People have always feared the wilderness. This is also the case of the area around Glastenbury Mountain where several strange disappearances have made people think that it could be something strange going on in what has been known as The Bennington Triangle.
Deep within the picturesque landscape of Vermont lies a region cloaked in mystery and shrouded in eerie tales—the Bennington Triangle. An area encompassing the southwestern part of the state, the Bennington Triangle has become synonymous with a series of unexplained disappearances, ghostly encounters, and inexplicable phenomena that have perplexed locals and intrigued paranormal enthusiasts alike.
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The Bennington Triangle has been compared to the similar Bridgewater Triangle of Bermuda Triangle, a place where strange things happen. The phrase was coined in 1992 by the author Joseph A. Citro, who wrote about this in his books, Shadow Child. Citro has also called the area as a “Yankee Shangri-La”, a place where people go to never be seen again.
The area is said to be around the Glastenbury Mountain and Long Trail, encompassing towns like Bennington, Woodford and Shaftsbury as well as once thriving logging towns, now abandoned ghost towns of Somerset and Glastenbury.
It is said that strange disappearances started way back and that from 1920 to 1950, as much as 10 people vanished in these parts. At the heart of the strange things said to go on in the triangle is a series of disappearances from 1945-1950:
The Disappearances of the Bennington Triangle
The unsettling reputation of the Bennington Triangle stems from a series of unexplained disappearances that occurred between 1945 and 1950. Five individuals, including a seasoned hiker, a college student, and a war veteran, vanished without a trace within the confines of Glastenbury Mountain—a prominent feature within the triangle.
The first incident occurred on November 12, 1945, when 74-year-old Middie Rivers vanished during a hunting trip in the mountains by Long Trail Road. Despite an extensive search, the only evidence discovered was a rifle cartridge in a stream.
A year later, on December 1, 1946, Paula Jean Welden, an 18-year-old sophomore at Bennington College, disappeared during a hike on the Long Trail. An elderly couple said they saw her in front of them on the trail. She turned a corner, and when they turned the same, she had vanished. Despite a substantial search effort and FBI involvement, no trace of her was found. Her disappearance got a lot of attention, and it even inspired the Shirley Jackson novell from 1951, Hangsaman.
On December 1, 1949, James E. Tedford, a veteran from the Bennington Soldiers’ Home, vanished mysteriously while on a bus from St. Albans. According to the stories, he vanished into thin air between the last stop and Bennington, leaving all of his belongings in the luggage rack with an open bus timetable on his seat. Skepticism surrounds claims that he “dematerialized” as he wasn’t reported missing until a week later.
In 1950, the mystery continued with the disappearance of 8-year-old Paul Jepson, left unattended near a local highway for an hour as his mother fed some pigs. He was wearing a red jacket at the time and were supposed to be clearly visible in the greenery, but not a trace was found. It is said that just in case, people don’t wear red clothes in the area because of this.
Lastly, 53-year-old Frieda Langer, who vanished during a hike near Somerset Reservoir. Frieda Langer’s body was found seven months later, three and a half miles from the campsite, with no determined cause of death.
Other than the area they disappeared in and the time period, they found no other connections between the five disappearances.
The Bennington Monster
So what happened in this time period? Some claim it had to be UFOs, perhaps even Bigfoot himself. Others say that the forests of the area have become haunted and people claim to hear strange noises and voices.
The place has been known as a place to avoid since colonial time with people encountering strange lights and even monstrous animals in the wilderness.
The legend of the “Bennington Monster” dates back to the early 1800s when a stagecoach encountered a washed-out road. The stage driver discovered massive footprints in the mud, distinctly larger than human. Suddenly, the coach was assaulted by a colossal creature, toppling the vehicle on its side. Terrified passengers glimpsed only a pair of eyes before the monster emitted a roar and vanished into the forest. Subsequent sightings portrayed the creature as a towering, hairy figure, dark in color, and exceeding six feet in height.
There is also a story about a man named Carol Herrick who in 1943 went missing while hunting. He was found three days later near Glastonbury, crushed to death, surrounded by big footprints.
Native American Legends
There are also early colonists that have retold native american stories and Algonquin legends that called the Glastenbury Mountain a human eating rock. An evil stone on the mountain that would open up and swallow those standing on it.
Legends tell of ancient Native American curses and supernatural entities that haunt the region and that they wouldn’t step on the land unless to bury the dead. They said that the “four winds” met there in an eternal struggle, which has some truth to it, as the wind on Glastenbury Mountain is prone to sudden shifts, and even the plants grow in weird angles because of this.
The Vortex of The Bennington Triangle
While the disappearances of the 1940s and 1950s remain unsolved, the Bennington Triangle continues to captivate the imagination of those intrigued by the unknown. What could it be? Some from the native tribes legends? Could it be a monster like Bigfoot roaming the place, or perhaps even a serial killer wandering the mountain?
Ghost hunters, paranormal investigators, and curious seekers venture into the depths of the triangle, searching for clues and attempting to unlock the secrets that have eluded explanation for decades.
Today as well as in the old days, the wilderness of Glastenbury Mountain and the surrounding Bennington Triangle makes us afraid for what could be in the vast and wild area where a person can disappear without a trace.
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References:
Bennington Triangle, Vermont – Legends of America
The Haunting of Glastenbury Mountain
Bennington Triangle – Wikipedia
