Flatwoods Tales, Continued!

The late A. Lee Stewart, Jr.

Flatwoods Tales, Continued!

by Alfred Lehmberg 

On the dewy morning of September 12, 1952, Mr. A. Lee Stewart, Jr., the subject of our report, was the co-owner of the newspaper, "The Braxton Democrat." This is a newspaper located in Sutton, West Virginia, the County seat for a soon-to-be-in-turmoil Braxton County. 

Back to Stewart, Stewart was a crack writer and a trained photojournalist in this period. He would, and very often, work with the Braxton Sheriff's Dept. and the West Virginia State Troopers Office. This would be key to solidifying Stewart's insider position in this affair!

See, in small communities at this time photojournalists would work with badged authorities, assisting them, often, on crime and accident scene investigations. Upon receiving a call from these authorities for assistance, a photojournalist would go to the location, help in analyzing the scene, photograph the scene for the police, and then report on it!

At about 9:00 PM on September 12, 1952, a late working Mr. Stewart received a call at his newspaper office from a West Virginia State Police Trooper. This was of course mere hours after the incident at the Fisher farm!

Stewart was informed that a frantic woman, our Mrs. Kathleen May, had just called the sheriff's office to report that she and a group of boys had encountered a huge "monster" on the Fisher farm in Flatwoods! She had been told that Braxton Sheriff Carr was unavailable to respond to her call because he was out on another call investigating the report of an "alleged plane crash" in nearby Sugar Creek! ...We've heard about that location, before, a constant reader will recall! 

The State Police were also busy, as we had noticed in the previous piece just alluded to! They were unavailable to even respond to the call! The reader is reminded this is an entire County of police officials who are too busy even to answer the phone! 

In turn, Stewart was empowered by the State Police to represent the Sheriff's Dept. in the absence of Sheriff Carr. Subsequently, A. Lee Stewart, Jr. drove to the May home and was the first person of authority to arrive at the house! There, he walked into a chaotic and disturbing scene! 

Stewart, the first person of officiality to go to the farm that night after the encounter, was escorted onto the property with an armed posse of fearful locals, riled in the scary kerfuffle, to investigate the area! Let's take a breath!

During Feschino's investigation Feschino was told by many of the locals he interviewed that Stewart had played a key role in all of the events that followed in the "Flatwoods Monster" encounter! Feschino desperately wanted to interview him to add to his story, but there was a big problem. No one knew where Stewart was because he had sold the newspaper years ago and moved out of the State!

For years, Frank continued to search for Stewart... not even knowing if he was still with us! Then, in the purest of serendipities during a research visit to West Virginia in 1996... Frank had been talking to oldsters and what-not for recollections and memories... people around Sutton... and just happened to speak to a man who informed him that Stewart was still alive, AND well! 

Stewart, it's discovered, had left West Virginia in the late 1950s and then dropped out of sight, but he had been seen recently in the area for a funeral! Stewart's wife had passed away, it's discovered, and she was brought back home to be laid to rest in her native Braxton County. Still not knowing where Stewart lived, Feschino went to the local funeral home in Sutton, associated, and obtained A. Lee Stewart's current address. Finally, Feschino had found his man! 

Shortly after, he phoned Mr. Stewart at his home in North Carolina and told him that he was conducting a serious investigation into the "Flatwoods Monster" case. Feschino explained that he was already working with Mrs. May and several other people involved in the incident and would like to talk with him about the affair. Feschino told Stewart about the massive amount of research he had compiled, thus far, and also informed him about the horrendous inconsistencies recorded in the media over the years. ...Could Stewart clear some of these up?

Feschino told Stewart that he would like to set the record straight once and for all, on the issue, and would like to video-record him. By the end of their conversation, Stewart told Feschino that his persistence in his detailed research was admired! ...And let's pause a moment for digression. Feschino's investigation of this whole "Summer Of Saucers" affair in 1952 is unique in that it substantiates itself more and more the more it is investigated! Other investigations seem to tend to insubstantiation the closer one gets to them... not so with Flatwoods. Flatwoods continues to substantiate itself the closer one gets! What records and materials must exist, extant, elsewhere in Washington? Digression, over.

Stewart, likely wanting to remove an old splinter in the winter of his declining winter, readily agreed to talk further with Feschino about his involvement in the "Flatwoods Monster" case. Feschino was beside himself in delight and anticipation! Stewart explained that his health was not good and said Feschino should get to North Carolina as soon as possible! He invited Feschino to his home.

Very shortly thereafter, Frank Feschino, Jr. packed his research and went to Stewart's home for a long weekend. They would speak for days about the case!

Stewart reviewed all of Frank's research materials and told him about his involvement in all of the events that followed the "Flatwoods Monster" incident. Stewart explained that within days, this story had become so widely known that the small town of Flatwoods was overrun and trampled by countless reporters, writers, curious on-lookers, and graceless looky-loos! Indeed, the astonishing story had taken on a life of its own, was Stewart's report! 

Subsequently, the office of "The Braxton Democrat" newspaper became a make-shift headquarters of information—information brokers, really, for the reporters who came into the area from around the country. Feschino was astounded at the breadth and scope of the information he received... 

At the end of his stay, Feschino set up his video camera and videotaped Stewart in his living room! For Stewart... the record would, at last, be set straight. 

Stewart's detailed information concerning the events following the "Flatwoods Monster" incident set the foundation and framework for the entire story used to write Feschino's books! This is a demonstration how key Stewart's serendipitous contribution WAS to a Revealed Flatwoods... and that pesky air war with ET...  

Feschino's taped video recording of A. Lee Stewart's testimony, among OTHER startling video testimonies, reader, is the only one in existence! A following link is a portion of that videotape with A. Lee Stewart, Jr., in the proceeding photo of a newspaper article:

"In 1952, I was co-owner and publisher of "The Braxton Democrat", I broke the story on what is known as the "Braxton County Monster," or the "Flatwoods Monster," as it is referred to in the modern day. I have not discussed this subject since I left West Virginia in 1958. I would like to bring to light some of the things that have been said and clarify some of the problems that have been written up on this subject... An artist from Florida by the name of Frank Feschino contacted me some time ago concerning this particular thing and has spent a lot of time in West Virginia... A lot of the material that he has picked up, which he has given to me, is not true.

The reason I am doing this is that I'd like to bring into focus some of the things that happened and what actually transpired on that particular night. It was not easy for the people who went through this incident and it wasn't easy for the people who tried to report it."

This fine gentleman can be seen in the proceeding link below, giving some of his report in the video-doc produced by Frank Feschino: it is about 17:00 minutes in, although the whole documentary, narrated by Feschino himself, is breathtaking! Read on!

The Braxton County Monster / The Flatwoods Monster: Book by Feschino

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Buy the book? Get it here so Feschino realizes more of what is his, avoid Amazon.  Onward and excelsior!