This may sound odd, but it wasn't that long ago that the people of the region were gripped with fear over the hundreds of sightings of UFOs, the "Men in Black" and the Mothman. It sounds like something out of a movie (and indeed a movie has been made based on the story), but it all happened close to Athens in the late 1960s.Gallipolis resident Jeff Wamsley grew up in Pt. Pleasant W.Va., just a few doors down from one of the first couples who reported spotting the Mothman. Wamsley has researched the Mothman story extensively over the years, and has written two books on the subject. Tonight, Wamsley is speaking at the Athens Public Library at 7:30. He will tell the story of the Mothman, including new information gleaned from his research. In addition to writing two books on the subject, Wamsley built a Web site devoted to the Mothman (www.mothmanlives.com), curates the Mothman Museum in Pt. Pleasant, and helps coordinate the annual Mothman Festival, also in Pt. Pleasant. Over a 13-month period in the late 1960s, the Gallipolis-Pt. Pleasant region, a short drive south of Athens, had hundreds of reported sightings of the Mothman, as well as other strange things. According to Wamsley's Web site, the first report of the Mothman's red eyes came in on Nov. 14, 1966 in Salem, W.Va. On that night, a man was watching television at home when his screen blanked out and he heard a strange noise outside. When he went outside, he saw two red circles, or red eyes, near his barn, according to the Web site. The man went inside and got his gun, but his dog ran toward the eyes and was never seen again.
View: Full Article | Source: Athens News