There are many cryptid creatures reported in the state of Ohio. Best known is sasquatch, called bigfoot more commonly, along with a few local names like Grassman. There is also Bessie the Lake Erie Monster, ABC's ('Alien' Big Cats), Thunderbirds, The Loveland Frog or Lizard, Lizard People, the Melonheads, and Mothman. There are also stories of Werewolves and Dogman.

While there may be a chance that the reports of Dogman may be the same or related to the reports of werewolves or a wolfman, this post concentrates on reports of people claiming to see Werewolves.

There is the "Wolfman of Defiance".  These reports started in August of 1972. There were at least three separate reports made to the police of people being attacked. These attacks took place between 1 am and 4:30 am. The witnesses described the attacker as wearing "some kind of an animal head"; "a wolfman".

 

Police Chief Donald Breckler said: "We didn't release it to the newspapers when we got the first report about a week ago. But now we're taking it seriously. We're concerned for the safety of our people."

The sightings continued with reports of "a wolfman" or a "very hairy" creature. One witness just called it a "beast". It was further described as having hairy feet and standing  6 to 8 feet tall. Many insist that the creature was a werewolf and that it clearly was not human and was very aggressive. The police took a more practical approach and decided that the attacks were most likely made by a person wearing an animal mask. The creature was never captured and the case was eventually "closed".

Resurrection Cemetery in Delphos was once the home for 'real-life' werewolves.

Ken Gorden, a resident of the area: "When I was a kid, we used to have church campouts along the Auglaize River next to the cemetery, and the priest would tell some pretty wild stories about werewolves in the area."

Explanations:

1) It is possible that the earliest stories came from actual wolves in the area long ago. 

2) One researcher says it could have come from the Native American tradition of shapeshifting. Perhaps local Shawnee shamans were able to transform themselves into wolf form. 

3) Another researcher suggests the early pioneers may have come into contact with sasquatch. They called them werewolves because it was the only reference they had to describe them. 

4) And, of course, there is the researcher who says perhaps they were actual werewolves.

In 1981-1982, Keith and Diane Williams had their own experiences with a creature near London. They moved into a house in a wooded area. Keith not only was working but was also taking night classes. This left Diane and their four-year-old daughter Raven alone most evenings. One night, Diane looked out the window and noticed two eyes staring at her from the darkness. She dismissed it as a probable stray dog and continued into another room. That was when she realized that the eyes were now outside the window in this room. It could not be a stray dog as the eyes were at her eye level. With her husband due home, she quickly pulled all the drapes shut. When Keith got home, Diane immediately told him of her experience. He checked out the yard and found nothing unusual. He dismissed her story as her being nervous about being left alone at night. Diane continued to see these eyes watching her at night. Several months later, Keith had his own experience. While waking in the early morning, he decided he wanted doughnuts for breakfast. He quickly got ready and jumped into his car to drive to the store. Looking in his rearview mirror, he saw two eyes staring at him.

In Central Ohio, near Columbus, a truck driver named Scott saw something unusual. It was on August 27, 2005, when he reported his strange nighttime sighting. In his truck headlights, he could see some kind of large creature crouched at the side of the road apparently eating a deer. He described it as a cross between "an ape with a dog's head" and the werewolf creature from the movie "Van Helsing".

In May 2006, "Joe" saw a very large creature at night while heading home from his job in Middlefield. He was driving through an isolated and wooded area when his high beams shone upon a creature near the side of the road on all fours. It was about 6 feet long from its head to its rump, not counting its bushy tail. Joe said it was a silver gray and had penetrating eyes.

The Norton area has had many sightings through the years.

In the autumn of 2013, "Andrew" had two encounters with strange, bipedal creatures. His first experience occurred while he was driving down Johnson Road, bordering the Silver Creek Metro Park. He quickly stopped when two deer ran across the road in front of his car.

“I would place them somewhere between 6’6” and 7′ tall. They chased the two deer (which were both smaller, by the way) out across the street and into the woods. They ran in formation… one in front, two behind, kind of next to each other. They were roughly 30-40 yards behind the deer. They were bipedal, very muscular, and fast. Lightning fast. It all happened in just a few seconds. I couldn’t describe any features, unfortunately; I’m assuming it was either a new moon or cloudy because it was very dark, but they were definitely a dark color… maybe a chocolate-brown or a black color.”

When asked if it were possible the creatures may have been sasquatch, he replied: "They say that Bigfoot has long arms that swing when it runs, and it runs like a human. Whatever these were, they weren't Bigfoot. I can't describe how they moved, but they didn't move like a person."

Less than a month later, Andrew had yet another experience while heading home. This time the creatures ran out in front of his car.

“The fields had full-grown cornstalks, but I don’t know the exact heights only that the cornstalks were taller than me by a head and I’m 6 feet tall. This time, my sighting of two creatures was a quick flash because there was no open land to it. They basically leaped the road as they broke the corn and landed about 10-15 feet into the field on the other side and kept running. This time, the pair that I saw in the moonlight, the first was black and the second was black with white or silver on its chest and back…. Since the first three I saw were all a solid color, that means there must be at least four different creatures.”

Now, long ago Timber Wolves were common in Ohio. They began to be considered nuisances as more settlers came to the area. The wolves were hunted and trapped to total removal. By 1842, the last wolf was killed.

So, wolves, sasquatch, werewolves, wolfmen, or dogmen, or maybe all of them account for the sightings through the years. You can decide for yourself.