Conclusion

Throughout the research and all the articles I have read I have come to believe that the Lake Worth monster known as the Goatman is not real just a misunderstanding of what happened.  The stories that have been told throughout my life and since that summer when they originated seem to be a little overdone, as if just made up to fit what they want to believe.  The creature that was seen in 1969 could have been other things besides a goatman.  It has been said that it could have been a large bobcat or an escaped primate.  The goatman disappeared after that summer when school started, it makes it seem like it was just high school kids pulling pranks.  I do not believe the goatman is or was real, there is just so many other things it could have been.

Evidence

In the summer of 1969 on Lake Worth, there were many sitings and documentations of the strange creature known as the goatman.  From the first siting to the last, there were many stories and reports eyewitnesses made to police officers.  The first reported siting was the most significant.  This report was on July 10, 1969 in an article in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, written by Jim Marrs just a few hours after the initial siting.  Marrs details the siting by three couples who saw a half goat, half man creature with scales jump on one of their cars.  In doing so, the creature left a eighteen inch scratch on the car (Stefko).  There are many other eyewitness accounts.  One encounter that stands out occurred shortly after the first reported siting.  Police officers in addition to thirty or forty citizens heard the creature squalling and watched it run up and down a hill several times. When they started to go after the goatman, he threw a tire down the hill at the cars.  Photographs were taken at that time, but none have a good likeness of the creature (Lindseth).



Stefko, Jill. "Lake Worth Monster – Unique Hairy Biped Possible Kin of Big Foot." Suite101.com: Online Magazine and Writers' Network. 22 Sept. 2010. Web. 21 Oct. 2010. http://www.suite101.com/content/lake-worth-monster--unique-hairy-biped-possible-kin-of-big-foot-a288925.

Lindseth, Shawn. "Awesome Or Off-Putting: The Fish/Goat/Man Monster of Lake Worth-The Mystery Casebook." The Mystery Casebook-Bigfoot, Loch Ness, Sasquatch, Articles, Photographs, Video. 3 Dec. 2007. Web. 25 Oct. 2010. http://www.mysterycasebook.com/awesomeoffputting.html.

Stories

The goat man has been around for decades and has grown to be popular.  Some people have personally heard the stories of this strange monster of the small town of Lake Worth from others.  However, some people do not know the stories of the local goatman.  The Lake Worth monster was first sited during the summer of 1969 by three couples, who then went to the police station to report what had happened to them. They told the police that a scale and fur covered monster resembling a goat and a man had jumped on the hood of their car and left an eighteen inch scratch down the side of it.  That same day, the first siting was published in an article in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram by Jim Marrs (Stefko).  The monster was spotted running up and down a hill and then the creature threw a car tire at a crowd that was gathered below (Jackson).  The people then fled back to their cars as the tire was thrown. The monster then ran through a clearing into a thick wooded area. 

Stefko, Jill. "Lake Worth Monster – Unique Hairy Biped Possible Kin of Big Foot." Suite101.com: Online Magazine and Writers' Network. 22 Sept. 2010. Web. 21 Oct. 2010. http://www.suite101.com/content/lake-worth-monster--unique-hairy-biped-possible-kin-of-big-foot-a288925.

Jackson, Storm. "The Paranormal Files: The Lake Worth Texas Monster." Associated Content - Associatedcontent.com. Storm Jackson, 3 Aug. 2007. Web. 19 Oct. 2010. http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/332852/the_paranormal_files_the_lake_worth.html.

Background

The goatman originally came about in the summer of 1969.  The first siting was made by three couples who were parked on the shore of Lake Worth.  The monster leapt from a tree and onto a car.  According to one of the men, he saw a fur and scale covered creature that appeared to be half man-half goat when it jumped onto one of their cars around midnight (Brooks).  During the months after this first  siting, people armed with guns went hunting and searching for the creature.  Some searchers claim to have found sheep with broken necks and believed the monster killed them (Jackson). 



 Brooks, Frank. "The Lake Worth Monster." UFO Digest Provides Video Proof of Ufos, Alien Abduction and the Paranormal on Our Website, Newsletter and Newsfeed. 17 July 2007. Web. 19 Oct. 2010. http://www.ufodigest.com/news/0707/lakeworth.html.

Jackson, Storm. "The Paranormal Files: The Lake Worth Texas Monster." Associated Content - Associatedcontent.com. Storm Jackson, 3 Aug. 2007. Web. 19 Oct. 2010. http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/332852/the_paranormal_files_the_lake_worth.html.

The Monster of Lake Worth

The Lake Worth monster has been around for many years and there are numerous ideas about what it could possibly be.  I grew up hearing stories about this strange creature that resides in the area just a short drive away from where I live.  I have chosen the Lake Worth monster as my topic because a few of my close relatives have had encounters with the monster and because of the stories I have heard all my life.  I am unsure of whether to believe that this creature is real or just a misunderstanding of what happened those many years ago.