Just Guyton

What Was Flying Over Van Meter, Iowa, in 1903?

I’ve heard some strange stories while researching folklore, but every once in a while, I come across something that makes me stop and wonder what on earth people were looking at.

And apparently, in September 1903, the residents of Van Meter, Iowa, were wondering the exact same thing.

Because according to newspaper reports, something extraordinary was flying around their little town after dark.

It had enormous bat-like wings, made unsettling noises, smelled absolutely terrible, and supposedly had a glowing horn on its head.

Essentially, Mothman and Batman had a baby, moved to Iowa, and installed a built-in flashlight.

And apparently, nobody was particularly thrilled about their new neighbor.

Now, before we go any further, Mothman’s famous appearances in Point Pleasant, West Virginia, wouldn’t begin until 1966. So no, I’m not suggesting the two creatures were related.

But I am saying that if someone described a giant bat-like creature with a headlamp to me, I’d have a few questions.

And I’d probably start by locking the doors.

Our story begins in Van Meter, a small Iowa community surrounded by farmland, where life in 1903 was probably considerably quieter than it is today.

At least until the end of September.

According to accounts that appeared in newspapers in early October, a local businessman named U. G. Griffith noticed something unusual while walking through town.

There was a brilliant light coming from the top of a building.

At first, he reportedly couldn’t make sense of what he was seeing.

But then the light moved.

And whatever was producing it apparently wasn’t an ordinary lamp.

As the story developed, residents began reporting encounters with something large, winged, and decidedly unfamiliar.

The mysterious visitor supposedly had leathery wings, an elongated body, and a horn-like projection on its forehead that emitted an intense beam of light.

A glowing horn.

On its forehead.

In 1903.

Apparently, this creature had better nighttime visibility than most of the town.

And things only became stranger.

Witnesses reportedly described a terrible odor accompanying the creature, along with unusual noises that sounded nothing like an ordinary bird.

Which raises another question.

What kind of creature comes equipped with enormous wings, a built-in flashlight, and a smell so offensive that people remember it more than a century later?

I don’t know, but I feel like somebody should have offered it a bath.

Among the townspeople associated with the reports were businessmen and other established members of the community.

That detail became important because newspapers emphasized the supposed respectability of the witnesses.

The implication was that these weren’t people who would ordinarily invent stories about mysterious flying monsters.

But respectable people can still be mistaken.

And newspapers, particularly in the early twentieth century, weren’t exactly immune to publishing sensational stories.

Still, the reports kept coming.

Some accounts claimed that the creature perched on buildings or poles. Others described its unusual movements and the brilliant light shining from its head.

And then people started shooting at it.

Yes, shooting.

According to the legend, several residents fired their weapons at the mysterious visitor, but their bullets apparently had no effect.

Now, I don’t know what the people of Van Meter thought they were dealing with, but if I fired at something and it continued flying around with a flashlight attached to its forehead, I think I’d reconsider my evening plans.

Preferably from inside the house.

With the curtains closed.

The story eventually took an even more unsettling turn.

Residents began associating the strange activity with an abandoned coal mine outside town.

And if there’s one thing horror movies have taught me, it’s that an abandoned mine is rarely where you want to go looking for answers after dark.

Nevertheless, according to the reports, a group of armed townsmen decided to investigate.

They reportedly gathered near the mine, determined to discover what had been frightening their community.

And that’s when the story became even more extraordinary.

Because according to some accounts, there wasn’t just one creature.

There were two.

A larger one and a smaller one.

Oh, wonderful.

Apparently, Batman and Mothman’s imaginary offspring had brought a friend.

Or possibly a relative.

And both of them were allegedly hanging around an abandoned coal mine in Iowa.

Witnesses claimed the creatures appeared near the mine entrance, where the men fired at them.

But once again, the gunfire reportedly accomplished nothing.

Eventually, the mysterious visitors disappeared toward or into the old mine workings.

And after that, the main series of sightings ended.

Just like that.

No captured creature.

No verified remains.

No definitive explanation.

Only a collection of remarkable reports and a small town left wondering what had happened.

Now, here’s where the investigation becomes particularly interesting.

The Van Meter Visitor wasn’t invented by a modern horror movie or created decades later for a collection of monster stories.

Newspapers were discussing the alleged encounters in October 1903.

On October 4, the Des Moines Daily News published a story titled “Town of Van Meter Wrought Up over a Fishy Story.”

A fishy story.

Even the newspaper was raising an eyebrow.

The following day, the paper ran another report under the headline “Van Meter Mystery Not Solved.”

Other newspapers picked up the story, and soon readers beyond Iowa were hearing about the strange winged visitor.

But here’s something that makes this story even more interesting.

Not everyone in Van Meter was buying it.

