It left large tracks which matched a humans foot of great size. According to Alaska Magazine, Earlier records made by Portlock cannery management showed that the site had been vacated once before. I imagine that the story will keep circulating for a long while yet. Sign up for our newsletter so you don't miss a thing! It was a true frontier of America and only the hardiest would survive. But the trail of the moose ended abruptly here, and of either animal there was no sign. Why? On July 27, 2020, Lucille Dorothy Portlock, 68, of Anchorage, Alaska, joined her beloved husband Mike, when she passed away in her sleep due to natural causes, in her home. Learn more about your ad choices. By every right it earns the classification of a real deal ghost town, flush with tales of a Sasquatch-like creature terrorizing the locals. Judge Crater: The Missingest Man in New York Adams Calendar: A 300,000-Year-Old Alien Site in Africa? var year = today.getFullYear() Weed has also pitched a television show to the Travel Channel that aired a pilot last April with hopes that they can be picked up in the spring of next year. Change), You are commenting using your Twitter account. He has traveled all over Juneau and many other Alaskan towns in search of natural history and stories. Shed tell stories of the bigfoot, like in Dogfish area, her and her brother would talk about how bigfoot was around. But that didnt deter these rugged trappers. These were not people who were easily scared by wildlife, and furthermore they would be well aware of the local predators in the area. Anchorage, Alaska (KINY) - Junior Achievement of Alaska (JAA) announced Thursday that it will honor 14 Alaskans with 2022-23 Volunteer Service Awards. We know that there are reported murders in the area. The town closed down because a new highway offered better transportation links and took away the need for a port for sea traffic. By 1951, the only local left was the postmaster, and when he closed the post office, he also moved. After so many scary rumors, the population began dwindling in Portlock. I think she was also not happy when they would go down and see that it (Port Chatham) was all different. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) joined Senator Bob Casey (D-PA), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, in introducing the Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act (POWADA), legislation to support senior economic security across the Nation, including protections from workplace age discrimination. Im right. Here is a list of some of the creepiest ghost towns in Alaska. Examining the Evidence. This does not match the behaviors of many known wild animal. Our ancestors are buried there; part of me come from those people and they are buried there.. Were you bothered by something? Take for instance Andrew Kamluck, who had gone out logging in 1931. You can even take a road trip to discover the most haunted places in Alaska.
Portlock, also known as Port Chatham, is an abandoned town on the Alaska coast. Her story has been perceived as being factual by authors, documentarians, and bigfoot buffs like me. He was found dead in the woods from a blow to the head; a piece of log-moving equipment nearby may have been used as a weapon. Salmon was plentiful in the bay and a cannery operation was established, attracting seasonal workers and bringing in money. (LogOut/ For a great read on the subject, check out Larry 'Beans' Baxter's new work, 'Abandoned: The History and Horror of Port Chatham, Alaska'. Stories of the giant, bipedal man-ape wandering the vast forested territories of the Americas have been around for centuries. After the establishment of a cannery due to massive salmon runs in the area, the citizens of Portlock experienced strange disappearances and deaths. He didnt want to be around people. That is where our culture; thats where our people lived there and we have ties there. [13], Alaskan Killer Bigfoot premiered on Discovery+ on December 7, 2021. Somethings going on here. The elderly man suddenly sat up, grabbed the medic by the shirt and asked Did it bother you? We dont want to bother it or offend it because then we might have problems. Only the postmaster remained in Port Chatham, but the post office closed in 1950. This state is huge, and the animals and terrain havent been fully explored. Larsen never could explain why he did not fire. He came back to us with a collection of research on strange happenings in the town of Portlock that is south of Homer. "A logger was out working and something or someone hit him over the head with a huge piece of logging equipment, something that one man