Case file · Cryptid
'Lost John' of Mammoth Cave
In 1935 guides in Kentucky's Mammoth Cave found the mummified body of a prehistoric man pinned under a huge boulder: an ancient miner crushed while digging minerals some 2,000 years ago.
1935 CE · 37.19, -86.10 · status: explained
The account
He had disturbed the rubble supporting the rock. 'Lost John' was exhibited to the public into the 1970s, then buried in a secret place in the cave out of respect and for preservation. Mammoth Cave also yielded other mummies in the 19th century.
The sceptical view
An archaeological find, not a 'cave man' of legend: he was an ordinary Native American miner.