Mothman is a cryptid creature whose story starts in Point Pleasant, West Virginia in November of 1966. The accounts of this mysterious creature vary, but they often involve driving too fast on this single road right outside of town and sneaking out to an abandoned ammunition manufacturing facility in the eerie site locals refer to as the TNT area.

This plant was known as the West Virginia Ordnance Works and was abandoned following World War II. The site soon became a dumping ground for toxic wastes and chemicals before being given to the government as a wild life reserve. Because this location was abandoned, it became a popular for drag racing or a “lover’s hang out” for teens in the 60s. Many of the Mothman sightings were around this general area and often occurred at night.

Mothman’s final sighting in Point Pleasant was the night before the collapse of the Silver Bridge which connected Point Pleasant, WV to Gallipolis, OH. Interestingly, no one who actually witnessed the bridge collapse reported seeing Mothman at the scene. Future retellings of the bridge’s story, however, would eventually come to include Mothman as a character. Mothman has become more than a cryptid creature for the residents of Point Pleasant; he’s an actual force in the world that is a significant part of their meaning-making.

Mothman’s story did not end with the bridge collapse in Point Pleasant. The cryptid’s presence in Point Pleasant was so impactful that the town adopted it as a central part of its identity—erecting a massive metal statue dedicated to the monster and the tragedy it symbolizes for the town. Point Pleasant exists the way it does today because of Mothman’s particular assembling power, and because of the publics this power has managed to create/attract.

*** Much of the information on this page and throughout this website has been adapted from this documentary as well as other Mothman related sources.