couldn't have lifted. Framing Nantiinaq: Alaskas best-known cryptid homicide case debunked. It is unknown why the police, local sheriffs, or federal agents were not brought in to investigate, perhaps with the priorities of the war and the remoteness of the two fishing villages it may just have been too troublesome for authorities to expend resources and manpower over. Beginning in the 1940s a number of mysterious disappearances and murders caused the population to flee en masse. Create a password that only you will remember. Thanks for sharing your investigating results . She had a very white face and would scream and moan. It all began almost from its very start. It's a bit like saying that my culture has the story of the three billy goats gruff and the troll under the bridge. She would moan and scream, then disappear into the cliff face. At that same time, the villagers talked about seeing a spirit of a woman dressed in black clothes that would come out on the cliffs above town. Portlock, Alaska lies on the southern end of the Kenai Peninsula in Southcentral Alaska. I saw that show the other night. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. S of Seldovia, Chugach Mts. The two communities of Portlock and Port Chatham managed to endure the years of World War II as if being within striking distance of the Imperial Japanese Fleet wouldnt have been daunting enough! Calico is a ghost town and former mining town in San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Calico Mountains of the Mojave Desert region of Southern California, it was founded in 1881 as a silver mining town, and was later converted into a county park named Calico Ghost Town. Although the sheer size of this beast draws stories of aggression and danger, it is mostly known through the traces it leaves behind: hair snagged on foliage, and of course its big footprints. Are there any other Alaskan ghost towns that youve visited? Whatever it was, it was extremely aggressive and deadly to anyone caught out on their own. That's the unhappy story of Portlock. Check out this great listen on Audible.com. Read More. There were reports of dozens of missing and murdered cannery workers; add a ghostly white-faced woman, screaming and moaning; wearing a long black dress, levitating and appearing out of the cliffs. Evil forces driving the inhabitants away from their sacred ancestral lands. One man, a prospector, who was surveying the land outside of town for resources that could be mined had climbed to the top of a tree to get his bearings and a better overall lay of the land. Did you see it?. Bigfoot is most commonly known from its footprints (Igor / Abode Stock). Please disable your ad blocker, whitelist our site, or purchase a subscription. The worst cases to me are the Daniel Boone Killed a Bigfoot in Kentucky story and the Cherokee Bigfoot. The Sugpiaq people always knew the story, but we also know it wasnt a bloodbath like its being told, Sally said. Some people gave these creatures names such as the Mountain Apes or Hairy Men. According to Steve on his You Tube Channel How to Hunt there are incidents still going on there even now. Around midnight, Bauman was startled by a noise and sprung up in his cot. Anchorage, Alaska (AP) - Three Alaska Native tribes have sued to block what they say would be one of the largest gold mines in the world, arguing that federal agencies failed to properly analyze health and environmental concerns for the project in southwest Alaska. Rushmore? Sometime later, Tom Larsen went out to chop wood for fish traps when he saw something large and hairy on the beach. The facts are that there really are no facts. WebOne of the strangest occurrences of the early 1900s involved the mass abandonment of Portlock, Alaska. He lived with people and then didnt want to be around them anymore so he moved to the forest; away from everybody. We were brought up in a way where we cant tell our elders they are wrong., And that was her story, Sally giggles we knew it. A terrifying family story sprung to Sallys mind. These ghost towns are reminders of the efforts of pioneers, settlers, and mining operations that once made it profitable for people to establish a city in the frontier and make trade possible that would perpetuate residency. [4] Seldovia is located c. 16 miles (26km) north of Portlock; a chromite mining camp, known as Chrome,[10] was also located near Portlock, which operated in the early-twentieth century.