Nighttime Guardian. Amanda Stevens

      Prologue

      From the Arcadia Argus, June 18, 1980:

      Pearl River Monster Strikes Again!

      Well, folks, just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water, the Pearl River Monster has reared its ugly head again. A few days ago, a couple of local farmers reported missing livestock, and another one says he found a mutilated cow carcass down by the river. Now little Shelby Westmoreland, Annabel Westmoreland’sgranddaughter, has told Sheriff McCaid that she saw a huge scaly beast rise up out of the river last night right around midnight.

      Unlike previous eyewitness accounts, which claimed the Pearl River Monster resembled some sort of prehistoric sea serpent, this creature apparently walked upright, like a man.

      The child was clearly terrified and what she described “sent cold chills down my spine,” said McCaid.

      Just what little Shelby was doing out there alone at that time of night is still unclear, but one thing seems certain, folks. There is something in that river besides pearls and catfish….

      From the Arkansas Democrat, June 25, 1980:

      Nine-Year-Old Sees Monster

      An Arcadia girl swears she saw a “huge scaly monster” rise out of the water near her grandmother’s home on the Pearl River. The nine-year-old’s claim is the most recent in a rash of Pearl River Monster sightings that have swept the small communities along the river in the wake of reports of missing livestock and cattle mutilations. Cross County Sheriff Roy McCaid told a group of reporters outside the courthouse yesterday that the child either saw something that badly frightened her, or else she’s a very accomplished actress. “I’ve never seen a kid that scared. She could hardly talk when her grandmother brought her in.”

      The child’s grandmother, Annabel Westmoreland, who deals in freshwater pearls harvested from the river, says her granddaughter left their house just before midnight on a dare from one of her friends. According to the grandmother, the child came running back to the house, screaming that she’d seen a horrible creature rise out of the water and come after her.

      From the Wall Street Journal, July 2, 1980:

      Monster Hunters Invade Arkansas

      Following a recent Pearl River Monster sighting by a nine-year-old girl, an army of scientists, sightseers and so-called monster hunters have descended on the small, northeast Arkansas town of Arcadia, located on the Pearl River.

      In addition to missing and mutilated livestock—supposedly the handiwork of the monster—there have been numerous alleged sightings of a “huge, scaly, humanoid creature” that inhabits the river.

      In Arcadia, where Shelby Westmoreland lives with her grandmother, feelings are mixed concerning the sightings. “We’re all spooked around here,” one woman says uneasily.

      But another resident openly scoffs at the notion of a monster. “That girl is obviously trying to get herself some attention.” The woman admits, however, that she has started locking her doors at night and might have second thoughts about swimming in the river.

      Meanwhile, nine-year-old Shelby has become something of a celebrity, with tabloid reporters camping on her doorstep and an appearance scheduled later this week on the “Tonight” show.

      From the Arkansas Democrat, July 9, 1980:

      The Vanishing Monster

      Three weeks after the latest and most dramatic sighting of the Pearl River Monster, scientists from Arkansas State University and from the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission have pulled up stakes and gone home. “If there is something living in that river other than an assortment of freshwater fish and mollusks, it certainly knows how to camouflage itself,” says Dr. Dean Carey, a zoology professor in Jonesboro. “We’ve found no evidence of anything out of the ordinary in the Pearl River, except, unfortunately, for a high level of pollution.”

      Dr. Carey speculates that what people along the river may have witnessed recently is an alligator gar, which can sometimes reach lengths of ten to twelve feet. “And they aren’t your most attractive creatures,” he adds. “I can see how a child might think it a monster, particularly at night.”

      When asked how an alligator gar might “rise up out of the river,” he laughs. “Chalk it up to a child’s vivid imagination. That’s the only possible explanation.”

      From the Arcadia Argus, July 16, 1980:

      Monster Sighting A Clever Hoax?

      Well, it looks like we’ve all been had, but it was a fun ride while it lasted. Sheriff McCaid now believes Shelby Westmoreland’s claim that she saw the Pearl River Monster a month ago was, in fact, a hoax perpetrated by the girl’s uncle, James Westmoreland, to capitalize on the influx of sightseers to the area.

      According to the sheriff, business at the Pearl Cove probably increased by as much as tenfold during the weeks following little Shelby’s claim. Anxious for a souvenir, visitors to the jewelry store were willing to plunk down hundreds of dollars for freshwater pearls from the river, guaranteed to protect the wearer from the monster.

      With her uncle’s confession, Shelby’s fifteen minutes of fame have officially come to an end. Following recent developments, her second scheduled appearance on the “Tonight” show has been canceled, and the tabloid reporters have all gone home. Evidently, their feelings now are that the girl’s story just isn’t very credible.

      Let’s hope little Shelby doesn’t go crying wolf in the near future because it’s doubtful anyone would be willing to listen….