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WHAT’S A WENDIGO?

WHAT’S A WENDIGO?

HILL’S HORROR

Cryptids and urban legends are some of the most interesting stories to hear about, like Mothman, skinwalkers, hide behinds, and more.

 

Wendigos are one of the scarier cryptids. They come from Native American legends. The wendigo is a person that consumed another’s human’s flesh. Once it has eaten the flesh, its hunger can never be satisfied. The legends go that humans could be over taken by greed and become wendigos.

 

The wendigos are associated with famine, winter, greed, and gluttony. There are countless movies, stories, and TV shows based on these malevolent creatures.

 

However, even though some believe these to be just legends, they are very real to some people and cultures.

 

The wendigo has actually played a part in some real-life horror stories. 

 

One horrible crime based on these creatures comes from Swift Runner, a Cree man from Alberta, Canada, who murdered his family during the winter of 1878-79. He killed a number of six victims, and cooked and ate their flesh, but he swears he was possessed by the spirit of the wendigo.

 

Another Native American, Jack Fiddler, had a totally different approach to this. In 1907, he was arrested by the Canadian Mounted Police for killing a total of 12 victims, whom he claimed were possessed by the wendigo. Fiddler later escaped from the authorities and killed himself.

 

Whether you believe these stories or not, the wendigo and all the terrors it has brought is pretty scary, regardless.

About the Contributor
TAYLOR HILL
TAYLOR HILL, EDITOR IN CHIEF
Taylor Hill is senior at Lincoln Park and is a writing and publishing major. She’s the editor in chief for The SIREN newspaper and is also writing the horror column for The SIREN this year.