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All the United States West Virginia Point Pleasant Mothman Statue
AO Edited

Mothman Statue

This red-eyed chrome beast pays homage to the popular modern myth of West Virginia's insectoid monster.

Point Pleasant, West Virginia

Added By
Eric Grundhauser
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Mothman statue   Michelle Cassidy/Atlas Obscura
Mothman statue   Michelle Cassidy/Atlas Obscura
  Katherine Bowman/CC BY 2.0
  Richie Diesterheft/CC BY 2.0
  Adam Moss/CC BY 2.0
Plaque under the statue   sally1987 / Atlas Obscura User
  AmyUrbs / Atlas Obscura User
“The Men in Black.” (Photo of a Photo in the museum)   Doc Nicholas / Atlas Obscura User
  paigeelizabeth3660 / Atlas Obscura User
  Amy Meredith/CC BY 2.0
  RockerGirl70 / Atlas Obscura User
Mothman Booty 08.16.2021   Raven Traveler / Atlas Obscura User
Hemi visiting the Mothman Statue.   Wild Ginger Exploration / Atlas Obscura User
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About

Made popular by the book The Mothman Prophesies and the movie of the same name, the legend of West Virginia's mothman has become so well known that this urban cryptid legend even has his own massive statue.

According to legend, the mothman is a large mysterious monster who has been seen at various times soaring through the skies in the region of a former World War II munitions site, just north of Point Pleasant. Beginning in 1966, multiple sources started claiming to see the humanoid beast with a huge 10-foot wingspan flying in the West Virginia skies. Legend holds that the creature has huge red eyes and the face of an insect. The mothman's origins have been attributed to everything from aliens to military experiments to the plain old supernatural.

No matter what the mythic creature's true nature is, the 12-foot tall polished steel statue in downtown Point Pleasant, pretty much assures that that the legend of the mothman will continue to stick in the cultural conscience, which in turn almost guarantees that "sightings" of the creature will continue for generations to come.    

Related Tags

Ao Loves Halloween Statues Mythology Monsters

Know Before You Go

Make this an AO twofer by going to the Mothman Museum, literally at the corner, all of 30 steps away from the statue. Make the visit a three-fer with a visit six miles north up Route 62 to the TNT Area, the site of the first reported Mothman sightings.

Community Contributors

Added By

EricGrundhauser

Edited By

Raven Traveler, rugby007, AmyUrbs, Samir S Patel...

  • Raven Traveler
  • rugby007
  • AmyUrbs
  • Samir S Patel
  • Doc Nicholas
  • RockerGirl70
  • sally1987
  • paigeelizabeth3660
  • Michelle Cassidy
  • amygoan
  • Wild Ginger Exploration

Published

July 1, 2013

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Sources
  • http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/12036
  • http://www.asylum.com/2010/03/10/mothman-statue-point-pleasant-west-virginia-john-keller-mothman-festival/
  • http://www.roadsidegalore.com/2010/02/the-mothman-statue-point-pleasant-west-virginia/
Mothman Statue
201 4th St
Point Pleasant, West Virginia, 25550
United States
38.842573, -82.138546
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Mothman Museum

Point Pleasant, West Virginia

miles away

Point Pleasant Battlefield Memorial

Point Pleasant, West Virginia

miles away

Silver Bridge Disaster Memorial

Gallipolis, Ohio

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Point Pleasant

Point Pleasant

West Virginia

Places 5
Stories 1

Nearby Places

Mothman Museum

Point Pleasant, West Virginia

miles away

Point Pleasant Battlefield Memorial

Point Pleasant, West Virginia

miles away

Silver Bridge Disaster Memorial

Gallipolis, Ohio

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Point Pleasant

Point Pleasant

West Virginia

Places 5
Stories 1

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