Media Article # 598
Article submitted by Stan Courtney
Article prepared and posted by Stan Courtney

Tuesday, July 6, 1976

It speaks softly, carries a big foot

Rockford Morning Star

17-inch tracks found

Dixon - Is Big Foot, the huge, legendary man-like creature whose existence never has been documented, visiting the Lowell Park area near hear?

That's a question being asked by some Dixon area residents after 17-inch-long footprints were discovered Monday at the edge of the Rock River, a short distance north of the heavily-timbered 200-acre park, two miles north of Dixon.

The two clearly-defined footprints were of flatish feet, with five toes of nearly equal length. One print was of the right foot; the other a left footprint and the stride between the two prints was 40 inches. There also were several heelprints.

The prints measured 8 3/4 inches wide at the ball of the foot.

An unidentified fisherman, who was in the park early in the morning, said he found "park benches were thrown around and big footprints all around them."

By afternoon, however, the only big tracks that could be found were upstream from the park in a deserted area. The prints ended at the riverbank.

Lou Gerdes, who has a cottage nearby, at first said "maybe I did it. I have the biggest feet around here."

But when Gerdes feet were measured, they turned out to be only 11 inches long, six inches short of the Big Foot tracks.

Dixon Police Officer Howard Kendell, who has been on duty in Lowell Park since April 16, said he had not seen any sign of any creature resembling Big Foot.

Note - Stan Courtney: In September 2017 I was contacted by the witness who found the prints stating that his teenage friends admitted to pulling a practical joke on him. This article is included here as historical reference.

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