Class A First-hand BFRO #44837

Years of South Florida Skunk Ape stories supported by witness accounts and newspaper articles

20 July 1974 1 am Davie, Broward County, Florida 2 witnesses

Account

In July 1974 the witness and his older cousin were staying overnight in a relative's sitting room in southern Florida. Late at night under floodlights they watched a tall hairy biped outside the picture window scream, then walk around the property while they followed it from window to window. They saw it eat a watermelon with both hands and scoop water to drink before leaving on a wooded trail.

Summary drafted by AI from the source report and checked by code before I publish it. The witness's own words remain with the publisher — read the original report .

What was reported

Every kind of observation in the account. Select one to find other encounters with it.

Sightings

Sounds

Context & caveats

Described appearance

In the source's own words, field by field. Hover a field's marker to see where it was read.

Height src
about 9 feet tall
Build src
very broad shouldered
Hair colour src
dark brown or black
Arms src
long arms that hung past its knees
Gait src
walked bi-pedal
Posture src
squatted down to eat and drink
Other features src
body covered in hair, resembled a man and an ape

Facts & provenance

Each value names where it came from.

Date
20 July 1974
Stated BFRO report #44837 · BFRO report, labelled fields: Year, Month, Date
Time of day
1 am
Stated BFRO report #44837 · BFRO report, “Time And Conditions” section
Place
Davie, Broward County, Florida
Stated BFRO report #44837 · BFRO report, labelled fields: State, County, Nearest Town, Location Details, Nearest Road
Map point
26.05, -80.29 (± 1000 m)
Stated BFRO map layer · BFRO published map layer · read with 85% confidence
BFRO map layer point for report 44837 (5 decimals, no boundary)
Account type
First-hand
Stated BFRO report #44837 · BFRO report, “Observed” section
Witnesses
2
Derived BFRO report #44837 · BFRO report, “Follow-Up” section · read with 85% confidence
Figures reported
1
Stated BFRO report #44837 · BFRO report, “Follow-Up” section
Witness was
up late watching TV in sitting room while staying with relatives
Stated BFRO report #44837 · BFRO report, “Follow-Up” section
Witness's word for it
tall ape-like creature
Stated BFRO report #44837 · BFRO report, “Follow-Up” section
Source classification
Class A
Stated BFRO report #44837 · BFRO classification label

Evidence & investigation

What the source says was found or done. Claimed evidence is listed as claimed; the Anomadex has not examined it.

Investigated by
R. Monteith (BFRO)
Other

An investigator interviewed the witness by phone, visited the area, and created a sketch recreation and map of the sighting.

BFRO report, “Follow-Up” section
Follow-up

State police with horses, dogs and helicopters searched the swamp all night but found nothing.

BFRO report, “Observed” section
Follow-up

An investigator interviewed the witness by phone, visited the area, and created a sketch recreation and map of the sighting.

BFRO report, “Follow-Up” section

Source timeline

Every record this entry is built from, earliest known first. Records are versioned and never edited in place.

  1. Published 2014-04-16 Retrieved 2026-09-25 Version 1 11 images at source Hash 92691e4495b9
    BFRO - Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization
  2. BFRO map layer Reference
    Retrieved 2026-09-24 Version 1 Hash cfb8a3d423b7
    BFRO - Bigfoot Field Researchers Organization

The report refers to

  • “Skunk Ape website in South Florida”
    Not in the Anomadex yet
  • “August 1971 newspapers and Sports Illustrated”
    Not in the Anomadex yet
  • “August 11, 1975 article in the Miami News”
    Not in the Anomadex yet
  • “November 19, 1975 Palm Beach Post story”
    Not in the Anomadex yet