Fishing stories are pervasive in Arkansas.

We've all heard harrowing tales of hooking a monster.

And every time the stories told that fish seems to get bigger and meaner.

When you're uncovering the oldest stories of a place in the lore of a place.

It's a lot like having a monster fish on the end of your line.

No matter how you try to control it, it's got a mind of its own.

Cryptozoology is basically the study of unknown or undiscovered creatures.

In a kind of his fallen over into the.

The odd stories like Bigfoot and Loch Ness and all the auditing stories.

Well Mister, Jamie what are they biting on this week?

My uncle used to it, so let me look in your box and he'd tried picks up.

He didn't hand basically since I was a kid have always had an interest in anything unusual with an as I've gotten older and gotten the chance to go out and explore and actually talk to people that.

Have witnessed these things everyday ordinary people doctors Housewives.

No pet salon owners.

Real people are seeing things or hearing things when they are out in the wilderness that they cannot explain and it makes you wonder what really is out there.

Surprisingly, there seems to be quite a few oddities Here in Arkansa, one of the lesser known ones is the White River Monster.

Earliest report I can find is 1864 a Colonel in the Civil War, Colonel Craven.

Decided to go out fishing on the White River as fish stories go.

He hooked a monster that he referred to as a devil fish.

He said it was 6 inches between its eyes is how big his head was.

And that the body itself is 5 foot wide, he said it had more legs and claws than he could count.

There's so many animals that people thought were extinct.

That one.

We really do have some prehistoric monsters in these waters.

The Sturgeon is one.

It's been around for millions of years and it could even be Agar.

The alligator gars get up to 12 feet long I think there's just I think there's just an interest in things that.

Maybe possible.

1937 is basically when it made national news.

There was a plantation owner just outside of Newport that fishermen in the area reported to him because they were just off the shores of his property.

That they had seen a large creature.

They've described it, having elephant likes camp and it was 4 to 5 foot wide when they went to the media with the story.

It kind of took on a little life of its own little media frenzy for the time I guess nowadays you would call it going viral.

And from their former Navy diver Charles Brown.

Decided he was going to tackle the adventurer and go into the River armed with an 8 foot sphere.

And catch this thing.

The visibility in this River is he said it was only about 3 inches and the first time he went down.

He got stuck in the muck and they had to pull him out.

The second time he went down something happened with the valves in his air equipment and Bob to the surface like a Cork and the 3rd time he said that all he saw was a dead blog an A large catfish.

That also made headline news that.

The Monster had eluded a famous Navy diver.

Turn.

In 1971, a Japanese news team.

Dispatch Camera crews over they were going to document and maybe do a little.

Documentary on this creature and they spent some time in Newport.

It didn't fit the large size of the earlier reports.

But they also said it had a horn sticking out of his head like a bone horn sticking out of his head.

1970s were kind of a hot topic for monsters.

It's like the public wanted to consume.

Any story that involved any kind of creature 1973.

Senator Robert Harvey is responsible for getting our state government to issue.

A sanctuary on the River to protect the creature from harm.

I mean that even made news because it's not been done before and it hasn't been done sense to protect something that hasn't been proven to exist.

In February of 1973 in a bill adopted by voice vote.

The state Senate designated a section of the White River from Jacksonport to Possum grape to be an official White River Monster refuge, referring to periodic sightings by reputable persons.

This nonbinding resolution sponsored by Senator Robert Harvey of nearby Swift and made it unlawful to molest killed trampled or harm.

The White River Monster.

While in its native retreat an no violations have yet been reported.

I honestly believe that everybody saw something I don't think that they were all saying the same thing.

And when you try to put all those to get.

You get a monster.

I want to believe there's something unusual out here just for the sake.

I like unusual things is always been an interest in the addon unexplained and me, personally that's my entertainment is to come out here and keep some people think I'm crazy, but to me, it doesn't matter if it's real or not, it would be awesome.

If it is, you never know.

Like the scariest of monster stories have the ability to change and adapt whenever they re emerged from the shadows.

Time, and again the White River Valley thought they were done with their resident Monster and time and again.

He re emerged with a scary or look and a creepier encounter.

In places as old as Arkansa, you don't have to be a Monster Hunter.

Just sit still long enough and something is bound to rise to the surface.