Update: So it's not aliens after all. Turns out local radio personalities Mark “Hawkeye” Louis and Michelle Rodriguez of New Country 96.3 were the ones behind the monolith, hiring students from Millsap High School to build and install the structure by the river — just for fun.
It looks like something out of Stanley Kubrick’s "2001: A Space Odyssey" — a silver, rectangular metal box standing resolutely along the Trinity Trail with no explanation nor clue as to where it came from.
And, somehow, it seems to have captured the imaginations of Fort Worthians this week.
The monolith, as many are calling it, is located along the trail just north of Interstate 30, along Beach Street by Gateway Park. Twitter user @ErikTheOffRed was the first to tweet about it Saturday, and since then, locals have been seen stopping by to take selfies and speculate as to where it came from.
The Tarrant Regional Water District (TRWD), which manages the trail system, doesn't seem to know where it came from either. And while NBC 5 reports that the monolith was placed there by students from Millsap High School, TRWD spokesman Chad Lorance says his organization hasn't confirmed this.
But they're not mad about it either.
"We had some safety concerns [Monday] night after we were told about it, so we moved it away from the trail and laid it on its side. This morning, when our operations folks went back out there, someone had stood it back up again. After some consideration, we decided to let it stay for the time being," Lorance wrote in an email to Fort Worth Magazine. "We have heard there has been a steady stream of folks who have come out to see it today. It is a fun distraction for the public. Also, because of where it is located, it might be an opportunity to introduce some new people to our Trinity Trails System."
Regardless, the monolith can't help but stir up local sci-fi fans and conspiracy theorists alike. According to Vox.com, similar monoliths have also mysteriously appeared in places like Utah, Romania, California, and New Mexico. Aliens seem to be the popular explanation.
Whatever it is, Fort Worthians appear to be having fun with it, based on the string of social media posts below.
