The West Virginia Monster

Magazine Overview

This document presents the account of the 'West Virginia Monster' as told by George Snitowsky to Paul Lieb, President of the Flying Saucer Research Institute. The story details an encounter on September 13, 1952, near Sutton, West Virginia, where Snitowsky and his family experienced a car breakdown followed by the appearance of a large, man-like creature and a luminescent spheroid.

The Encounter

George Snitowsky was driving with his wife and 18-month-old son near Braxton County, West Virginia, when his car suddenly died. Despite a relatively new battery, it showed no indication of failing. A strange, sickening odor, likened to a mixture of ether and burnt sulphur, began to fill the car, causing the baby to wail and cough. Snitowsky checked under the hood but found nothing wrong. The odor intensified, prompting him to close the car windows.

He then noticed a dazzling, violet-hued light emanating from the woods. Upon opening the window for a clearer view, the nauseating smell returned, causing him and his wife to gag. While attempting to start the car, Snitowsky felt a hot, tingling sensation all over his body, described as similar to a leg falling asleep.

He approached the source of the light and smelled a luminescent spheroid, which he described as being like a frosted street lamp, enlarged hundreds of times. It appeared to float above the ground. As he moved closer, thousands of needle-like vibrations irritated his skin, forcing him to retreat to the car.

Suddenly, his wife Edith screamed, and Snitowsky saw a figure standing on the fringe of the road, about 30 feet away. He described it as being about eight or nine feet tall, in the general shape of a man, with a head, shoulders, and a fat, bloated body, silhouetted against the light beam from the spheroid. He could not discern its features.

Snitowsky fumbled with the car door, climbed inside, and grabbed a knife. He and his wife huddled on the floor with the baby. An arm, described as long and spindly with two soft ends, reached across the windshield, seemingly examining the car's surface. After a few minutes, the creature moved back toward the woods without any aggressive actions, its lower torso appearing as a single solid mass that glided across the road.

After the creature vanished, Snitowsky noticed the spheroid ascend slowly, making intermittent stops before rising to about 3,000 feet, where it swung back and forth like a pendulum. It then swooped up in an elliptical arc and disappeared with a dazzling trail of light. Miraculously, the car started without any trouble when Snitowsky tried again.

Corroboration and Evidence

Upon reaching a diner, the Snitowskys were too shaken to tell anyone what had happened, fearing they would be dismissed as crackpots. The next morning, Snitowsky noticed a dark, fork-shaped discoloration on the car's hood, as if the metal had been singed.

The story of the 'Sutton Story' broke shortly after, but the Snitowskys had not yet revealed their experience. Mrs. Kathleen May of Flatwoods, West Virginia, later reported seeing a 'monster 10 feet tall with a bright green body and a blood-red face' moving with a 'sliding, floating' motion, along with six boys.

A. Lee Stewart, Jr., co-editor of the Braxton Democrat, was one of the first outsiders on the scene. He noted the same sickening odor and found 'skid marks' where the creature had stood. Stewart, a former Air Force member familiar with chemical warfare gases, stated he had never smelled anything like it before.

Stewart also found burnt and broken branches where the flying object carrying the creature had allegedly landed. The Flying Saucer Research Institute, which has members worldwide, has been investigating such sightings for over two years and found the Sutton, West Virginia, story to be credible, with concrete evidence and reports from reliable individuals.

Flying Saucer Research Institute's Stance

Paul Lieb, President of the Flying Saucer Research Institute, notes that while many accounts of flying saucers and strange beings collapse under scrutiny, the Sutton, West Virginia, story gains credence due to concrete evidence and the reliability of the witnesses. The Institute's purpose is to investigate UFO sightings and similar phenomena to separate factual accounts from hysterical yarns. They acknowledge that logical explanations may exist for many sightings but hope for an explanation for the fork-shaped stain found on Mr. Snitowsky's car.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The issue focuses on a specific, detailed account of a close encounter with a non-human entity and a UFO. The editorial stance, as represented by the Flying Saucer Research Institute and Paul Lieb, is one of serious investigation into unexplained aerial phenomena and encounters, aiming to uncover factual evidence and provide logical explanations where possible, while acknowledging the existence of phenomena that currently defy easy explanation. The recurring theme is the investigation of UFOs and alleged encounters with extraterrestrial or unknown beings, emphasizing the need for credible evidence and witness testimony.