Vegetable Man (Cryptid)

Not to be confused with Vegetable Man.

In West Virginia folklore, the Vegetable Man, also known as the Veggie Man, is a humanoid creature that was supposedly seen in Grant Town, West Virginia, in 1968 by Jennings Frederick, a local resident. The cryptid was first introduced by a known hoaxer, Gray Barker, in his 1976 newsletter, describing the character as a thin, plant-like creature with yellow eyes, pointed ears, and needle-tipped suction cup fingers. No evidence of the sighting exists and the creature was never seen again. In 2024, Mothboys Podcast and The Frank & Jane Gabor West Virginia Folklife Center in Fairmont, WV hosted the inaugural Veggie Man Day to celebrate West Virginia Folkore.

Vegetable Man

Full body rendering based on Frederick's description
Creature information
Other name	Veggie man
Grouping	West Virginia cryptid
Origin
Region	Grant Town, West Virginia

Head and shoulders artist rendering

History

In July of 1968, local resident of Grant Town, Jennings Frederick was hunting groundhogs. Unsuccessful, he headed home. While walking under a maple tree he heard “'a high-pitched jabbering, much like that of a recording running at an exaggerated speed'”. Frederick reported hearing (not sure if audibly or telepathically) "'You need not fear me. I wish to communicate. I come as friends. We know of you all. I come in peace. I wish medical assistance. I need your help!'” Frederick said that his wrist was being gripped by a seven-foot-tall humanoid creature with "arms that 'were no bigger around than a quarter' and that it had hands with “three seven-inch-long fingers with needle-like tips and suction cups”.^[1]

The creature gripped his wrist more and more tightly and extracted blood from Frederick who cried out in pain and fright. Its eyes, which had been yellow, became red. It "bolted up the hill, making 'great leaping jumps' that covered a distance of at least twenty-five feet per leap" and Frederick heard humming noises coming from the woods where it had sprung to. Assuming the creature was of extraterrestrial origin, he claimed the noises were from the saucer it may have arrived in. Frederick went home and feared no one would believe him so he told his family that his wounds were from briars in the woods. Months later he told this story to his friend Gray Barker.^[1]

Barker, who had written about UFO's and other paranormal stories, including coining the term "The Men in Black", was commonly known as a hoaxer and "was known to encourage individuals to fabricate stories", according to Reed.^[1] Barker wrote about the creature in a March 10th, 1976 article called "The Vegetable Man: A semi-abductee?", which appeared in The Gray Barker Newsletter. No other sightings of the Veggie Man have been reported.

Pre history

According to paranormal researcher Daniel A. Reed writing for Skeptical Inquirer Magazine, years prior, in April 1965 when Frederick was at school,^[1] his mother Ivah Frederick^[2] told her son that she had seen a “'saucer shaped aircraft'” about ten feet in diameter and five feet in height. Tethered to the saucer was a small, unclothed, “'black or dark green colored creature'” that looked “'more animal, or even Satanic, than human,'” described as having “'pointed ears and a tail.'” Terrified, she hid under the covers of her bed until she got the courage to look out the window and saw the creature get into the saucer which buzzed and rotated away.^[1]

Son Frederick investigated and took plaster casts and hair samples from the tracks he found and photographed the area. Frederick sent all his evidence to "the U.S. Air Force for analysis and received in reply the “'inane explanation'” that the craft was a weather balloon, and the Air Force never returned the physical evidence to Frederick".^[1]

Analysis

The Clarksburg-Harrison Public Library holds the "Gray Barker Collection", from which researcher Daniel Reed was able to collect information. Reed cites the Barker display at the library which states "Barker delighted in entertainment factor that could be found among the world of ufology. Barker was a well-known hoaxer .. and a collector of tales, rumors, reports, dreams and lies ... most, however, are exaggerations, distortions, or unadulterated fantasies'".^[1] Reporter Sam Gorski called the Veggie man story "a little-known hoax".^[2]

Reed writes that the entire story of the Vegetable Man, "rests on the testimony of one single eyewitness/victim whose only recorded report of the alleged incident was made to—and reported by—a known hoaxer". Adding that there is no physical evidence and with the amount of effort purportedly Frederick went to when documenting his mother's UFO and alien encounter, he didn't make any effort to document his own encounter.^[1]

Legacy

• In 2024, Mothboys Podcast and The Frank & Jane Gabor West Virginia Folklife Center in Fairmont, WV hosted the inaugural Veggie Man Day to celebrate West Virginia Folkore.

Popular culture

The Vegetable Man has been featured in the video game Fallout 76.^[3][4]

See also

• Flatwoods monster
• List of West Virginia cryptids