MOSES LAKE — A lecture about the possibility of missing links in the evolutionary chain, and that one of those possible links might live around the Pacific Northwest, is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday at the Moses Lake Museum & Art Center.

Admission to “Sasquatch: Ape-Man or Myth?” is free. David George Gordon, author of “The Sasquatch Seeker’s Field Manual,” is the speaker. He will be signing copies of his book after the lecture.

The lecture is sponsored by the museum and the Humanities Washington program.

So – is there a big tall hairy part-man, part-creature out there in the Pacific Northwest backwoods? Gordon said the evidence is inconclusive. “I must admit I’m a fence-sitter.”

People have been reporting sightings of a – creature of some kind, hairy and 8 to 10 feet tall – for centuries, he said. “Yet aside from a collection of large footprint casts and a sizable assemblage of eyewitness accounts, some attributable to the first humans in the Northwest, no scientifically accepted evidence has been offered to establish this being’s existence,” he wrote.

“If I said it did not exist and someone found one tomorrow, I’d be wrong. Right? On the other hand, I wouldn’t want to go to court with the evidence they’ve gathered so far.”

Gordon said he will talk about that evidence, discuss “the rules of critical thinking and the workings of the scientific method.”

Gordon said he’s been interested in what he called “human and animal interactions” all his life, and has written several books on the subject. “In this regard, the topic of Sasquatch (and the Abominable Showman) is the ‘Big Kahuna.’ I’m fascinated with the way we may be regarding our next of kin.

“We need to get some definitive answers, gathered scientifically, to resolve this question.”

What Gordon calls “citizen-scientists” have a role to play, he said, “by gathering credible evidence that can be used to substantiate Sasquatch’s status as either man-ape or myth. Attendees (at the lecture) are encouraged to tell their tales and share their experiences with this mysterious creature.”

Moses Lake Museum director Freya Liggett said the museum will present an exhibit about the legend of Sasquatch in 2018, as part of its 50th anniversary celebration

Cheryl Schweizer can be reached via email at education@columbiabasinherald.com.