This happened in the late eighties or early nineties. My brother and I were on our way home from Prudential Hollow. We had been there the biggest part of the day, just messing around the old home places. Prudential was on land company and the hollow was shut down back in 1975/6 and all the remaining houses burned to the ground. It was getting late and we decided to head back home, a good half hour to 45 minute walk.
We were walking and talking, not paying too much attention to what was going on around us, after all we had made this walk plenty of times before. We had made it to the head of the hollow and was walking up the straightaway that lead to Silas Hollow and the turn off going to our house. We were snapped back to reality when we heard something coming down the side of the hill to our right. We looked to where the sound came from, thinking that it was a wild animal, and saw an old man come off the hillside, step into the roadway and start walking toward us. He was wearing a broadcloth type coat and a old black slough hat, with the brim shading his face. He walked hunched over, with his hands clinched behind his back. No big deal - just another guy out for a walk.
As we neared each other my brother and I eased to the left so he could pass to the right. We spoke, a causal "Hi how's it going" and he muttered and nodded his head as he passed. Both of us felt uneasy but kept it to ourselves. About a minute passed without either of us saying anything and I asked my brother if he knew the man and he said no, that he had never seen him before. We walked for a couple of more minutes, I guess three or four when we heard the same noise again and automatically looked to the hillside and that same man walked off the hill, stepped into the road and started walking toward us again.
Well this time we didn't speak and my brother whispered for me to not look him in the eye. After he passed us the second time my bother looked at me and said something like "Frank something ain't right about this. Let's get out of here as fast as we can". I agreed and we ran almost to the house. We got within eyesight of the house and my brother said that he thought we were safe enough now to stop and catch our breath.
After we rested a few minutes, we went to his house and set on his porch and tried to comprehend what had just happened. At the time we couldn't come up with any answers so his wife suggested we go talk to our Mother. We did and she told us that the man we saw had been seen by our Dad and older brother years before and that she had no idea of who or what he is.
I know it's been over twenty years since I have seen this specter but I still can't get it out of my mind. Who is he? What is he? What would have happened if I had made eye contact with him?
Comments and theories welcome.
I have met the man in the black hat.
For years I I have searched on google for any reference to this being. Tonight I found this.
The man in the black hat I met in a very awful bar when looking after a guy in a wheelchair who drank at this place every Thursday afternoon. He introduced himself as the man in the black hat. I took little notice until he said my name, smiled then added I'm here all the time but not always as you see me now. I'll be watchin you and catch you later!
This was no nice spiritual experience. To me he made it very clear who he was and if you have had the same person you know exactly what I mean.
Get back to me if this rings true for you