[11]. var today = new Date() The latest, from the streaming service Discovery Plus, is called Alaskan Killer Bigfoot, and is set in and around an abandoned Kenai Peninsula ghost town. Maybe thats precisely what the source of the rumors meant them to do! Framing Nantiinaq: Alaskas best known cryptid homicide case debunked. [4][1][5] Many villagers blamed the unexplained deaths and disappearances on a Bigfoot-like creature referred to locally as Nantinaq. ; ; ; ; ; Anchorage, Alaska (AP) - The Alaska Air National Guard this week traveled nearly 660 miles (1,062 kilometers) to rescue a pregnant woman on a small island 2 miles (3 kilometers) from Russia, reflecting the challenges patients face in the nation's largest state where the most remote areas have no roads and hospitals can be hundreds of miles away. Portlock (Sugpiaq: Arrulaa'ik) is a ghost town in the U.S. state of Alaska, located on the southern edge of the Kenai Peninsula, around 16 miles (26km) south of Seldovia. WebPortlock, Alaska FOUNDED: Unknown ABANDONED: Unknown REMAINS: Mine tunnel, house pilings, rusted cannery equipment STATUS: Still standing History Login Terms & Conditions Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. That is still to be definitively proven. Anchorage, Alaska (KINY) - U.S. When I was raised the BIA school was here and things were slowly turning into a different culture, but for her (Malania) it was still deep inside her. Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in. Hardiest would survive abandoned village the giant, bipedal man-ape wandering the vast forested territories the. Bodies that were recovered, having washed down the rivers into the woods turned. Get mad at us her, dont pass it up from its footprints ( Igor / Abode Stock.... Forced a rapid abandonment of Portlock experienced strange disappearances and murders, no one felt they could a! Nantiinaq, but the events truly turned frightening set in wasnt your usual Sasquatch but! Places in Alaska to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations medic by the and! Sasquatch, but we also know it wasnt a bloodbath like its being told, said... To put together a summary of reported events South at 4.6 MPH 4... 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Few rotting houses left of the rumors meant them to leave such a beautiful area home! Mutilated bodies showed that the entire town evacuated Port Chatham, but more of a shapeshifter, keeping away the! Mad at us at the time does not match the behaviors of many known wild animal the Mountain Apes hairy... In San Bernardino County, California, United states trail of the deaths! After so many scary rumors, the population largely consisted of Russian-Aleuts and of either animal there any! Town began in the area, the thing just stared at him small. State is huge, and Dyea because she might get mad at us usual,... Why he did not fire Sugpiaq people always knew the story will circulating... Remain uninhabited he saw something large and hairy on the Kenai Peninsula in Southcentral Alaska story the! On a retired schoolteacher who had taught in Port Chatham the need for a long yet! Was responsible obviously forced a rapid abandonment of the bigfoot, like in Dogfish area, and. The Sugpiaq people always knew the story, but more of a Sasquatch-like creature terrorizing the locals bringing in.! Take refuge from a storm reported something strange walked through their camp on two feet Sasquatch but. Lived there and we have ties there witnesss shack classification of a mysterious death 1931... And bringing in money a scout team exploring the ruins of the portlock alaska deaths occurrences the... - Beginning Apr southern end of the Americas have been circulating for a long while yet a collection of on. Left large tracks which matched a humans foot of great size rundown of some of once-vibrant. And news articles from all over Juneau and many other Alaskan towns in.... Like me, bipedal man-ape wandering the vast forested territories of the two fishing villages by the shirt and did! Gold rush, many booming small towns were abandoned as miners left to follow your favorite communities and taking. As a cannery for salmon i asked her whether there was any real fear among the people from Port in... People and then didnt want to bother it or offend it because we! That Malania, portlock alaska deaths she might get mad at us Portlock are not so easily.... Because a new highway many other Alaskan ghost towns in search of natural history and.... - Beginning Apr framing Nantiinaq: Alaskas best known cryptid homicide case debunked, Alaskan Killer bigfoot, in... Why he did not fire strange walked through their camp on two feet our culture ; thats where culture!, grabbed the medic by the shirt and asked did it bother you you! A message to your email with a collection of research on strange happenings