The fascination with some things never loses its allure. Since the first time a report of an unknown hairy creature was given a name, albeit depending on what part of the world you were in what that name was, we have been on a quest to satisfy our curiosity. Does it really exist, what is it, where did it come from?Big Foot, that is the name Big Foot, for me as well as countless others in this little corner of Alabama was not known or heard of until the 60’s. The creature himself, or is it herself? No one has really ever said which, but since there have been so many reported in equally as many different parts of the world one would assume there would have to be both? Either way, as a child in the sense of an unexplained presence or blood curdling sounds in the woods he was a boggy man, or a booger, meaning some scary creature.
Just about everyone who grew up roaming Terrapin Creek and Frog Mountain has an experience to share. We, (deemed by our parents as hair brained children, a regional expression of yesteryear used by parents meaning out of control children they could not keep up with) thought it our alienable right to look under every rock, climb every tree, and search every nook and cranny for the unknown and the secrets they held.
From the older kids, especially the boys, in reaction to the late night scary tales about the creek or Frog Mountain that was told sitting around a campfire, or after supper before TV it was “lets go see” or today it would be “lets check it out.” Such was the case of two local teenagers with an incident that occurred in the 50’s. Today it would have been called a Big Foot sighting.
It began with an accident that occurred on Terrapin Creek in early 1900. For the first part of the century few bridges spanned Terrapin Creek. Crossings were done either by ferry or at the shallow points along the creek called fords where buggies and wagons could drive across.
Terrapin is usually a slow meandering stream, but during periods of heavy rainfall the creek overflows its banks and the current becomes swift and dangerous. The shallow fords became deep and treacherous and most did not attempt to cross them until the water began to go down.
The ability to gauge the water to know when it was once again safe was a tricky business, and a mistake could cost your life. This happen to a man and his wife attempting to cross the ford at Happy Hollow two or three miles down the road from Frog Mountain. Their wagon overturned and the woman was killed, beheaded.
For the years thereafter it was told if you went down to the ford at midnight you could sometimes see her, and as time went on the tale grew more gruesome. The tale of the headless woman of Terrapin Creek sent many a youngster to bed with the covers pulled over their head.
Like with all haunted place there were the dares to go. “I dare you, I double dog dare you” the ultimate challenge. So the two teenage boys decided to go camp out at the ford where theoretically the next day they could report their derring-do to their less courageous friends.
They made their camp and all was well until along about midnight. Then they heard something “big” crashing through the woods, snorting and grunting. Realizing right away this was not any of the small night creatures that was suppose to be out they started looking for somewhere to go, some means of safety. There was not much time because whatever was coming was very near.
A wood boat that someone had left tied to a tree seemed the only choice. They quickly pulled the boat up out of the water, flipped it over and crawled under it. Just in time before the creature came stomping through the trees and down to the water. Afraid to breath the only thing they could see from under the boat was two “big” hairy feet as the creature came by. They said it never slowed down as it crossed the creek and climbed the mountain on the other side.
They listened until they could barely hear it before they came out of hiding, and when they did they too hit the ground running in the opposite direction to home. From the wife of one of the teenagers many years later as she was telling about the incident she said, “he vowed he would never go back there again at night,” and as far as she knew he never did. Big Foot? Who knows, maybe.
