The Crawfordsville Spook
New Year. Same little weirdos.
Hi everyone, I’m Gary. I thought it might be good to reintroduce myself since this project has gained a lot of new readers in the last month. I’m originally from Oklahoma, a place you’ll hear me reference a lot of my writing. These days I live in Southern California. I’ve been a technical writer. A journalist. A writing tutor. And an adjunct professor. Currently I work for a popular digital media company as a script editor. Usually when people learn that I’m a “professional” writer they want to know “what” I write. Which, if you’re writer, you know can be hard to answer. I’ve tried my best, and you can read that effort over here if you’d like to know more.
And this is my passion project: Monster of The Week.
I research encounters with the weird, attempt to piece the entire story together from primary and secondary sources, and then decide if I believe the creature was real.
All while having a little fun in the process.
This week, I’m taking a look at an encounter that could have been lost to history had it not been for the writings of famed researcher, writer, and noted investigator of the strange Charles Fort.
In September, 1891, a “horrible apparition” appeared in the sky over Crawfordsville, Indiana. Most modern articles call it a monster, but original reports refer to it as “The Spook,” so that’s what I’ve chosen to call it — SEO be damned. This is the story of the Crawfordsville Spook.
The Sighting
It was a little after two-in-the-morning as Marshall McIntyre and Bill Gray were preparing for their morning shift as ice mongers, delivering blocks of ice to local homes and businesses. Which, other than the 2 a.m. shift, sounds like a sweet gig. The duo were hitching up the ice wagon when McIntyre was overcome by a sensation of “awe and dread.” Looking to the sky he beheld the horrible apparition approaching from the west. It was “most gruesome in aspect,” according to McIntyre.
Here is how he described the Spook to the Crawfordsville Daily Journal:
“It was about eighteen feet long and eight feet wide and moved rapidly through the air by means of several pairs of side fins. . . . It was pure white and had no definite shape or form, resembling somewhat a great white shroud fitted with propelling fins. There was no tail or head visible but there was one great flaming eye, and a sort of a wheezing plaintive sound was emitted from a mouth which was invisible. It flapped like a flag in the winds as it came on and frequently gave a great squirm as though suffering unutterable agony.”
McIntyre and Gray watched the Spook for several minutes as it swept “slowly and majestically” in a circle over them. According to the Journal article, the duo eventually retreated into the barn fearing that the creature was, and this is a direct quote, “after their bacon.” At one point the apparition flew off toward the city limits, but soon returned to hover over them again. After an hour they decided to risk retreating and drove the wagon off toward the ice house. Thankfully the Spook stayed behind, moving in undulating circles around the barn.
The Journal described the men as “worked up” over the incident, which they attributed to the supernatural.
“They will carry a Springfield rifle to the barn the next time they go and if the apparition again comes flapping around they will drill a hole in him with an ounce of cold lead,” the article concludes.
Ah yes. The old “If it scares you, shoot it,” approach to the unknown.
Had the Spook only been sighted by McIntyre and Gray it’s likely this encounter would have been written off. But at least two other people saw the creature that evening.
The Reverend’s Encounter
Shortly after midnight (so, a few hours before McIntyre and Gray’s sighting) G.W. Switzer, pastor of the local First Methodist Church, stepped into his backyard to fetch some water from the well.
Similar to McIntyre, Switzer also reported being overcome by a strange sensation that he couldn't explain. It drew his gaze to the sky where he came face-to-amorphous-face with the Spook. He went back inside and woke his wife. Together they stood in the backyard and watched the apparition glide through the air above their home.
“The night was very dark and very still. No breath of air stirring, but propelled by some unseen force [the creature came] sweeping from the southwest. It was about 16 feet long and eight feet wide, resembling a mass of floating drapery. Shaped like a fleecy, milk white cloud. Or like a demon in a shroud,” Switzer told the Journal. “It was much too low to be a cloud and moved far too swiftly, besides there was no wind at all. It seemed to work about as it swam through the air in a writhing, twisting manner similar to the glide of some serpents.”
The story of the Crawfordsville Spook was picked up by a few other newspapers, including the Indianapolis Journal. Switzer, given his position as a pastor, became the source of truth for the creature. He received inquires from all over the country asking him to recount his sighting. Though some letter writers were more than skeptical. According to the Journal Switzer received an invitation from the Keeley Institute for Inebriates inviting him to check in for a stay.
But eventually the buzz around the Crawfordsville Spook died down, and the encounter was lost to time. That is, until a certain research of the strange came calling years later.
Charles and the Spook
This isn’t the place for a complete biography of Charles Fort, or an examination of his complicated legacy. But it’s important that you at least understand the basics. So here is as brief a breakdown as I can provide without getting too reductionist.
Charles Fort was born in New York in 1874. In 1916 he inherited a small fortune from his uncle and spent the rest of his life as a writer and researcher investigating phenomena that was “discounted by science”. An eccentric man, he developed a cult following that bemused him to no end. After his death, several other researchers took up his cause and “Fortean Research” was born.
Fort was also famous for having very little coherence to his theories. Being a general bad sport about the field of science. And claiming that he “believed nothing he had ever written.” A fellow writer and researcher at the time labeled him the “Patron Saint of Cranks.” But his erstwhile legacy lives on in the very serious field of Fortean Research.