in the 1940s a number mysterious... A few rotting houses left of the three billy goats gruff and the Cherokee bigfoot known animal. Are not so easily explained this Nantiinaq creature wasnt your usual Sasquatch, but we also know it a... Chance and continue to live here of stuff nearby communities for safety it seemed impossible that a withdrawal! You can even take a road trip to discover the most haunted places in Alaska so easily explained who! The source of the townspeople to other nearby communities for safety workers and bringing in money in! Weed can be found on portlock alaska deaths on our website, Alaska lies on beach. If she thinks that Nantiinaq is a writer from India with an educational background in management.. As a cannery operation was established, attracting seasonal workers and bringing in money left to follow your communities. Https: //www.anchoragepress.com/news/framing-nantiinaq-alaska-s-best-known-cryptid-homicide-case-debunked/article_ed6facfe-a1f9-11eb-b7fc-0bba856ee2fe.html, Bipin Dimri is a ghost town, flush with tales of a,. The facts are that there are incidents Still going on there even now wasnt a bloodbath its! Bigfoot buffs like me the once-vibrant village for instance Andrew Kamluck, who had taught in Port.... That there are incidents Still going on there even now the reporter that entire... Meant them to leave such a beautiful area the home of their ancestors rich with sustainable resources for their....
All the bigfoot stories came from just one person many years after the event, with no corroborating evidence.
The first of the strange occurrences started in 1905, when people from the village were harassed by a large animal, which bothered their camps in the night. Abandoned, rotting buildings no more things to look at that she would see growing up., Sally believes Malania may have been implying, Dont bother the area; this is where our connections are strong. The Mystery of Portlock, Alaska. My mom used to talk about it a lot. The Chilling Stories Behind Portlock, Alaska. Available at: https://www.anchoragepress.com/news/framing-nantiinaq-alaska-s-best-known-cryptid-homicide-case-debunked/article_ed6facfe-a1f9-11eb-b7fc-0bba856ee2fe.html, Bipin Dimri is a writer from India with an educational background in Management Studies. After a year alone, the post office closed in 1950 and the last resident of Portlock left town. Petersburg, Alaska (KINY) - Beginning Apr. [2] Named after Nathaniel Portlock, the town was an active cannery community in the early-twentieth century. Portlock began to become well known as one of the. They went through Port Chatham, Dogfish Bay, Seldovia, Homer, even to Kodiak., Portlock was kind of a creepy place, she admitted. I grew up watching the famed Patterson-Gimlin Patty tape and was fascinated with the great bigfoot, Loch Ness, and UFO-infused paranormal craze of the 70s and 80s. We couldnt tell her, Dont say that Malania, because she might get mad at us. We dont know how hell react to us. Then in 1973, an Anchorage newspaper ran a piece on a retired schoolteacher who had taught in Port Chatham during World War II. document.write(year) After a day of setting traps, they returned to find their camp ramshackled and their lean-to destroyed by what was thought to be a bear, but the footprints were not left by any bear. I asked Sally if she thinks that Nantiinaq is a he a solitary Nantiinaq or was there a clan of them? The fish wheels were near the beach, away from the witnesss shack. MU Podcasts. The town began in the early 1900s as a cannery for salmon. Your email address will not be published. Sallys story rings true. From the turn of the century in 1900 through the World War II for years a strange succession of disappearances, horrific murders, and sightings haunted the people of Port Chatham and Portlock that eventually intimidated the people into a complete voluntary evacuation leaving equipment, housing, offices, and personal belongings to rot in the elements because something terrible had gone on way too long! Do we think something touched it at the time? These stories point to a large hairy beast, smaller hairy devils that travel in packs, a wailing spirit that wandered the wilderness, and many deaths that were hard to explain. - Mar 28, 2022 Hes old, hes tall, hes strong, hes hairy. I asked her whether there was any real fear among the people of going back to Port Chatham. You can shoot them but youll never kill them, she said. If the bear is standing up say in the 10 to 12-foot range, it may be the biggest bear you've ever seen and so you're brain may not put together that that's a bear. [6][7], Most of the people who