Saturday, December 8, 2018

THE VAN METER VISITOR

 
In the autumn of 1903, respectable residents of Van Meter, Iowa began reporting a somewhat humanoid animal that gave off a foul odor as it darted through the air with incredible speed on large, leathery bat-like wings. Weirder still, the creature could seemingly emit a brilliant flash of light from its horned head.

A tool salesman, U. G. Griffith, shot at the beast as it darted over roofs in Van Meter's business district. The creature seemed unperturbed by the assault.

The following night Peter Dunn fired on the creature with similarly disappointing results. He, however, was able to take a plaster cast of its "great three-toed tracks."

On the third night, local, O. V. White, took his shot at the creature from the rooms above his hardware store as it perched atop a nearby telephone pole. Another proprietor, Sidney Gregg, who was also sleeping in his store awoke to hear the report from White's firearm and spotted the creature hopping away like a kangaroo.

The local high school teacher, who also spotted the enigma, thought it looked like some prehistoric throwback.

J. L. Platt Jr. heard a commotion coming from an abandoned coal mine.

Soon the townsfolk were armed and on the hunt for the beast, which had done nothing but fly around at night.  A monster is a monster, I guess.

When the mob gathered at the mine, they could hear an unearthly ruckus that was described to the Des Moines Daily News as "though Satan and a regiment of imps were coming forth for battle."
The creature emerged from the tunnel alongside a smaller iteration of its kind. A bright light was emitted from their heads and they flew off into the night.

When the pair returned in the morning, the townsfolk were still waiting and opened fire on them both. Once again, the creatures seemed unfazed by the attack and flew into the depths of the mine.
They were never seen again.

The denizens of Van Meter today are rather split as to whether they believe the event ever took place. Those who are old enough to have actually known some of the men involved are convinced these were sensible, sober Iowans. They wouldn't have been prone to fanciful stories or our insatiable 21st century appetite for their 15 minutes of fame.

Was it a hoax? I'd hate to be the poor fellow who thought pulling a Scooby Doo style prank on such well armed citizens was in anyway a good idea. From these accounts, it sounds like enough bullets were spent to make Bonnie and Clyde seem like they got a light peppering.

If we had that plaster cast we might have a better handle on just what was seen. A large migratory bird that locals were unaccustomed to seeing? Maybe, but we're back to all those bullets.

Maybe it was classic yellow journalism, but usually those stories were wholly fabricated. Locals in Van Meter appear to know the legend well, as if it were passed along to succeeding generations.
Whether it was all hokum or hocus pocus, the Van Meter Visitor--a long overlooked small town monster-- is quickly finding a home among more famous local legends like Bigfoot, the Mothman, and the Jersey Devil. I'm sure someone's selling a t-shirt somewhere.

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