What Happened to the Lake Worth Monster? The Summer of the Goat-Man


Editor’s Note: This is a post by Bigfoot Evidence contributor Vicki W.

Back in 1969, the residents of Ft. Worth, Texas experienced a wave of sightings of a 7 foot tall white Bigfoot type creature which came to be known as the 'Lake Worth Monster, aka the 'Goat-Man'. Described as tall, furry, and covered with scales, (yep, scales), the local newspaper headline read, "Fishy Man-Goat Terrifies Couples Parked at Lake Worth". Some witnesses said that it had the head and hooves of a goat, bringing to mind images of a satyr, a half-man half-goat from Greek mythology. They insisted it also had scales and was an excellent swimmer, often making its retreat by way of Lake Worth to Greer Island, where it was thought to live.

The story spread quickly, and led to an all out hunt by armed townsfolk along with police. Several people claimed to have seen the beast, and one man managed to get a shot, with a Polaroid that is. Allen Plaster snapped two pictures depicting a white furry something, one came out fairly clear while the other is motion blurred, taken while the subject was running away.


It was an exciting summer to say the least. Witnesses reported that the Goat-Man scratched a car and actually jumped on the hood. The most incredible incident involved the hurling of a heavy tire and rim over 500 feet, sending the crowds of monster seekers and looky-loo's scrambling to their cars in haste and speeding away.

Aspiring writer and private investigator Sallie Ann Clarke self-published a book entitled, "The Lake Worth Monster of Greer Island, Ft. Worth, Texas". She admits writing it with a tongue in cheek feel, however she later claimed to have seen the 'goat-man' with her own two eyes three times over a four year period. “If I’d seen it before I wrote the book, the book would have been quite a lot different,” she said. “It wouldn’t have been semi-fiction. It would have been like a history.” Ms. Clarke passed away in 2009. Her husband, Richard Lederer says she staunchly maintained that what she saw was the real deal, insisting it absolutely could not have been someone in a costume. In fact, she posted a $5000 reward for any person who could pass a polygraph confirming they were responsible for the hoax. No one ever claimed the reward.


Later, reporter Jim Marrs, who covered the story for the "Star Telegram", says police told him the sightings were the prank of local teenagers, donning a gorilla costume and home made mask. The tire tossing incident was said to have been in reality a trio of teens who had rolled the tire down the bluff and hitting a bump, it became airborne. Allen Plaster, who took the two famous snapshots, now attributes the whole affair to teenage hijinks, saying, ""Looking back, I realize that when we drove by, it stood up," he was quoted as saying in the Star-Telegram. "Whatever it was, it wanted to be seen. That was a prank. That was somebody out there waiting for people to drive by. I don't think an animal would have acted that way."

Either way, the story is now a local legend in Ft. Worth. Whatever it was, it seems to have disappeared. Through the years, an occasional sighting has popped up, but nothing like the summer of 1969. The town keeps the legend alive by celebrating the sightings at the annual "Lake Worth Monster Bash" held in early October. Sponsored by the Ft. Worth Nature Center, the fun-filled family festival returned for its 3rd successful year on October 1, 2011.


Comments

  1. My aunt lived in Azle Texas during that time and she said that groups of people would take off out in the areas around the area and she said she and her freind didn't see it but heard an awful scream

    And it was all rhe proof she ever needed

    ReplyDelete
  2. They are two of the absolute worst photos of all time. It looks like a plume of smoke rising out of a fire. What am i looking at? Its back? Where are its arms? Weird.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's smoky because they were shooting at it and I can see its arms very clearly so idk what your looking at

      Delete
  3. I believe this is a combonation of two sepaerate waves of incidents. Everything I have read about the lake worth monster describes the beast as a white sasquatch, no goat description. The goat man is an entirely seperate entity at a different lake closer to the Dallas area. I live directly between Dallas and Ft. Worth and have heard these stories growing up. If you read "Weird Texas!" Both stories are recounted seperately. Where did you get this combo story Shawn? John

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. John, yeah, I have that book too. I'll look it up if I can find it again. I'll have to ask Vicki about the two stories and how they relate. She's been sick and sleeping all day lol.

      Delete
    2. Think you got it right actually. Found some descriptions of it reported as scaly at least. But I'm pretty sure goat man bridge is near Dallas. Maybe people were seeing the same thing. There was a little developement in between these two cities at the time, but also a lot of open ranch land that eventually turned its owners into billionaires as the mid-cities built up. That's a big stretch I know, but maybe. Anyway, interesting to read people reported scales. That's an odd one. John

      Delete
  4. I'm sorry but the last picture looks like something from the Moon landing.

    ReplyDelete
  5. That pic you ave was considered hoaxed long ago.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Checking out the other goatman story, it seems as if the 1969 story I wrote about is from the Lake Worth area in Ft. Worth, TX. The White Rock Lake goatman is a separate story with similar descriptions from more modern times. I found a reported sighting from 2001. Catie Rhodes, a blogger from Texas, includes both stories (which is why I chose it). She also has 2 other goatman stories from Texas, and has a video about Goatman's bridge.
    There are also other goatman stories from around the country such as Maryland and Kentucky (the Pope Lick Monster). I actually did not know there were this many goatman stories, lol! Weird.
    http://catierhodes.com/2012/01/06/the-goatman-of-texas/

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks for the info Vicki, that is weird. John

    ReplyDelete
  8. That photo is about the worst fake I've ever seen. Looks like a cheap coat from Woolworths.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I was nine that summer and it scared the heck out of me We lived in mansfield at the time

    ReplyDelete
  10. if you want to hire the best personal investigators in Fort Worth or the investigation company in Dallas or Houston call us @ 214-662-1006 or 832-260-8389

    ReplyDelete
  11. About 3 months ago I was driving on Rendon rd around 11:00 am with my high beams on, I began to slow down to make a right turn on Stephenson levy rd but about 15 or 20 feet before I can make the turn I saw something very big around 6 1/2 feet tall and it was covered in in fur or hair as white as snow and it only needed to steps to run across that two lane road, after it was out of sight I sped the rest of the way home with my left hand on the steering wheel and my right hand on my gun, and the very next morning I learned of the lake view monster.
    Ps it looks almost like a werewolf you would see in movies such as (dog soldiers) but with goat or horse like rear legs.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Samurai Chatter: Have you used it in the field?

BREAKING: Finding Bigfoot Production Company Seeks Filming Permit In Virginia

Bigfoot injured by a forest fire was taken away and hidden by the authorities, not even Robert Lindsay can top this story