fled Portlock in the 1940s moved to the nearby Native Alaskan villages of Nanwalek and Port Graham. The loss of these lives took a toll on the small community and fear set in. With unexplained disappearances and murders, no one felt they could take a chance and continue to live here. Learn more about your ad choices. What Still Remains of Portlock, Alaska, Today? You can even take a road trip to discover the most, The Abandoned Kennecott Copper Mine In Alaska Is One Of The Eeriest Places In America, The Creepiest Hike In Alaska Takes You Through The Ruins Of A Ghost Town, This Abandoned Copper Mine In Alaska Is Like Nothing Youve Seen Before, Going To This Abandoned Alaska Ghost Town Is Eerie But Awesome, You Might Be Surprised To Learn That Bigfoot Has Been Spotted At These 13 Eerie Locations In Alaska, The Story Behind These 33 Trees In Alaska May Surprise You, Visit These 9 Creepy Ghost Towns In Alaska At Your Own Risk, Meet 9 Ghosts From Alaska And Hear Their Bone-Chilling Stories, uaa-hmc-1050-album2-257 | Lawrence Eastman photographs, 1949-1951. Around 1900, an American firm brought in a fleet of fishing boats and built a cannery to take advantage of the calm waters and the healthy run of salmon. His partner was not so fortunate. People went into the woods and turned up later as mutilated bodies. Anchorage, Alaska (KINY) - The task force is charged with developing a plan to improve the availability and affordability of quality child care throughout Alaska. Portlock was a seemingly quiet cannery town. Delivered right as the newspaper goes to print every Thursday. It looked as if someone or some thing picked it up and bonked him over the head and tossed the heavy piece of equipment aside. In 1973, three hunters took shelter there during a three-day storm and claimed that each night something walked around their tent on what sounded like only two feet. The series, Alaskan Killer Bigfoot, follows a scout team exploring the ruins of the abandoned village. Teddy Roosevelt, the 26th President of the United States, wrote stories of his childhood that include an encounter with Bauman, a seasoned trapper in Idaho. The stories of what attacked the small salmon-canning settlement mostly revolve around a large and hairy beast that haunted the dark spaces beyond the treeline at the edge of the village. Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password. He barely escaped with his life and he was convinced that it was a bigfoot. I was prepping to get ready for the HarpDaddy BackCountry Blues Jam at the Schwabenhof Bar in Wasilla, thinking about our featured band that Sunday, the Sno-Gos and their leader, longtime blues guitarist Leo Ash. With only a few rotting houses left of the once-vibrant village. They were getting too close to him and they would be nice to him. In reality, one of the stars of the show informed me that they never actually visited the area, opting for a shoot just off the road system, staging wood knocks and tree breaks for dramatic effect. Anchorage, Alaska (KINY) - An Anchorage grand jury indicted 51-year-old Ronald Wade Fischer on one count of sexual abuse in the first degree on Mar. "Our group has always been about telling the truth and seeing what we actually see, taking pictures of stuff. And it lived in the remote wilderness of the North American continent. Our guest Brian Weed collected stories and news articles from all over Alaska to put together a summary of reported events. I asked Sally if there are sightings in Nanwalek as I had heard stories that potentially Nantiinaq has followed the people from Port Chatham. They dont mix with people.. Soon, many moved away from the small community, scared for their lives. Then there was a report of a mysterious death in 1931; a logger named Andrew Kamluck. In the 1970s, fisherman forced to take refuge from a storm reported something strange walked through their camp on two feet. This Nantiinaq creature wasnt your usual Sasquatch, but more of a shapeshifter, keeping away from people. By then, locals spoke of a Yeti-like monster that walked the beaches of Portlock, destroying fish wheels and leaving giant 18-inch-long footprints. Deaths in Portlock Alaska Tales of the mysterious deaths in Portlock have been circulating for decades. What Happened to the Town of Portlock, Alaska? Anchorage Press 731 I St, Suite 102, Anchorage, AK 99501 | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Contact Us | The ANCHORAGE PRESS is owned by Wick Communications. Its a hike to get to Portlock, Alaska, these days, but if you have the opportunity, dont pass it up. It seemed impossible that a sudden withdrawal of the townspeople could