From Wild Man to Monster:

Summary

When the first European settlers entered what is now New York State and its environs, they brought with them not only their material culture, but also an array of beliefs in mythical beings. Such creatures had been part of the European psyche for centuries. A central character in this pantheon was the "wild man" thought to inhabit the darker parts of the European countryside. Also known as the woodwose, wooser, or "wild man of the woods," it was conspicuous in folklore between the thirteenth and fifteenth centuries and holds a prominent place in later medieval European artwork and literature.