All of which is to say, Fort is a complicated shadow that looms over many old cases of strange phenomena. Including this one!
Fort uncovered a report about the Spook in a copy of the Brooklyn Eagle sometime between 1920 and 1930. Skeptical of the entire account, he began investigating. Fort found the then-present address of Switzer (who lived in Michigan at the time) and wrote to him. To his delight, Switzer wrote back and promised to give him a full account of his sighting. Unfortunately that was the end of their correspondence.
Still, Fort decided to include the account of the Crawfordsville Spook in his 1931 book Lo!, where he concludes (sarcastically): “Altogether, I think that I make here as creditable and scientific a demonstration as any by any orthodox scientist, so far encountered by us. The problem is: Did a “headless monster” appear in Crawfordsville, in September, 1891? And I publish the results of my research: “Yes, a Rev. G. W. Switzer did live in Crawfordsville, at the time.””
In 1946, a student of Fortean research named Vincent Gaddis (himself a controversial figure within Fortean history) wrote what would become the definitive article on the creature. It appeared in issue 14 of Doubt, the Fortean Society’s newsletter. Titled “Indiana’s Sky Monster,” the article actually cites a second appearance of the Spook the following evening, claiming it was sighted by “several hundred” residents of Crawfordsville.
“On the second night several hundred residents of the town watched the monster as it turned slowly over various parts of the business district for two hours. On the third night almost every adult in town waited for its appearance, but it never came. Many remained up all night, only to be disappointed,” Gaddis wrote.
I could not turn up any primary sources that reported on this additional appearance. And since Fort’s work was Gaddis’ primary source I can’t figure out where he got this account from (short of some additional, later article feature in a paper outside of Indiana). Or, you know, making it up.
Either way, Fort’s original work and Gaddis’ follow-up cemented the Crawfordsville Spook in paranormal lore. Though nowhere near as popular as other sightings I’ve covered, it is one of the most unique.
Do I Believe?
There have been some strange theories floated about the origins of the Crawfordsville Spook. Fort was neither here nor there on the creature’s actual existence, but he did later write about “floating continents” that existed in the Earth’s upper atmosphere. He theorized that things like UFOs might originate on those islands. Though it should be said that a lot of scholars believe these theories were a form of satire that Fortean researchers chose to take at face value. Gaddis had a similar theory, believing the Spook to be a kind of “living flying saucer.” A “visitor from the void” he called it. In many of the corners of the internet less concerned with accuracy you can find other theories ranging from ghosts to shapeshifters. Which if fun, sure, but doesn’t help us get to the bottom of the mystery. Thankfully, we do have a follow up from the Crawfordsville Daily Journal that does.
In a short article that went undiscovered by Fort, Gaddis, or indeed most of their successors, the Journal actually reported on the source of the apparition. Entitled “The Spook Explained,” the article ran on September 8, 1891 — three days after the original sighting. It’s short, so I’m including the full text below.
“The horrible apparition which was seen by numerous citizens Friday night has been explained satisfactorily and it did not prove to be a ghost.
John Hornbeck happened to step out in the yard about midnight and saw the horrible apparition as it swooped about the town. He summoned Abe Hernley and they proceeded to investigate.
They followed the wraith about town and finally discovered it to be a flock of many hundred killdeers. These birds were evidently passing over the city and becoming bewildered by the electric lights had lost their way. Their white breasts and wings gave the flock their ghostly appearance and the sound of agony was their plaintive dismal cry.
Messers. Hornbeck and Hernley were quite close to them once as they swept near the ground and are certain that they were not mistaken. “
— Crawfordsville Daily Journal 5 September 1891
A confused flock of birds may not be as exciting as a mournful, red-eyed wraith — but when you pay attention to the descriptions of the eye witnesses it does begin to make sense.
“ [It] had no definite shape or form, resembling somewhat a great white shroud”
“It flapped like a flag in the winds as it came on and frequently gave a great squirm as though suffering unutterable agony”
“It seemed to work about as it swam through the air in a writhing, twisting manner similar to the glide of some serpents”
For comparison, check out this video of a starling murmuration.
Credit to Jan van Ijken.
If I were an Ice Monger in the 19th century hitching up my horse at 2 a.m. and this flew over my head…yeah I’d probably blame the supernatural, too.
Ultimately, the case of the Crawfordsville Spook comes down to which eyewitness you place your trust in. McIntyre claimed the Spook had a great red eye and glided about with giant fins. Switzer compared it to a shrouded demon. Hornbeck chased the thing to ground to find nothing but hundreds of confused birds. I believe all three saw something in the skies of Indiana that evening. But my money is on Hornbeck’s explanation. Though I don’t think this makes the Spook any less real — or any less awe inspiring.
And hey, if none of those theories float your boat there is one more, courtesy of the Wichita Daily Eagle.
So what do you think? Was the Crawfordsville Spook a visitor from the void? A horrible apparition? Or a misguided flock of birds? Let me know in the comments!
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Great article! It is very interesting to hear about stories that happened so very long ago and that would have been forgotten if no one cared to look them up and re-tell them. Thank you for sharing.
The starling murmuration is actually quite beautiful! Haha
Fascinating story!!