Loveland Frog
An artist's recreation of the policeman's sighting of the Loveland Frog. Photo: Wikipedia.
In Loveland, Ohio in 1972 two policeman reported seeing a 4ft tall frog-like creature walking on two legs. Over the last few decades several other sightings of the Loveland Frog have been reported. What is this strange creature?
Description of the Loveland Frog
The Loveland Frog is described as a 4ft reptile that looks like a giant frog. It has been described as weighing about 60 pounds, having leathery green skin, and the face of a frog or reptile.
Sightings of the Loveland Frog
In 1955 a man reported seeing three creatures that seemed to be half frog and half man. He ran to get the attention of law enforcement and when they returned there was no sign of the creatures but a strange lingering smell of almonds and alfalfa.
The most famous sighting of the Loveland Frog occurred in 1972. Policeman Ray Shockey was on the job on March 3rd when he was driving towards Loveland, Ohio. Suddenly a creature appeared on the side of the road which Shockey assumed was just a dog.
As he got closer Shockey realised it wasn’t a dog but a giant frog-like creature. As Shockey stared at the creature in shock it stood up on two legs and looked right at him with Shockey’s headlights reflecting in it’s eyes.
The creature then took off, leaping over the guardrail and down a bank into the Little Miami River.
Shockey drove on to the police station in Loveland and told his story to his colleague Mark Matthews. Matthews didn’t believe Shockey’s story but could tell that had definitely seen something out of the ordinary from his behavior.
The two police officers returned to the place where Shockey had seen the creature and found large scrape marks leaving down the hill into the river.
Two weeks later Mark Matthew’s had his own encounter with the Loveland Frog. He was driving near Loveland when he saw a large creature lying on the side of the road. Assuming it was roadkill, he got out of the car to clear it from the road.
To his surprise as he got closer he realised it was a giant frog-like creature and it was still alive. Matthew’s knew no one would believe him so he shot at the creature to try and get a body to prove what he had seen.
This is where Matthews’ accounts over the years have differed. In the 70’s Matthews told reporters that he shot at the creature and missed.
When interviewed again in 2016 Matthews claimed to have killed the creature and taken the body to Shockey to prove to him it was just an Iguana that was missing a tail.
It is unclear which version of the story is the truth.
In the years following there have been several more sightings reported of the Loveland Frog though some have been proven as hoaxes.
The Loveland Frog has become a beloved creature in Ohio and has even had a musical written about them.
Possible Theories about the Loveland Frog
A drawing of the Loveland Frog done by Shockey’s sister in the 1970’s. Photo: Weird Ohio.
Mathews’ theory that the creature was just a large Iguana with no tail seems plausible however the fact that he didn’t come to this conclusion until 40 years after the event is a bit suspect.
A Fortean investigator named Ron Schaffner interviewed both police officers in 1976 and both men claimed that the creature looked like the one in Shockey’s sister’s drawing.
The Loveland Frogman may have been a large lizard that was diseased which caused the strange appearance and behavior.
The Loveland Frog could also be a rare and mysterious reptile that we have yet to discover.
What do you think about the Loveland Frog? Let us know in the comments.
If you enjoyed this article you may also be interested in Not Deer or the Dover Demon.
