Overview
Fouke is a town of about 800 people in Miller County, in the far southwest corner of Arkansas, on U.S. Highway 71 roughly 15 miles southeast of Texarkana. Around it lie wooded creek bottoms and swamps, including Boggy Creek, which gave its name to the region's most famous creature.
Local folklore traces a large, hairy, man-like beast in the area back to the 1940s. Witnesses describe it as about seven feet tall, covered in reddish-brown hair, with red eyes and a foul smell somewhere between skunk and wet dog. It is known for leaving three-toed tracks, which sets it apart from most Bigfoot reports.
The creature became national news in May 1971, when the Ford family said something reached through a window of their newly rented house and that they shot at it. Texarkana Gazette reporter Jim Powell covered the story and the name 'Fouke Monster' stuck. Within weeks, other residents reported seeing it cross Highway 71.
In 1972, Texarkana filmmaker Charles B. Pierce turned the stories into The Legend of Boggy Creek, a docudrama shot on a $160,000 budget with locals playing themselves. It was a surprise hit and spawned several sequels. Today Fouke welcomes visitors with the Monster Mart souvenir store and the yearly Boggy Creek Festival.
Visiting
Where: Fouke, Miller County, AR, on U.S. 71 about 15 miles southeast of Texarkana.
Access: The town, the Monster Mart souvenir store and the Miller County Historical and Family Museum are open to the public. The creek bottoms around town are swampy, snake- and tick-country and largely private; ask permission before going onto any land, and do not approach homes tied to old sightings.
Events: Boggy Creek Festival, held yearly since 2013; it raised over $3,000 for the Fouke School District in 2019.
Timeline
- 1946Local folklore places the earliest sightings of the creature.
- 1955A 14-year-old boy reports a reddish-haired creature that ignores birdshot.
- May 2, 1971The Ford family reports a creature reaching through a window and fires at it.
- May 23, 1971Three people report an ape-like creature crossing U.S. 71.
- Aug 23, 1972The Legend of Boggy Creek is released.
- 1977-2011Sequels and follow-ups including Return to Boggy Creek (1977) and Boggy Creek II (1985).
- 2013Fouke starts the Boggy Creek Festival.
Reported sightings
Fouke area, Miller County
1955 On the record
A 14-year-old boy said he saw a creature with reddish-brown hair sniffing the air, and that it did not react when it was shot at with birdshot. Investigator Joe Nickell later suggested a black bear as a likely explanation.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgFord family house, Fouke
May 2, 1971 On the record
Elizabeth Ford said a creature reached through a screened window while she slept on a couch. Her husband Bobby and his brother Don chased it off and fired several shots, believing they hit it, but no blood was found. Investigators noted three-toed tracks, scratch marks on the porch and damage to a window and siding. The Fords had moved in less than a week earlier.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgScott Keith's soybean field, near Fouke
May 1971 On the record
Three-toed footprints were found in a farmer's soybean field. Game warden Carl Galyon examined them but could not confirm they were real. Archaeologist Frank Schambach later said there was a 99 percent chance the tracks were a hoax.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgU.S. Highway 71 near Fouke
May 23, 1971 On the record
D. C. Woods Jr., Wilma Woods and Mrs. R. H. Sedgass reported seeing an ape-like creature cross U.S. 71. Their report came weeks after the Ford incident, while the story was in the news.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgDry creek bed about 5 miles south of Fouke
1998 On the record
Wikipedia records a 1998 sighting in a dry creek bed south of town, following a year in which about forty sightings were reported in the area. Details of the witnesses were not given.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgEvidence
Three-toed footprints (1971) Disputed
Tracks about 17 inches long found near the Ford house and in a soybean field. A game warden could not confirm them; archaeologist Frank Schambach judged them almost certainly a hoax.
Damage to the Ford house Unexplained
Scratches on the porch and damage to a window and siding were reported after the 1971 incident.
What each side says
What witnesses and researchers report
Supporters note that reports come from several unrelated families over decades, and that witnesses consistently describe the same reddish-brown hair, red eyes, strong smell and three-toed tracks.
Researchers who take the Fords seriously stress that the family called in police and the press quickly, and that physical damage to the house was documented.
What skeptics and scientists suggest
Skeptics such as Joe Nickell suggest black bears as the source of at least some reports. Three-toed tracks, unlike any known ape, make many researchers suspect hoaxing, and archaeologist Frank Schambach put the odds of the 1971 tracks being faked at 99 percent.
The 1972 film blurred the line between fact and drama, and skeptics note that the wave of reports grew once the story was famous. All evidence remains anecdotal.
Open questions
- Why do Fouke reports describe three toes when most Bigfoot tracks show five?
- What caused the damage at the Ford house in 1971?
Did you know?
- Several Fouke locals played themselves in The Legend of Boggy Creek.
- Box-office figures for the 1972 film are disputed, ranging from about $4.8 million in rentals to claims of $20-25 million.