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THE PINE BARRENS INSTITUTE

Cryptid Profile: The Monster of '76

September 27, 2019  /  adam benedict

monster_of_76

The sun was starting to rise and scant traces of light were beginning to fill the area. Allen's eyes darted across the area with focused determination, hoping to quickly lock on to the culprit. The dog raced through and around the large cows moving across the path upwards. Finally, the canine stopped and the barks grew louder. Allen's eyes focused on his companion within the ravine and moved them along the invisible path in which the barks were directed. There within his gaze, he had finally found the cause of the dog's anger.

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3 Likes
categories / land, 2019
tags / wisconsin, cashton, monroe county, bigfoot, sasquatch, polk county, sterling barrens, governor knowles state forest, st. croix falls, cushing, 1976, st. croix river

Folklore Profile: The Death Song Cave

July 26, 2019  /  adam benedict

cave of the dead

When Great Eagle and his one hundred men reached the cave, they were already mentally prepared for what they would encounter. While they didn't know the specifics of what was causing it, they knew that the cave was making people disappear. So to combat this terrible thing from happening again, the men grabbed hands and marched forward as a human chain into the mouth of the cavern. As the light grew dim for those in front and the echoes of footsteps hit the ears of those in back, it seemed as if the human chain was unbreakable. That is until the second man in front realized the leader who at one moment was holding his hand, seemed to have completely vanished.

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4 Likes
categories / land, 2019
tags / folklore, wisconsin, paul seifert, cave of the dead, song of death cave, richland city, gotham, bogus bluff, richland center, great eagle, charles e brown

Cryptid Profile: The Kidrick Swamp Whatsit

June 10, 2019  /  adam benedict

kidrick swamp monster

Imagine a full sized hippo slowly lumbering along through a forest, now imagine a large musk ox walking along in the opposite direction towards the hippo. When the two giants meet head to head in the middle of the swamp, merge them together into one large abomination. What you have just created in your mind is what one witness of the Whatsit claimed it looked like.

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3 Likes
categories / land, 2019
tags / wisconsin, kidrick swamp, whatsit, Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest, taylor county, folklore, fearsome critter, hippo, llama, musk ox

Folklore Profile: The Wauwatosa Night Visitors

April 23, 2019  /  adam benedict

Wauwatosa+Night+Visitors

On the cool and crisp Monday night of November 10, 1975, Anne Eilbes and her husband Peter began the standard processes every homeowner goes through prior to turning in for the night. They were closing curtains, locking doors, and just generally relaxing. As the clock ticked by, inching ever closer to eight pm, the couple chatted about their day and discussed the upcoming plans for the week. In all sense, it was just a typical Monday evening, one that would fade from memory as quickly as it had arrived. That is until the clock struck 7:50 pm.

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3 Likes
categories / land, 2019
tags / wisconsin, wauwatosa, folklore, night visitors, gnomes, aliens, Richard Heiden, Menomonee River Parkway, Milwaukee, 1975

Cryptid Profile: The Steinthal Monster

March 22, 2019  /  adam benedict

steinthal monster

It goes without saying that monster stories are an interesting thing. They can be found anywhere in the world, from the most heavily populated areas, all the way to the most barren places with the fewest people on the planet. It seems that wherever people gather, stories of monsters pop up as well. These can range from the terrifying and haunting, to the amusing and comical. It seems there are no set guidelines on how a monster story is supposed to go, what requirements it needs to be considered memorable, and what boxes it needs to check in order to be thought of as possibly true. But sometimes, the story of the monster is overshadowed by an even bigger story, one that involves tragedy, and one that gets rid of the monster forever.

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2 Likes
categories / land, 2019
tags / wisconsin, steinthal, 1960's, kiel, steinthal monster, leo schweitzer

Folklore Profile: The Water Man

February 24, 2019  /  adam benedict

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“Now the Water Man is not a devil, but he will try also to get your soul. He is not a ghost, for there are villagers who have actually seen him. My grandfather, who transported timber on the river, talked and walked with him. He told me that the Water Man looks like any other man. He dresses in a long cloak, slit into tails. You may recognize him by the water dripping from his handkerchief thrust into the slit tails.”

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1 Likes
categories / water, 2019
tags / wisconsin, water man, folklore, great depression, federal writers project, charles e brown, dorthy miller, czechoslovakia

Folklore Profile: The Lanky Night Walker

January 30, 2019  /  adam benedict

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Here at the Pine Barrens Institute, we are always on the look out for the most bizarre and obscure folklore the state of Wisconsin has to offer. We want the stuff that nobody has ever heard of, the homespun stories and legends that you just cant stop thinking about after you are done reading them. We want the weird, the spooky, and the only told once and never again kind of stories that make you realize just how interesting the Midwest truly is. Well readers, I think we have one for you that hits every single one of those targets.

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1 Likes
categories / land, 2019
tags / wisconsin, lanky night walker, ghoul, folklore, algoma

Cryptid Profile: The Trolls of Barron County Wisconsin

January 10, 2019  /  adam benedict

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I can't exactly tell you how I came across this story, but I think it was fate. I know I originally set out to find extremely obscure monster legends from the state of Wisconsin, and somehow ended up going down a proverbial rabbit hole that was filled with Native American folklore, ghosts, lake monsters, UFO's, haunted bars, and even Men In Black. But among all those topics, the last thing I ever expected was to come across an encounter with Trolls from over 100yrs ago, but here we are. So sit back, get comfortable, and let me share with you all what I so strangely stumbled across.

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2 Likes
categories / land, 2019
tags / wisconsin, barron, troll, 1900's, eau claire, highway 25

Cryptid Profile: The Fence Rail Dog

November 13, 2018  /  adam benedict

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When it comes to investigating cryptid creatures, the investigative camps are usually split into two sides; those who believe these creatures are strictly flesh and blood, and those who feel they possess a more supernatural quality. Typically the the creatures that fall into a specific category are easy to sort, but every so often, you get a creature that hangs out equally on both sides.

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4 Likes
categories / land
tags / black dog, Delaware, shunka warakin, frederica, felton, fence rail dog, montana, idaho, illinois, iowa, alberta, nebraska

Cryptid Profile: Meshekenabek - The Monster of Lake Manitou

November 05, 2018  /  adam benedict

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Upon completion of the dam, 775 acres of land were flooded and five small lakes around the area of the soon to be mill became one giant lake. The resulting body of water was given the name Manitou and almost immediately, a monster by the name of Meshekenabek took up residence within it.

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2 Likes
categories / water
tags / indiana, manitou, potowatomi, rochester, Meshekenabek, lake monster
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