The scary legend of the Lizard Man has become a revived local story, with a small town in South Carolina capitalizing on the tale.
The story dates back more than thirty years to 1988 when a young teen from Bishopville, SC, was on his way home from work. As many of these stories go, he blew a tire, requiring him to get out of the car to handle the problem. Somewhere out o the Scape Ore Swamp came a three-toed, seven-foot tall lizard-man creature with red glowing eyes. The Lizard Man had made his first public appearance, and the story grew into a legend from there.
Damage to the car
Chris Davis, the then teen who encountered the creature, claims it jumped on his car and ripped off the side mirror. The attack was reported to the local police, who took the incident seriously, and found Davis to be relatively credible, after seeing the damage to the car and after Chris passed a polygraph test.
The legend didn’t involve only this one encounter, other cars were reported attacked by some type of creature that ripped of bumpers and damaged vehicles near the Scape Ore Swamp. Deputies spent much of their time chasing down leads and discovering large three-toed “footprints” left in the swamp by a large creature. Some of these prints were made into plaster casts for further study.
The legend was alive
For a time, the story of the Lizard Man that lived on Scape Ore Swamp near Bishopville grew and became a legend. Media outlets from all over the globe descended on the town to learn of this creature. The stories made the local Sheriff a celebrity and put Lee County on the map and radar of the world.
As you would expect, many news outlets wanted proof beyond damaged vehicles and plaster footprints. They wanted the creature captured, and one radio station in Columbia offered a $1 million reward for the capture.
Reviving the Legend of the Lizard Man
Around the time of the 30th anniversary of the original sighting, a group wanted to revive the legend and bring attention back to the story. The idea was to bring buzz back to the story and maybe bring some tourism to the area. Unfortunately, the organizers were unable to make things happen until after the COVID-19 pandemic was over.
Thankfully, the group of organizers were tenacious and the rebirth or “Preserving the legend,” as they like to say, has come to fruition. In 2022, the Friends of the Lizard Man hosted their first “Stomp,” which was a tribute to the imprints from the swamp mud that were recovered during the 1988 sightings.
The legend is becoming an annual event
During the first year, the “Stomp” was an outdoor event that coincided with the “Taste of Lee” festival that takes place in Lee County each year. Many of the organizers cooked lizard themed “swamp bog” and hosted events geared toward the legend. There was a car show and sale of T-shirts and other Lizard Man merchandise. This first revival was a hit.
The next year, in 2023, the “Stomp” brought more people to downtown Bishopville to celebrate and enjoy the legend of the Lizard Man. In addition to the previous events, a parade was added along with various food trucks, a live band, more arts and crafts vendors, and more entertainment for the kids.
Statues became a hit
In addition to the amazing celebrations of this local legend, Smith’s Concrete cast a three-foot-tall statue of the legendary creature. This item sold quickly and can be seen in the town area locations. Some towns have other animal statues spread around the area, Bishopville has its Lizard Man.
In addition to the statues, the town created “The Lizard Man Lounge” on Facebook to preserve the legend of the large lizard-man creature that came out of the swamp to attack passing cars in 1988. It seems the legend is only growing and could continue to grow as long as Lee County continues to support its own country legend.
Sarah Johnson