West of Dallas lies Lake worth, home of the lake worth monster, aka Goat man. In the summer of 1969, several eyewitnesses saw something that shocked and terrified them. They saw a creature that many described as over 7 ft tall in height, being a humanoid, having an excess of hair, scaly skinned beast. The beast was said to be bellowing a mournful cry as it made its way through the dense brush surrounding the lake. To this day, the legend of the Lake Worth monster reigns supreme in the area and has even given inspiration to a yearly celebration called the Lake Worth Monster bash. In an article by The Dallas Morning News, a Natural Resource Specialist of Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge, Michelle Villafranca states, “The Stories are enduring. The lore is enduring.”-regarding the Goatman of Lake Worth.
Lake Worth is vast in size, and 3,000 acres of woods, Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge wrap the entire northwest shore of the lake. That is a big area for the Goatman to roam! Numerous sightings of the Goatman have been reported over the years. Reports state that the Goatman is aquatic, which would explain the partial scales that cover its body. Sightings have also been notified of the Goatman climbing trees and moving amongst the treetops. It is said that the Goatman resides mainly around the west fork of the Trinty River.
The Goatman of Lake Worth is not the first legend of a half-goat humanoid hybrid. It’s not even the only goatman legend in Texas. History, lore, and folktales throughout the world and time are dotted with goatmen. In America, Texas, Maryland, and Kentucky are some of the states that have goatmen legends. The earliest mention of goatmen I found dates back to Roman and Greek Mythology with the Satyr and Faun.
The Satyr, a more brutal creature with horrid actions, is well known in Greek Mythology as a companion to the god of wine, Dionysus. Satyrs are described as half-man and half-beast with legs from anywhere between a horse to a goat.
Fauns, the benevolent counterpart of the Satyr, is found in Roman Mythology. Fauns were a symbol of peace and fertility and were only described as its top half being humanoid and its bottom half being that of a goat. Goatmen are well rooted in history across multiple cultures and religions.
A more sinister tale of another goatman in Texas really gave me the willies is the haunted tale of the Goatman of the Old Alton Bridge.
The Old Alton Bridge is located in Denton, Texas, well north of Lake Worth. There are a couple of backstories of the reasoning of why the bridge and area around it are haunted, and both are terrifying. The first story is terrible. It is the story of an African-American goat farmer that was hung from the bridge by the vile Ku Klux Klan. The farmer’s body was never found; some say he is the Goatman seeking vengeance while guarding the Old Alton Bridge.
Another explanation for the hauntings on and around the bridge is that evil rituals were performed in the general area, and the result was that a demon, the Goatman, which remains in the area. It is said that people have been thrown from the bridge while trying to cross or saw an apparition of the Goatman waiting for them on the other side of the bridge. Locals of Denton say the Goatman can be summoned by knocking on the bridge three times at midnight, and the Goatman will appear after a waft of putrid smell of rotten flesh fills the air. I’m just trying to figure out why anyone would want to summon this thing, yikes!!
Goatman-demon, ghost, simply an unknown cryptid yet to be discovered, who knows?! I believe with all the historical documentation and sightings that we are dealing with some kind of animal waiting to be discovered. We fear what we cannot explain or understand. The next time you’re in Texas, be on the lookout for your friendly, neighborhood Goatman!
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