Whether or not local deer hunter Rick Jacobs captured Bigfoot on
film, the sighting was not the first, and is not the last.

There has been credible sightings all over the state, according
to the Pennsylvania Bigfoot Society. The society’s Web site
describes three credible sightings in McKean County since 1985,
four in Potter County since 1970, five in Cameron County sine 1977,
and one in Elk County in 1992.

Bigfoot was spotted in McKean County in 1995 during hunting
season, according to the society. A man spotted a large dark
creature walking around a hillside 80 yards from him at a face
pace. The creature eventually disappeared.

The most recent Potter County sighting was June 28, 2002, near
Crossfork. A man standing on a pipeline spotted two creatures
crossing the pipeline. One creature was between seven- to
eight-foot tall and was covered in dark grayish-brown hair. The
other creature was about three foot tall and was covered in brown
hair. The man saw arms swinging as they walked, according to the
society.

A man was woken when he heard the heavy footfalls of a large
animal at a campsite near Grove Run, Cameron County, in July 2001,
according to the society. The eight-foot-tall creature walked
between the man and the campfire. The creature was covered in
“glistening long black hair” and walked on two legs. The witness
could not see the creature’s face but noticed its arms hung to it’s
knees and heard the creature making heavy breathing sounds. The
creature down the hill towards the creek and disappeared, according
to the society.

Bigfoot was witnessed by three campers near the State Game Lands
in Elk County in August 1992, according to the society. One camper
saw the legs of a hairy, bi-pedal creature with six to eight inches
of “glistening black hair.” One of the campers tried to snap a
photo with a flash camera, which scared the creature. It ran up a
plateau above them and began screaming a loud, high-pitched, and
drawn out scream. Another attempt at a photograph was unsuccessful
but red eyes could be seen reflected from the flash. The campers
got into their truck and saw a bi-pedal creature cross in front of
them where the campfire was, according to the society.

Bigfoot sightings can be submitted to the society by contacting
them by phone, e-mail, or through their web site. A society
researcher will then contact the witness, preferably in person, to
determine the credibility of the report.

If the story sounds credible, researchers will go with the
witness to the sight where the Bigfoot was spotted to look for
physical evidence, including footprints or hair samples. The
society may then camp out in the area to see if the creature can be
spotted again.

The witness’s story then appears on the Web site with no
specific location or witness information.

The society fields a number of sightings, including 15 in the
week since the Jacobs pictures appeared in The Era, said Society
Director Eric Altman. The sightings on the society’s Web site have
been determined credible by a society researcher, he said.

“We usually can pick up pretty quickly if a story has been made
up,” said Altman, who has been researching Bigfoot for 27
years.