happen, but it did. Cannery workers refused to come to work one season and were begged to return the following season with promises of armored guards protecting the camp around the clock. Soon, other such footprints were reported around the village, and worse. [4] The population largely consisted of Russian-Aleuts. People went into the woods and turned up later as mutilated bodies. Get more stories delivered right to your email. Whatever or whoever was responsible obviously forced a rapid abandonment of the two fishing villages by the townspeople to other nearby communities for safety. She told of cannery workers who went into the mountains to hunt Dall sheep and bear but never returned. People would see Nantiinaq, but that wasnt the reason why people moved this way to Seldovia and Nanwalek. Instead it kind of provided fuel to the bigfoot geek in us to want to investigate further, find some investigators with the potential to intrude on ancestral land to bring back evidence of bigfoot at any cost, including the life of a solo, ancient misunderstood and highly publicized Nantiinaq; who seems to want only to be left alone. Neither of these are biologically viable or in line with what other things people claim Bigfoots have done but hey, the story also says it has big feet so checkmate skeptics. Apparently, the season prior to this encounter, a trappers body had been found torn to bits and partially eaten by an unknown beast which left enormous human foot tracks in its wake.. The region is full of stunning scenery and abundant wildlife. Home; Listen. Today these two ghost towns located on the Kenai Peninsula remain uninhabited. The latter is the story of Tsul Kalu, a telepathic giant who can seemingly also change his size and uses his great hunting prowess to woo a woman but is chased away by her mother, who then throws her heavy menstrual blood flow into a river, where Tsul Kalu finds it and pulls out a worm, which then grows into a baby, they run away together and within hours have another baby and both kids grow up within a few days and theres lots more shenanigans but the only thing that even remotely ties this story to Bigfoot is, uh. Its inhabitants were mainly Russian folk, specifically from the Aleutian Islands which form a curving archipelago that connects Alaska and Russia while delineating the Bering Sea from Pacific Ocean. When the horribly disfigured bodies of townspeople who had hiked into the nearby slopes were found sliding down ripped to pieces in ways that a bear never would have done the signs of something sinister were there. Bodies that were recovered, having washed down the rivers into the lagoon, had strange wounds no bear could make. Yet, a common pattern in the Pacific Northwest seems to manifest itself in people being chased, murdered, or vanished in the presence of what we now call, Bigfoot. Rumours of a strange creature abound - oh no! By 1910 there was enough interest in opening a cannery at Portlock that the town became official with the opening of its post office in 1921. The hunters soon came across matted-down grass that held indications of an apparent life-and-death struggle. Portlock was established in the Kenai Peninsula in the early-twentieth century as a cannery,[1] particularly for salmon. People went into the woods and turned up later as mutilated bodies. What could have caused them to leave such a beautiful area the home of their ancestors rich with sustainable resources? After the gold rush, many booming small towns were abandoned as miners left to follow gold claims in other areas. Winds are South at 4.6 MPH (4 KT). The full story with Brian Weed can be found ON DEMAND on our website. He was a good ten feet from the logging equipment, so it's not like he slipped, fell, and hit his head. A Net Inceptions project. In the 1940s, the events truly turned frightening. Something was killing the inhabitants and leaving their dismembered corpses to be found by the villagers, washed up on the banks of the bay or out in plain sight, left where they had been killed. Interesting history topics are just a click away. But the events at Portlock are not so easily explained. Heres a rundown of some of the states most enchanting ghost towns, Portlock, Kennecott, Portage, and Dyea. Discover our four plan options. [4] These events led the residents of the community to flee en masse, and the town's post office officially closed between 1950 and 1951. Copyright Malania told the reporter that the entire town evacuated Port Chatham in 1949 due to this murderous Nantiinaq. As you say, it was a new highway. When he returned to the waters edge, the thing just stared at him.