The Salem Catman

There are many witch burnings around Salem Massachusetts. But there was an urban legend that was forgotten for ages. A story of the beastly Catman. There are many versions of stories about The Catman, I heard many of the townsfolk tell these variations to me, my friends and neighbors around town. In an outdoor park in Salem called, "Salem Woods", it is said to be the home of The Catman. Some say he's a ghost, while others say he's a living creature, half black cat, half human. He is said to live in these woods near a burbling brook, and jump out from the treetops to pounce on top of any hiker, pin them down with his weight, and rip at their clothing with his retractable claws. He is said to be very tall, about six foot four, and is very muscular, about one hundred and fifty pounds. There are many folktales about the Salem legend. Whether he's a ghost, a demon, or a creature, The Catman story is scary and well known back in the early 1800's. Three stories detail how the Catman came to be, and how he became part black cat part human. 
Some stories say he was adopted by a traveling circus, and took place in a freak show. Cause he was born with a rare, genetic disorder that made him feline in appearance. He was raised in the wilds, and could never behave like a human, so they had him in chains and allowed him to eat raw parts of cows and pig they delivered from the slaughter house. His parents are alcoholic and very mean spirited, they didn't want to pay child support over their beastly son. They were just in it, for the sex. Somehow in the middle of the night as they were already packing in Salem Massachusetts, The Catman broke out, and was last seen by an eye witness, disappearing into the woods, never to be seen again. 
Another story about the monstrous Catman was about a middle aged man who worked for a couple of witch sisters who bargained him to keep their black magic 'hush-hush', or they'll torture him like the last person who was found out to be a spy. Around All Hollows Eve, he found out that the townspeople, including the mayor of Salem, were heading towards the sisters' house in the woods with pitchforks and torches. He tried to trick them into saying that they are already out of town by him chasing them away in a bear pelt, pretending to be a grizzly. But the townsfolk and the mayor didn't buy it. They knew about his plans, and they arrested, and held him hostage as they charged at the witches home. And the mayor said that after the hanging of the witches, he'd be sent to prison for his crimes. But as the townsfolk tried to bust open the door, they hear a sudden cry coming from inside. They picked the lock and opened it, to see the witches cooking the man's black cat inside a boiling cauldron. The man became frantic and broke free from his bonds, ran to save his beloved pet, but tripped on a red apple that fell from their basket, and tipped the cauldron over as he accidently pulled the boiling water on himself. He screamed and thrashed around, burning to a crisp as the steam was forming a cloud of smoke all around him. He gargled on the burning water as the water went down his gullet and into his lungs. He was obviously drowning on land. His esophagus was fried, and his lungs burnt to a black, charcoal color, and he died on the spot. And the same thing happened to his black cat. 
The spirits of the man and his beloved black cat, combined into one. And now angrily roams the woods nightly.
The Catman's ghost is said to have enormous strength, wondrous stealth, haunting eyes and admits one of the most terrifying screams ever recorded. He'll attack anyone who comes to bother him, or enter his vicinity. 
In the witch house, there was a legend told by a wiccan about The Catman. And it went, something like this:
The Catman is reportedly the ghost of a horribly mutilated man, appearing to be part black cat, part human, who is said to have demonic powers. He's reported to haunt Salem Woods for almost centuries, and quickly became a hot spot for local thrill-seekers, both young and old. 
The story is not directly related to me, but happened to some friends of mine. 
We were going to see if the legends are true, we came to the woods and hiked for almost hours. Then we came to the brook. Wanting to get a reaction out of the angry spirit, my friend, Bill, cuffed his mouth and yelled out, "HELLO!"
No response.
He did it again, we looked to see if he heard Bill. As he cuffed his mouth and yelled once again, saying, "SPREAD 'EM BITCH!", and made those barking sounds a lot of people do to make themselves cool... What we heard from a distance... Chilled us to the very bone. We heard the thing let out one of the most horrible screams we had ever heard. It sounded like a mix between a Tasmanian Devil, and a monkey on LSD! Bill turned to us and I told them to run. As we bolted back to my car, we didn't even stop for a second look, or pause for a breather, we ran till our legs ached. We swore we heard what sounded like a lion bounding towards us with the speed of a fast moving car. Me, Jane, Bill, and Tammy both ran to the car and what we saw, will haunt us for the rest of our lives. 
We saw what appears to be the most horrifying eyes we had ever seen. They almost looked like two demonic stars glaring at us through the woods, and was coming our way. I started the car, and the beast appeared in front of the car's headlights, still pursuing us. I hit the gas peddle, and head towards home in panic. 
Did Bill just summoned The Legendary Catman? We didn't know for sure. But what we do know, is as we got back to Salem Woods the next morning, shotguns ready, we saw paw prints in the dirt, with five toes, instead of four like a cat. We looked at each other with jaws dropped. And we saw blood on the trees, with decomposed bodies all mutilated near them. 
Was it The Catman protecting his territory? Or was it a black panther just hunting it's next prey? Whatever it is... It scared my friends, half to death.
Category:Beings
Category:Ghosts