The Mothman and Point Pleasant, WV

Sunday, December 9, 2018

It was only a few of years ago that I learned of the Mothman and watched the Mothman Prophecies (2002, starring Richard Gere and Laura Linney).  As always, once I learned of the Mothman, I needed to know everything about him which is how we ended up in Point Pleasant, West Virginia.

Let's talk some Mothman history.  The Mothman is a large flying creature with glowing red eyes that first made its appearance in Point Pleasant, WV in 1966.  There are many eye witness accounts of seeing the Mothman.  One of the earliest accounts is that of 2 couples.  The story goes that they were driving down a road near the old TNT building (a former World War II munitions plant) when they encountered a large flying gray creature with red glowing eyes.  They believed that the creatures wing span was at least 10 feet.  They of course reported this sighting to the police.  This was just the beginning of the what would become known as the Mothman sightings.

The sightings continue and many are documented.  The last sighting of the Mothman in Point Pleasant was in 1967 when the Silver Bridge collapsed.  The collapse of the bridge is said to be a defect in a 0.1 inch eye-bar in the suspension chain.  46 people died when the bridge collapsed.  There was and continues to be a belief that the Mothman, a messenger of impending doom, was sited on the bridge at the exact time of the collapse.  A book was written by John A. Keel titled The Mothman Prophecies.  This book explores the theory that the Mothman was either in Point Pleasant to warn of the impending doom and/or was the cause of the Silver Bridge collapse.  A film was made in 2002 based on the book.  The Mothman Prophecies (film) is a must see if you want to know more about the Mothman (I mean who wouldn't want to know more about the Mothman, the stories are very interesting).  Also, the film stars Richard Gere (he alone is worth watching the film...who doesn't think Richard Gere is dreamy!) and Laura Linney.

So now that you have some background on the Mothman, let's explore Point Pleasant, WV.  We arrived in Point Pleasant on a cloudy, cold morning which of course was the perfect setting when going to explore a place that was home to the Mothman in the 1960s.  The Ohio River runs along the city of Point Pleasant.  I did some research on the city before visiting and discovered that there were several paranormal/supernatural things going on in Point Pleasant.  Our first stop was to Tu-Endi-Wei State Park.  Have you heard of Shawnee Chief Cornstalk?  Chief Cornstalk was part of the Shawnee Nation and joined with several other nations to attempt to stop colonials from settling on their lands.  A battle ensured and 140 colonials and 200+ Indians were killed in this battle.  In later years, Chief Cornstalk is killed, while being held prisoner, in a revenge killing.  While he lay dying and looking directly at his killer he put a curse on the area.  The curse is believed to be the result of many tragedies that have occurred in the Point Pleasant area.  To read more about Chief Cornstalk, his curse, and the tragedies believed to be linked to his curse check out Ghost of the Prairie's The Cornstalk Curse post (great read!).

We then took a stroll down by the Ohio River to check out the beautiful murals and statutes lining the pathway.

These murals were painted by Robert Dafford and extend 150 feet.  The murals are at most 18 feet high and depict the Battle of Point Pleasant in 1770.














By the time we finished touring the murals, it was time to visit The Mothman Museum!!!!

When you entered the museum the front section is their gift shop and is full of everything Mothman one could possibly want for either their collection or as souvenirs.  We paid our small fee and entered the museum.  While the museum is small it is FULL of great artifacts.
 Handwritten eye witness account of the Mothman sightings.
 Newspaper articles regarding Mothman sightings.

 Suit worn by John A. Keel, author of the Mothman Prophecies.


 The Mothman Prophecies Movie props - light used on the Silver Bridge
 The Mothman Prophecies movie props.
 more movie props...


Right across from the Mothman Museum is the Lowe Hotel which is said to be haunted.  Of course I wanted to stay hear, but while my mister is on board for the majority of my/our paranormal/supernatural activities he is drawing the line at spending the night in a haunted hotel.  John Keel stayed at the Lowe Hotel while researching/writing The Mothman Prophecies.  I've read that the 3rd floor of the hotel is the most 'active'.

Before we got back on the road to head to Canton, Ohio, we stopped at The Coffee Grinder for a to-go coffees and of course a Mothman cookie.

Great coffee and the cookie was delicious.  Needless to say if you are anywhere near Point Pleasant or just want to visit the place where the Mothman visited, then pack your bags, grab your camera, and hit the road to Point Pleasant.  You will not be disappointed!

As a side note:  in the gift shop of the Mothman Museum, we saw a few items featuring the Flatwoods Monster.  A road trip to discover more about the Flatwoods Monster is currently being planned.

Happy Travels,
Amber

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