Mystery in the Smokies: Rise in disappearances stirs dark legends
In a national park in the United States, five people have gone missing. Locals claim that mysterious figures known as "feral cannibals" are responsible. "They supposedly set traps to catch solitary tourists in the mountains," said Brian Jeffrey from the Black Mass Paranormal podcast.
Near North Carolina is the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, famous for a series of mysterious disappearances. The local community suspects that "feral cannibals" are responsible for these disappearances.
The contemporary legend suggests they are descendants of men who deserted from the American Civil War, and allegedly live completely separate from civilization, reports the Unilad portal.
In total, five people disappeared under unexplained circumstances, prompting a special forces unit from the U.S. Army to intervene. One of the most famous cases is the mysterious disappearance of a six-year-old boy named Dennis Martin. He disappeared during a family camping trip in 1969.
According to Brian Jeffrey from the Black Mass Paranormal podcast, the special forces soldiers did not find any trace of the little boy. "This group of feral people have been known to have cannibalistic tendencies," he said.
Recently there has been an increase in reports of these people. They are supposedly known to set traps to capture lone hikers in the mountains. They have targeted the elderly and children specifically, revealed Brian Jeffrey.
The first "feral people" reports in the USA occurred around 1877. " Donnie Laws mentioned in a podcast that some gold prospectors had come across one alleged cannibal when they had been going to work in the mines. They followed him to a cave and found many bones of various animals, but they did not say whether there were any human bones. Laws is known for visiting mysterious places in the United States.
Almost 20 years later, another man was found in the same area. According to the Unilad portal, he was taken to a psychiatric hospital. It was not revealed who he was or where he came from.
Mysterious disappearances
There were more disappearances. In September 1981, Thelma Pauline "Polly" Melton came to the national park to go hiking with two friends. "After walking a few yards ahead, she disappeared over the brow of a hill and was never seen again," the Unilad portal reported.
In 1976, 16-year-old Trenny Gibson disappeared during a school trip in the Great Smoky Mountains. Christopher Cessna, aged 45, disappeared in the area in 2011. A year later, 24-year-old Derek Lueking set out on a hiking trail. After some time, authorities found a disturbing note by his car that read: "Don't look for me."
