By Tim Binnall
A city in Illinois celebrated its place in cryptozoological history with the unveiling of a massive statue of a Bigfoot-like creature that was spotted in the community multiple times back in 1973. According to a local media report, the nearly nine-foot-tall bronze piece depicts a mysterious bipedal beast that has come to be known as the 'Big Muddy Monster.' Fifty years ago this past weekend, residents of Murphysboro first reported seeing the curious creature, which has been likened to Sasquatch, and their accounts were so compelling that the local police department went so far as launch a hunt for the eerie interloper that had left the community on edge.
Alas, an organized search for the beast failed to find the creature and the sightings, which garnered national media attention at the time, eventually came to an end later that year. Be that as it may, the Big Muddy Monster went on to become part of Murphysboro lore. Although the city was initially reticent to embrace the beast, much like many other small communities with paranormal incidents in their past, they reportedly came around after the case received renewed interest in recent years following the release of a documentary about the 1973 Bigfoot flap. Murphysboro's newfound appreciation for the 'monster' culminated this past weekend with a festival commemorating the 50th anniversary of the first sighting and the unveiling of the 800-pound statue depicting the creature.
Speaking to a local TV station at the event, Mayor Will Stephens mused that "we think about Metropolis and Superman, we think about Chester and Popeye, and all of the marketing and things that come out of those characters, connected to those communities. So we think this will be very much the same as that." He went on to astutely observe that "where there's Bigfoot, there's big bucks" and expressed hope that the statue can serve as something of a tourist attraction that will people to the city. Remarkably, the creation of the sizeable piece relied on insights from the Murphysboro Police Department files from 1973 which gives it a wholly unique appearance unlike the run-of-the-mill Bigfoot lawn ornament popular around the country.