August 12, 2006

Of Manatees and Bigfoot

Autumn Williams put Whitehall on the television programming map. But what Bigfoot activity is happening there today?

I’ve been gone for a few days, since Wednesday. I checked out the manatee situation in the Hudson River, New York. The big critter appears to have moved on, with no new sightings. But you never can tell. I had to go see for myself. I did not see a manatee but lots of the Hudson. At one spot, I crossed one of the most attractive suspension bridges in North America, the Mid-Hudson Bridge, and marveled at the vastness of the water below. It is easy to see how a river monster or a manatee can get lost in there.

Land monsters perhaps are easier to find.

So, I wanted also to poke around Whitehall, New York. Whitehall is known as the birthplace of the U.S. Navy, but in terms of cryptozoology, it is a site of much alleged activity, some would even call it a "hot" spot.

First, you have its location near the tip of Lake Champlain and obvious links to Champ history. Whitehall’s media was the source of spreading the "wanted dead or alive" notices on Champ in 1873 and 1887.

I hereby offer $50,000 for the hide of the Great Champlain serpent to add to my mammoth World’s Fair Show. You are authorized to draw on me for any sum necessary to assist in securing the monster’s remains.

So said P.T. Barnum to the Whitehall Times of Whitehall, New York.

But in recent years, Whitehall appears to be gaining more significance as the unofficial NY State Bigfoot Capitol.

For many decades, Whitehall was the hometown of both Bob and Paul Bartholomew (Bob moved out of town to Australia, got a Ph. D., and writes books in which he now debunks Fortean phenomena). Whitehall still turns up in books on Bigfoot mostly because of their early work and a series of sightings in August 1976 on Abair Road.

In 2003, Autumn Williams, during the series Mysterious Encounters, visited and highlighted Whitehall and Paul’s Bigfoot investigations.

Paul’s work has been ongoing on the Bigfoot front. In January 2004, he tried to get the Whitehall Bigfoot protected locally. After meeting with the mayor and local council, he told the media at the time:

I proposed a protective ordinance for these creatures in the Whitehall area which would protect these creatures under the law, and it would also recognize these creatures. What was sighted out there [on Abair Road, Whitehall, in 1976] was a large creature, 7 to 8 feet tall, walking like a gorilla hunched over, making a sound like a woman screaming. While it was a landmark case, it was just one that forms a chain of sightings which goes back to the Algonquin and Iroquois.

Paul Bartholomew had asked them to pass a resolution that would make it illegal to shoot a Sasquatch. The idea is mostly symbolic, he said, adding it would be a step toward bringing notoriety and tourists to the area, much like the lake monster Champ does for Lake Champlain. He said the proposal is similar to one Port Henry, New York officials passed to protect Champ.

On February 5, 2004, Paul Bartholomew was able to get the Whitehall village board to approve the resolution that makes it illegal to hunt Bigfoot in Whitehall, New York.

"It’s a way for the community to embrace the phenomenon," Bartholomew said at the time.

It appears to have worked, as it was easy to get people in Whitehall to talk about Bigfoot during my brief visit. Indeed, the recent Whitehall BFRO expedition there at the end of July 2006, seems to be an example of a mostly tourist-oriented "hunt" for Bigfoot taking place there because of the resolution. The BFRO was not out to kill a Bigfoot, needless to say.

I like the Bartholomews, so don’t take this as anything personal, but I really dispute whether this location is one of the true hotspots for Bigfoot sightings in the country. I think it is a nice town, a good tourist destination, but there’s no real on-going activity. The hype is based upon the one 1976 series, the good work of the Bartholomews, the uniqueness of another "don’t kill Bigfoot" resolution, and the visits from the people from the Outdoor Life Network, BFRO, and Cryptomundo (lol) that is keeping the fame alive. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it is not a fertile area for lots of current Bigfoot sightings.

Bigfoot sightings in New York State may be as rare as manatee encounters.

P.S.

One mystery that was unfinished from my visit in Whitehall was about some large sketches of hairy hominoids I was shown.

I need to discover more about a local artist who makes unique poster-sized drawings of Bigfoot, Yeren, and Yeti. I want to track down more information on him and how to obtain his art. The shopkeeper (who only had her own personal copies, none for sale) didn’t have contact info, and only knew that Eric M. lived in Whitehall.

Anyone have any hints on this Whitehall Bigfoot art angle?

Filed under Bigfoot, Cryptotourism, CryptoZoo News, Cryptozoology, Expedition Reports, Eyewitness Accounts, Out of Place, Pop Culture, Sasquatch, Television