Mythos MappingCategory
Cryptids
19 stories about cryptids, retold with sources. Show these on the map →
Beast of Busco
A 1949 hunt for a supposedly giant turtle in Churubusco, Indiana, drew national attention and still echoes at the town's annual Turtle Days festival.
Fulk Lake, Churubusco, Indiana, USACole Hollow Road Monster (Cohomo)
In summer 1972, a large hairy creature near East Peoria, Illinois, drew more than 200 police calls and a volunteer search party.
Cole Hollow Road, East Peoria, Illinois, USALiving Pterosaur Sighting East of Kansas City
In 1974, several residents near Kansas City, Kansas reported seeing a large leathery-winged creature resembling an extinct pterosaur.
East of Kansas City, Kansas, USASturgis Bigfoot
A woman driving on a Black Hills highway near Sturgis reported a close-range encounter with a large bipedal creature in June 2025.
Boulder Canyon Highway near Sturgis, South Dakota, USABigfoot in Eastern Iowa
Reports of Bigfoot sightings across eastern Iowa counties have accumulated since the 1970s, with Yellow River State Forest drawing the most attention.
Eastern IowaBigfoot in Indiana (Yellowwood State Forest)
A father and his eleven-year-old daughter reported encountering a large, gray creature while turkey hunting in Yellowwood State Forest in May 2020.
Yellowwood State Forest, Brown County, Indiana, USABlue Man of the Ozarks
A Sasquatch-like creature said to have haunted the hills around Douglas County, Missouri, since 1865.
Douglas County, Missouri, USABozho (Lake Mendota Monster)
Sightings of a snake-like creature in Madison's Lake Mendota date to the 1860s and were later documented by Wisconsin folklorist Charles E. Brown.
Lake Mendota, Madison, Wisconsin, USAChicago Mothman
Since 2011, over 100 witnesses across Chicago have reported a large, winged humanoid with glowing eyes near Lake Michigan and O'Hare Airport.
Chicago, Illinois, USACrosley Monster
In July 2006, four teenagers reported being chased by a large bipedal creature with glowing eyes at Harsin Pond in Jennings County, Indiana.
Harsin Pond, Crosley Fish & Wildlife Area, North Vernon, Indiana, USAHastings Bigfoot Museum / Crossroads of America Bigfoot
A private museum in Hastings, Nebraska, preserves decades of Bigfoot evidence compiled by lifelong collector Harriett McFeely.
Bigfoot Crossroads of America Museum, Hastings, Nebraska, USAIllinois Thunderbird
A summer wave of giant-bird sightings centered on a July 1977 incident where witnesses said a massive bird lifted a boy from his backyard in Lawndale, Illinois.
Lawndale, Logan County, Illinois, USALake Michigan Mothman
Since 2011, dozens of witnesses across Chicago have reported seeing a large winged humanoid near Lake Michigan.
Chicago, Illinois, USAThe Loveland Frog
Two Ohio police officers reported encounters with a strange creature near the Little Miami River in 1972. One later said it was a large iguana missing its tail.
Loveland, Hamilton County, Ohio, USAPhantom Black Cats of Michigan
For decades, Michiganders have reported sightings of mysterious black big cats stalking fields and roads, though experts attribute most to escaped exotic pets.
Flint, Michigan, USAPhantom Kangaroo
In 1974, reports of a kangaroo roaming the Northwest Side of Chicago drew numerous sightings across Illinois and neighboring states before the reports ceased.
Schiller Woods, Schiller Park, Illinois, USAShawnee National Forest Bigfoot
A roadside statue named Sassy stands near Herod, Illinois, alongside dozens of reported Bigfoot sightings in the surrounding Shawnee National Forest.
Herod, Garden of the Gods, Illinois, USATuttle Bottoms Monster
A 1963 report of an anteater-snouted creature in Saline County, Illinois, spawned decades of conflicting sightings and escape theories.
Tuttle Bottoms, Harrisburg, Illinois, USAThe Flatwoods Monster
Witnesses in Braxton County, West Virginia, report a towering figure after a bright object comes down on a hilltop farm.
Flatwoods, West Virginia, USA