“I don’t care of you believe me or not” was the serious, straightforward introduction I was given to a possible wolfman sighting in the autumn of 2013. It was at this point that my long-time friend Andrew* told me of not just one encounter, but two separate encounters with more than one strange, bipedal creatures out hunting game near Norton, Ohio.

Andrew normally works night shifts, which means traveling quiet, darkened roads is an everyday occurrence for him. One cold autumn night in particular, while traveling down Johnson Road bordering Silver Creek Metro Park, what he saw was anything but routine. Approximately 50 yards from the intersection with Medina Line Road, he stopped his car when two deer raced across the road heading south. But what caught his attention was what they were running from.

“I would place them somewhere between 6’6” and 7′ tall. They chased the two deer (which were both smaller, by the way) out across the street and into the woods. They ran [in formation]… one in front, two behind, kind of next to each other. They were roughly 30-40 yards behind the deer. They were bipedal, very muscular, and fast. Lightning fast. It all happened in just a few seconds. I couldn’t describe any features, unfortunately; I’m assuming it was either a new moon or cloudy because it was very dark, but they were definitely a dark color… maybe a chocolate-brown or a black color.”

I pressed him for any more detail. After all, there have been Bigfoot sightings in Ohio. “They say that Bigfoot has long arms that swing when it runs, and it runs like a human. Whatever these were, they weren’t Bigfoot. I can’t describe how they moved, but they didn’t move like a person.”

Less than a month later, Andrew was heading home on Johnson Road. As he passed a moonlit cornfield, something ran in front of his car.

“The fields had full-grown cornstalks, but I don’t know exact heights only that the cornstalks were taller than me by a head and I’m 6 feet tall. This time, [my sighting of two creatures] was a quick flash because there was no open land to it. They basically leapt the road as they broke the corn and landed about 10-15 feet into the field on the other side and kept running. This time, the pair that I saw in the moonlight, the first was black and the second was black with white or silver on its chest and back…. Since the first three I saw were all a solid color, that means there must be at least four different creatures.”

On October 11, 2014, I set out with Andrew and his wife to see what we could find in the way of evidence that whatever he saw might still be around. The location of the first sighting is bordered to the south by Silver Creek Metro Park. On the other side of the road, there are three or four houses with a large field behind them. As Andrew pointed out, the creatures passed through the field and past the houses on the night he saw them, meaning these creatures must not have much fear of being near human habitation. The second sighting was on a slight hill between two large fields in a rather remote area. Not only were both places quite close to each other, they are both in close proximity to Silver Creek.

We had planned an investigation of Silver Creek Metro Park, arriving at dusk, but the reservoir lake and surrounding park was alive with bonfires and hundreds of people celebrating the second annual Fall Family Outing making any chance of searching for wolfman-like creatures too difficult. A follow-up trip is still slated for (hopefully) this winter.

Other witnesses may exist, but their reluctance to go public is understandable. If you saw large dark creatures running on two feet, you too might think people would call you crazy. But there is an earlier account worth mentioning here which may give more credence to these sightings. In Linda Godfrey‘s book Real Wolfmen, there’s a 2010 story titled “The Persistent Chicken Thief” (p. 262-7) about a family put in contact with Godfrey after several incidents on their farm. Their son Drew was one witness to a large, dark creature over six feet tall lurking in the treeline in March:

The lone rooster began to squawk and the creature let out a fierce growl, then all went silent. Drew heard what sounded like something jumping back over the fence, and the rooster squealed as if in pain. At that point, Drew grabbed a gun and flashlight and ran outside, searching the fence from the front porch with his light. He saw the rooster but it appeared to have something dark over its middle. It slowly dawned on Drew that the “something dark” was the muzzle of a creature with two glaring eyes. “Whatever it was,” he said, “it seemed to look through me. It turned my blood cold and I was paralyzed with fear. I’m a hunter… I’m used to being in the wilderness and encountering bigger animals. Those animals don’t scare me like this thing did… When I encountered this thing the first time, I got the feeling that it wanted to hurt me. After researching something I’ve never believed in, I’m convinced that this thing is a dogman.”

Loud howls and the sound of something walking on two legs in the gravel driveway plagued the family for many months. The family kept a detailed diary of their strange events, but unfortunately Godfrey has since lost contact with them. While the exact location of the farm is not known, it is in the vicinity of Norton, Ohio.

In May 2010, Kristen Miller of Wadsworth reported seeing “a large cat with a long tail” resembling a mountain lion at dusk in Silver Creek Metro Park and reported it to park officials. There have also been reports of black bears in the area, though neither of these creatures can run on two feet, nor do they come close to being ix to seven feet tall.

Silver Creek is a tributary for the aptly named Wolf Creek. Long ago, Timber Wolves were common across Ohio, though as farming developed among early settlers, these furry canines became less of an accepted part of the wilderness and more of a nuisance as the animals hunted and killed many sheep. Thousands of Ohio wolves were hunted, trapped, and poisoned in an effort to eradicate them from the area. 1842 marked the final killing of a wolf in Ohio and the end of the wolf’s presence here. While wolves have been driven from Ohio, perhaps something far more frightening has replaced them.

The mystery of the Silver Creek Wolfmen is far from solved. At this time, I consider my investigation ongoing. Anyone who has witnessed anything similar or discovered any possible evidence of these creatures can contact me directly at [email protected] or tell their story in the comments below.

* Due to the bizarre nature of incidents, the witness wishes that his real name not be disclosed.