Cooperative Living October 2022 - 8

HOLIDA HABITATS
One in a series of holiday-inspired destinations
in co-op country. This month: Halloween
The Legend of
the Woodbooger
by Gregg MacDonald, Staff WTTTTT
Southwest Virginia legend is a boon
for the state's smallest city
I
n Southwest Virginia's Powell Valley, near the city of
Norton, legend has it that a Sasquatch-like creature roams
the hills, and it's at least partially responsible for boosting
the local economy.
" With a population of 3,900, we are the smallest
independent city in Virginia, " says Norton City Manager Fred
Ramey. " Historically, Norton's economy has relied on service
industries for nearby coal counties. But when coal started
taking a hit about a decade ago, we soon realized we had better
start capitalizing on our natural assets and tourism. "
Enter the Woodbooger.
In October 2011, Animal
Planet's " Finding Bigfoot " TV
show paid a visit to Norton. The
show spent a week in Southwest
Virginia filming an episode that
features scenes from Norton,
as well as Washington County,
Damascus and Saltville.
According to Animal Planet,
a 2009 amateur video shot in
nearby Gum Hill brought the
" Finding Bigfoot " crew to
Norton. The video, called the
" Beast of Gum Hill, " can be seen
on YouTube, and shows a large,
shadowy figure crossing the path
of a man riding an ATV through
a local rocky stream.
TOURIS A TTRACTION
" Virginia is certainly considered a Bigfoot sightings
hotspot, " says Franky Go of Sasquatch Watch of Virginia,
a watchdog group for Bigfoot sightings within the
commonwealth. " We've had our fair share of Bigfoot reports. "
Ramey says Norton officials began researching and
brainstorming how to make the best use of the city's new
notoriety. He says a newspaper article from The Old Post,
dated Nov. 24, 1892, referred to a sighting of a Bigfoot-like
" Woodbooger " creature, perhaps a name derived partially
from the more universally popular " Boogeyman. "
Although sightings of Bigfoot-like creatures have been
6 ● Cooperative Living ●
October 2022
ubiquitous in the Pacific Northwest for centuries, some
gs in the South began only
ubiqu
for
ies, some
after the
They theorize that perhaps some soldiers who decided
to isolate themselves from others after the war, and who
continued to live off the land, were responsible for some
of these early reports of disheveled " creatures " lurking in
the woods.
Ramey says that after the " Finding Bigfoot " show aired,
two enterprising employees, named Big O and Pickle, began
printing and selling Woodbooger
T-shirts at Norton's local hardware
store. " It all sort of blossomed from
there, " he says. " We then obtained
a service mark for the Woodbooger
name from the United States Patent
and Trademark Office for use in
promoting tourism. "
WOODBOOGER FESTIV
Since then, Norton has embraced
this mythical creature, with other
local businesses now selling
Woodbooger merchandise, the
advent of the Woodbooger Grill
restaurant in downtown Norton
and the establishment of an annual
fall Woodbooger Festival.
A geocaching event, known as
the Woodbooger GeoTrail, is now
also held each September. The event challenges participants
to find caches hidden in Norton's Flag Rock recreation area
and surrounding communities.
If you happen to be walking the gravel footpath to the
overlook in Norton's Flag Rock recreation area, you can't miss
the giant Woodbooger statue. It's located just beyond the
parking area. The city erected the statue in 2015 after Norton
City Council designated the recreation area as a Woodbooger
Sanctuary in 2014.
" We're happy to say that the legend is alive and well in
Norton, " says Ramey. " As a matter of fact, during the last
election, I saw some 'Woodbooger for President' signs. " 
co-opliving.com
ubiq itous in the Pacific Northwest for centuries, some
historians say that most sightings in the South began only
historian
after the CivilWar.
http://www.co-opliving.com
Cooperative Living October 2022

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