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The Michigan Dogman has a long
history - Thomas RocheAuthor Linda
S. Godfrey has gathered actual
reports of a werewolf-like creature
called the Michigan Dogman and
chronicles the werewolf in local
history and folklore
When
Linda S. Godfrey first heard reports
of a wolf-like creature that stood
on its hind legs like a man and
roamed the wilderness areas around
the Great Lakes, she took these
stories with a grain of salt. A
person who writes books about
cryptids for a living, Godfrey was
accustomed to her readers contacting
her with weird reports of varying
value.
At best, Godfrey hoped that a little
research would show that reported
sightings of the 'Michigan Dogman'
were numerous enough to warrant a
publishable book. She didn't set out
to prove or disprove them, just to
investigate enough to decide whether
she had enough material for another
publication.
What Godfrey discovered was a long
and well-documented history of
Michigan Dogman sightings dating all
the way back the earliest
exploration of the Great Lakes
territories by French traders during
the 19th century. In the earliest
recorded sightings, the man-wolf
creature is referred to as the 'loup-garou,'
which is French for "werewolf."
Is Michigan Really Werewolf Country?
Cryptids are legendary creatures
like the Loch Ness Monster, Bigfoot,
and Ogo Pogo, that are widely
believed to exist, though no
scientific support has yet to be
discovered. Cryptid creatures
usually exist in legend and myth and
are also widely reported in actual
sightings, leaving doubt as to
whether they are supernatural or
natural creatures, or whether they
are just plain hokum and fraud
pumped up to sell books. Researchers
who specialize in the study of
cryptids are sometimes called
cryptozoologists.
According to a legend that dates
back to Indian tribes who lived in
Canada and the Great Lakes area
before the white man ever came to
Michigan, the 'loup-garou' is a man
who under is turned into an enraged
animal by means of enchantment. This
'loup garou' (the term is French for
'wolf man') roams the Great Lakes
wilderness at night looking for
prey, returning to his home before
morning.
During the day the 'loup garou'
grows ever more sickly and afraid,
while each night he grows more and
more fierce. The only way to break
the spell that binds the 'loup garou'
is for someone to recognize the him
in his Dogman form and draw blood.
Once the spell has been broken, it
must never be spoken of by either
Dogman or his rescuer, or he will
return to his unfortunate enchanted
state.
Books By Linda S. Godfrey About
Great Lakes Werewolves
Since hearing those first Michigan
Dogman reports, Godfrey has
published not one, but four
best-selling books on the
phenomenon: The Beast of Bray Road
(2003), Hunting the American
Werewolf (2006), Weird Michigan
(2006), and Werewolves: Mysteries,
Legends, and Unexplained Phenomena
(with Rosemary Ellen Guiley, 2008).
Godfrey also maintains a website
about the Dogman at
BeastOfBrayRoad.com where visitors
can report new sightings and keep up
on the latest news. The site iis
regularly featured at the Weird
Michigan and Weird Writers websites.
For more general information on the
Michigan Dogman as well as links to
books, tapes, movies, video clips,
first person accounts, and other
related items, visit
Michigan-Dogman.com.
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