On October 6, 1903, the Des Moines Daily Capitol reportedly published a follow-up under the headline “Van Meter Hot Under the Collar.”

And apparently, some residents were less than delighted with their town’s sudden reputation for harboring a flying monster.

Contemporary objections challenged the sensational reports, with some residents disputing the story’s accuracy and suggesting that the extraordinary tale had been exaggerated.

In other words, while some newspapers were busy introducing readers to Iowa’s mysterious flying visitor, some of the people who actually lived there were questioning whether the whole thing had been blown out of proportion.

And here’s another interesting detail.

Although the newspaper stories named several supposed witnesses, the surviving accounts don’t establish that every encounter was independently verified.

That doesn’t automatically mean nothing happened.

But it does mean we should be careful about treating every reported sighting as independently confirmed testimony.

Apparently, the mystery wasn’t just what might have been flying over Van Meter.

It was also how much of the story people should believe.

But there’s an important distinction here.

The existence of those newspaper reports proves that people were telling the story in 1903.

It doesn’t prove that a giant flying creature with a glowing horn actually existed.

And that’s where we have to separate the historical record from the legend.

Some details have changed or become more elaborate as the story has been retold.

The creature’s size, its appearance, its movements, and even the exact sequence of encounters aren’t always described consistently.

And although later accounts mention unusual footprints, there is no authenticated physical specimen that allows us to identify an unknown animal.

So what could the residents have seen?

One possibility is that an ordinary animal was mistaken for something extraordinary.

Large birds can appear surprisingly unfamiliar in poor lighting, particularly when someone is frightened or unable to judge their distance.

But that doesn’t neatly explain every feature attributed to the Van Meter Visitor.

Especially the alleged glowing horn.

Another possibility is that the story began with an unusual light or an unfamiliar animal and grew more elaborate as people discussed it.

After all, imagine hearing that your neighbor spotted something strange on a rooftop.

Then someone else reports a terrible noise.

Another person claims to have seen wings.

And before long, the entire town is discussing a flying creature that apparently has its own lighting system.

Human beings are very good at connecting details, even when those details don’t necessarily belong together.

Then there’s the possibility of a prank.

Could someone have been playing an elaborate joke on the residents of Van Meter?

It’s certainly possible.

But no verified explanation has established that the whole episode was staged.

And we shouldn’t invent a culprit simply because the story sounds unbelievable.

There is also the role of sensational journalism to consider.

Newspapers of the period frequently competed for attention with extraordinary headlines, colorful descriptions, and stories that blurred the line between reporting and entertainment.

The Van Meter accounts fit comfortably into that tradition.

But once again, that doesn’t tell us exactly what the witnesses experienced, if anything.

It simply means we should approach the reports with curiosity and a healthy amount of skepticism.

What fascinates me most is that the story didn’t disappear completely when the supposed creature vanished.

More than a century later, Van Meter still embraces its unusual visitor.

The town even holds an annual Van Meter Visitor Festival, celebrating the legend with people who enjoy folklore, mysterious creatures, and the occasional unexplained encounter.

And I rather love that.

Imagine living in a town where your most famous historical visitor was supposedly an enormous winged creature with a glowing forehead.

Some communities have famous politicians.

Others have historical landmarks.

Van Meter has a flying mystery that apparently smelled terrible.

And instead of forgetting the whole thing, the town turned it into a tradition.

I think that’s part of what makes folklore so interesting.

A strange report becomes a conversation.

The conversation becomes a story.

And eventually, the story becomes part of a community’s identity.

Whether the original witnesses encountered an unusual animal, misunderstood something they saw, participated in an elaborate joke, or simply became characters in a sensational newspaper story, the legend has survived for more than 120 years.

And there’s something remarkable about that.

Because we may never know exactly what happened during those autumn nights in 1903.

We have newspaper reports, names, descriptions, and a story that has been repeated for generations.

But we don’t have the kind of evidence needed to establish that an unknown winged species was flying around Iowa.

That doesn’t mean the story isn’t worth investigating.

Quite the opposite.

It’s a fascinating glimpse into how people responded to something they believed was extraordinary, how newspapers shaped public curiosity, and how an entire town became associated with a mysterious visitor.

And if you ask me, the most surprising part might be that the legend survived long enough for us to still be laughing about it today.

So what was flying over Van Meter, Iowa, in 1903?

A misidentified bird?

An elaborate prank?

An exaggerated newspaper story?

Or something the witnesses genuinely couldn’t explain?

We may never have a definitive answer.

But if Mothman and Batman really did have a baby, and it decided to move to Iowa, I sincerely hope somebody eventually bought that poor creature some deodorant.

Because the built-in flashlight was impressive.

The personal hygiene, apparently, needed work.

—Guyton