Mountain Lion Spotted on Property of Famed New Jersey Inventor

A New Jersey resident claims that a mountain lion was once seen on the property of Fred Ferber, the inventor of the low-cost ballpoint pen.

News of the sighting - said to have been in the 1960s - remains fresh in the mind of Rick, who reached out to me after reading one of the many mountain lion reports from people in New Jersey.

Many of these reports can be found here - and others are below.

Remembering Fred Ferber

Rick's email - and further research - has allowed me to conclude that Fred Ferber was a bit of a dreamer.

According to HIddenNJ.com, Ferber was a bit of a dreamer. He used his incredible earnings from the ballpoint pen to buy and build on some property in Passaic County.

He created a nature reserve and even fed wildlife, including deer, bears, and other animals.

According to Rick, Ferber would leave the doors of his home open, and animals would walk right in.

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Mountain Lion spotted

In his email to me, Rick recounted an incident back in the 1960s, on Ferber's property, where a mountain lion was observed.

Rick said his mother worked for Ferber at the time, doing secretarial work.

"My mom told me that a mountain lion was spotted on his property. While in second or third grade, I wrote a report about it and the teacher called me a liar in front of the class- saying there are no mountain lions in NJ. I got teary-eyed and embarrassed in class. I told my mom, who then told Fred. He then lent me the report from Washington experts (If I recall where it came from) and a plaster of Paris footprint from the Mountain Lion. It stated that it was a 110-pound female mountain lion.
I brought the documentation to school and the Teacher had to apologize. "

Thanks to Rick for sharing his story.

If you've had a mountain lion encounter in New Jersey, I'd love to hear your story. Email me: joe.kelly@townsquaremedia.com.

More eyewitness accounts are below.