Momo the Monster, often referred to simply as Momo, is a local variation of the Bigfoot creature reported in the Mississippi River region of Missouri. The creature was first reported in the early 1970s, making it a more recent phenomenon than its North American crypto-hominid cousins Bigfoot, the Wild Man of the Woods, and the Mogollon Monster. Unlike these others, Momo is not known to have any connections to indigenous mythologies predating European arrival upon the continent.
The term “Momo” is an amalgamation of the state code for Missouri (MO) and the first two letters of the word “monster.” Like its more well-known crypto-hominid cousins in New York, Arizona, and the Pacific Northwest, Momo is reported as walking upright, being six to seven feet tall, and covered with dark hair. Like the Mogollon Monster, Momo has been noted for its unpleasant odor, as well as the creature’s relatively hostile disposition, although the degree to which the reported interactions have involved the creature attempting to harm eyewitnesses is not clear. Unique among accounts of the North American crypto-hominids is the description of the head, which has been reported to be pumpkin-shaped with glowing orange or red eyes that are sometimes obscured by the creature’s facial hair.
The first sighting of Momo occurred during the summer of 1971, north of the small town of Louisiana, Missouri, which sits upon the shores of the Mississippi River. While out picnicking, residents Joan Mills and Mary Ryan reported smelling a terrible odor prior to the appearance of a large, two-legged creature that scared them back to their vehicle. As they had left the keys where they had been sitting, they could do nothing but watch as the creature walked up to their vehicle and tried to open the car doors. It then ate all of their food before being scared back into the woods by the car’s horn. Miss Ryan noted that the creature was ape-like in its appearance, with upright posture, disproportionately long arms that hung down at its sides, and hairless palms: “It was half-ape and half man. I’ve been reading up on the abominable snowman since then, and from stories and articles, you get the idea that these things are more like gorillas. This thing was not like that at all. It had hair over the body as if it was an ape. Yet, the face was definitely human. It was more like a hairy human” (Coleman 2000). The other eyewitness, Miss Mills, noted the sound made by the creature was “a little gurgling noise like someone trying to whistle underwater” (Coleman 2000).
In July of the following year, a rash of sightings occurred on the outskirts of Louisiana, beginning when Doris, Terry, and Wally Harrison reported seeing Momo as they played in their backyard. Holding a dead dog in one hand and covered with blood, the creature had been standing under a tree, watching the children play. After it moved off, a neighbor independently reported hearing strange growling noises. In the next several weeks, there were more sightings, and a rash of dog disappearances in the community also occurred during this time. A few days after his children’s reported sighting, Edgar Harrison reported hearing growling noises and smelling terrible odors emanating from just behind his property. Allegedly, searches of this area revealed that two buried dog carcasses had been disinterred. Tracks over ten inches long and five inches wide were discovered, and castings were sent to Lawrence Curtis, director of the Oklahoma City zoo. After examining the tracks, Curtis announced that Momo was an elaborate hoax. Other skeptics believed, however, that the sightings pertained to an American black bear that, when standing up straight, could be mistaken for a much bigger, upright creature.
This flood of sightings produced nationwide media coverage and established Louisiana, Missouri, as a new hotspot of cryptozoological significance. Sightings continued over the next decade, but never in the quantity or intensity as those revealed by largely unrelated eyewitnesses in the early 1970s. Whether an abnormal bear, disheveled indigent, elaborate hoax, or crypto-hominid, Momo has left an indelible mark upon a small region of the delta country, as is evidenced by its use in a 2012 Missouri tourism campaign, as well as a movie about the monster, filmed locally and released in 2015. Its tagline: “He was a cryptozoological bounty hunter who had seen it all. … Until now!”
Andrew Howe
See also Bear Man of the Cherokee; Mogollon Monster; Pope Lick Monster; Pukwudgie; Rougarou; Skunk-Ape of the Everglades; Snallygaster; Wild Man of the Navidad
Further Reading
Arment, Chad. 2004. Cryptozoology: Science & Speculation. Landisville, PA: Coachwhip.
Coleman, Loren. 2000. “Show-Me Sasquatch.” Missouri Folklore Society website. http://missourifolkloresociety.truman.edu/momo.html. Accessed September 15, 2015.
Stage, William. 2011. “The Missouri Momo Monster.” Bigfoot Encounters website. http://www.bigfootencounters.com/creatures/momo.htm. Accessed September 15, 2015.