On a dark autumn night in 1980, four friends parked near a secluded landfill in Wicomico County, Maryland, and looked through their headlights into horror when two glowing yellow eyes stared back. What they encountered may have been a mere shadow of the mind, or something far more anomalous: the creature local lore now calls the Wicomico Cat Man.

"This particular area of Maryland's eastern shore, in Wicomico County, is known for being home to a strange entity dubbed the 'Cat Man."

In Autumn 1980, late at night, four people parked near a landfill witnessed two glowing yellow eyes looking in their car window. Extremely frightened, they quickly left the area but soon became curious and decided to return. This time, they came back in two cars and parked at angles to direct their headlights and illuminate a larger area.

After about an hour, they noticed something crouched down and moving toward them. The creature approached on all fours. It was black with coarse hair and had very long claws or nails on each hand. Its face was human-like but featured feline characteristics, and it was covered in a thick layer of hair. It had a long, thin tail that whipped back and forth slowly.

After remaining motionless for a few seconds, the creature moved to one of the cars and hooked its claws into the driver's side door. Its yellow eyes glowed in the dark as it peered inside. Terrified again, the witnesses started the car, causing the creature to fall away from it. It let out a high-pitched scream as it ran away. Deep scratch marks were left on the vehicle, according to the owner.

The witnesses reported the sighting to local authorities, who conducted an investigation. However, nothing was found, despite this not being the first or last sighting of the creature in the area."

Source: Local authorities

REPORT NOTES:

The core report dates to autumn 1980, when four individuals in two cars parked near a tree-lined landfill in Wicomico County. Initially, they reported spotting a pair of yellow, glowing eyes peering into their vehicle.

After fleeing the scene, their curiosity drove them back later that night, this time in two vehicles positioned to illuminate a larger area.

They watched for roughly an hour until a dark figure emerged in the headlights, crouched down, and moved toward them on all fours. The creature was described as black with coarse, matted hair, very long claws or nails, a human-like but distinctly feline face, and a long, thin tail that whipped slowly back and forth.

One witness claimed the entity hooked its claws into the driver-side door of a car and glowed its yellow eyes as it peered inside, before letting out a high-pitched scream, retreating into the darkness, and leaving deep scratch marks on the vehicle door.

Local authorities reportedly investigated but found no trace of the creature. They noted, however, that this was not the first or last reported sighting in the area.

BROADER LEGEND & HISTORY OF THE REGION

The legend of the Wicomico Cat Man sits among a handful of cryptids reported on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. The county itself derives its name from the Algonquian “wicko mekee,” meaning “a place where houses are built,” but local lore suggests more than simple settlement stories.

Information on prior sightings is sparse, though one source claims the creature has been feared for “centuries” by native populations of the region.

In the broader context of Maryland folklore, the Wicomico Cat Man is mentioned alongside better-known cryptids such as the Snallygaster and the Goatman, underscoring how these myths are woven into the state’s cultural fabric.

CONCLUSION

The legend of the Wicomico Cat Man presents a compelling case study of the intersection between folklore, cryptid reporting, and regional strongholds of unknown phenomena. While the core 1980 incident is well-cited in cryptid literature, the lack of broad documentation signals an opportunity. I suppose that there are opportunities for investigators to delve deeper into this anomaly. Lon

HAVE YOU OBSERVED OR ENCOUNTERED THE 'CHICAGO MOTHMAN?'

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THANKS! LON