We all know about vampires and werewolves, or at least we think we do. The legends and myths that inspired these monsters are sometimes surprisingly different, but no less chilling. In this series of posts, Monster Monday, we’ll investigate the monsters that have informed our modern notions, as well as some lesser known monsters. Today, we talk about the Pope Lick Monster.

The Pope Lick Monster is a creature that supposedly inhabits the area around the Norfolk Southern train trestle over the Pope Lick Creek in Louisville, Kentucky. It is said to be a human-goat hybrid that lures victims onto the trestle in order to murder them. Some say it uses hypnosis or mimics the voices of loved ones. In other stories, it attacks its victims with an ax and forces them to jump off the trestle. In still others, it jumps onto the tops of cars passing underneath the trestle.

There are several different origins for the Pope Lick monster. One is that it was a circus freak that escaped when a circus train detailed. Another is that it is the result of a Satanic ritual.

Contrary to popular belief, the trestle is not abandoned, and several people have actually been killed by trains looking for the Pope Lick Monster.