Beast of Busco
Template:Short description Template:Infobox mythical creature In Indiana folklore, the Beast of Busco is an enormous snapping turtle which citizens claimed to have seen in 1949. Despite a month-long hunt that briefly gained national attention, the "Beast of Busco" was never found.<ref>The name "Beast of Busco" was coined by Cliff Milnor, a columnist for the Fort Wayne, Indiana, Journal-Gazette. Template:Cite thesis</ref>
HistoryEdit
In 1898, a farmer named Oscar Fulk claimed to have seen a giant turtle living in the seven-acre lake on his farm near Churubusco, Indiana. He told others about it, but eventually he decided to drop the matter.<ref name="google53">Ho, Oliver and Cochran, Josh (2008) "Mutants & Monsters: Mutants & Monsters". Sterling Publishing Company, Inc.. p.53 Template:ISBN</ref>
A half century later, in July 1948, two Churubusco citizens, Ora Blue and Charley Wilson, also reported seeing a huge turtle (weighing an estimated 500 pounds) while fishing on the same lake, which had come to be known as Fulk Lake. A farmer named Gale Harris owned the land at that time. Harris and others also reported seeing the creature. Word spread.<ref name="unknownexplorers1">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In early 1949, a UPI reporter from Fort Wayne sent the story out on the wire services, and the turtle became nationally famous.<ref name="unknownexplorers1"/>
Curious mobs of sightseers began to invade Harris’ land forcing state police to be called in for traffic control.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
After many doubted the existence of the turtle, Harris made several attempts to catch the beast, including draining the lake by pumping the water into an area sealed off by a dam with the help of Orville Bright and Kenneth Leitch only for the dam to break when the lake had almost been entirely drained.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> But despite many attempts, "Oscar" (named after the original owner of the farm) was never captured.<ref name="unknownexplorers1"/><ref name="google53"/><ref>Thomas, Phyllis (2007) "Indiana: Off the Beaten Path : a Guide to Unique Places". Globe Pequot. p.61 Template:ISBN</ref><ref>Cavinder, Fred. D. (2003) "More Amazing Tales from Indiana". Indiana University Press. p.147 Template:ISBN</ref>
In March 1949, an attempt to send a deep-sea diver into the pond failed when the wrong equipment was delivered to the Harris farm.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
A photographer for Life Magazine, Mike Shea, took 299 photos at the site, but they were deemed unusable.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Cultural impactEdit
Oscar's memory lives on in Churubusco's Turtle Days festival held each June.<ref>Sisson, Richard (2007) "The American Midwest: An Interpretive Encyclopedia". Indiana University Press. p.402 Template:ISBN.</ref> It includes a parade, carnival and turtle races.<ref>Dorson, Richard Mercer (1986) "Handbook of American Folklore". Indiana University Press. p.238 Template:ISBN.</ref>
A turtle shell labeled "Beast of Busco" hangs in the Two Brothers Restaurant in Decatur, Indiana.
A small concrete statue of a turtle sits on the sidewalk at the main intersection in the center of Churubusco.