborah Heckman, Putnam County Magazine
Speakers held talks hosted by Ghostly Talk Radio at the historic State Theatre on Main Street. The "Men in Black" were everywhere.
In 1975, John A. Keel released his book “The Mothman Prophecies” a non-fiction collection of eyewitness accounts of the bizarre and possibly paranormal phenomena which supposedly occurred in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. For more information and links on John Keel and his research click here.The Mothman Pancakes eating contest was deliciously fun & tasty.
Festival goers take a look at vintage cars underneath the historic Lowe Hotel sign on Main Street.
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Copyright 2009 - Putnam County Magazine - All Rights Reserved
Copyright 2009 - Putnam County Magazine - All Rights Reserved
Turtleman, Ernie Brown, Jr. from Lebanon, Kentucky holding a 40 pound snapping turtle.
A creepy scene from the TNT Hayride. Notice the red glow in the lower left from something?
Mothman statue downtown created by local artist Bob Roach.
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