30/06/2023
The Arkansas Wild Man. Sightings of Bigfoot are nothing new in the Ozarks. The Arkansas Wild Man was first reported in eastern Arkansas in 1834, and was hypothesized to be a survivor of the New Madrid earthquakes of 1811-12, who had "gone feral". Footprints measuring 22 inches were noted in addition to sightings of the wild man who appeared larger than an average man, and covered in brownish hair. Sightings continued every few years, and in 1851 an expedition was organized by David Cross to find the elusive Wild Man, but with no success.
In 1851, the Vermont Watchman and State Journal reported that two men were hunting in Greene County, Arkansas, when they saw something “bearing the unmistakable likeness of humanity” chasing a herd of cattle. “He was of gigantic stature, the body being covered with hair, and the head with long locks that fairly enveloped his neck and shoulders.” The creature stopped and stared at them for a few moments and then ran into a patch of woods “with great speed, leaping from twelve to fourteen feet at a time.”
The Athens Post., July 25, 1856, Athens, Tenn.:
"The Wild Man of Arkansas. A Bitter and a Gouger. The famous Arkansas wild man has been encountered lately near Sunflower Prairie. Chase was made after him by a party accompanied by dogs. One of the party in chase, who was mounted on a fleet horse, headed him just as he emerged from the woods to which he had taken when discovered, but as soon as he found himself at bay he bounded at the rider, tore him from his saddle, gouged out one of his eyes, and bit a large piece from his shoulder. He then threw the saddle and bridle from the horse mounted the animal and dashed off at full speed. The rider's party have been joined by a party of Indians and continued the chase, and a belief is entertainment in Arkansas that he will be captured. Described as an athletic man, about 6 feet four inches high, and covered with hair of a brownish cast. He has evidently been an adapt to the South western system of fighting biting and gouging."
In 2018 it was was reported that unexplained, large footprints were found near the Diamond Crater State Park, and sightings of Bigfoot were reported.
© Dark Ozarks 2021, 2023
Additional source: https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2018/oct/06/bigfoot-sightings-outpace-diamond-disco/