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1896 – 1899: UFO & Alien Sightings

(Last Updated On: May 18, 2019)

 

Date: 1896: An Apparition Wandering Through The Atmosphere


Date: 1896: Saw The Mystic Flying Light – Newspaper


Location. Visalia, California
Date: April 18 1896
Time: Daytime
Summary: disc was reported
Source: Eberhart, George M. A Geo-Bibliography of Anomalies Greenwood Press, Westport, 1980 ISBN:0-313-21337-2


Location. Trenton N, Missouri
Date: Mid 1896
Time: Daytime
Summary:  An object was observed from a car. One object, about 1 foot across, was observed in rainy weather on a railroad (Crotsenburg).
Source: Fort, Charles Book of the Damned Boni-Liveright, 1919


Location. Tamalpais Mtns, California
Date: Late August 1896
Time: Daytime
Summary: Close encounter with a an unidentified craft and its occupants. One object was observed by more than two witnesses in a forest (Jordan).
Source: Webb, David 


Location. Hastings, Nebraska
Date: Fall 1896
Time:
Summary: Object floated above ground, 500 feet altitude. Stationary for 30 minutes, then circled about, flew to the north two miles, returned, “sank into oblivion.”
Source: Rife, Philip L. It Didn’t Start with Roswell Writers Club Press, Lincoln, 2001 


Date: November 2, 1896
Location:  Oakland, California
Time: 21:15
Summary: A group of streetcar passengers in Oakland, California, saw a winged, cigar shaped UFO emitting a stream of brilliant light.
Source: Mystery airship seen over Oakland, California, in 1896, from San Francisco Call, November 1896


Date: November 25, 1896
Location: Lodi, California
Time:
Summary: Colonel H. G. Shaw and Camille Spooner, attempted abduction by three ETs and airship reported in newspapers of the day, One 6-foot-tall hairy being, wearing naked, was seen.
Source: Elegant Humanoid Pseudohomo concinnus (Elegant False Man)


Location. Stockton, California

Date: November 25, 1896
Time:  
Summary: Abduction account from Colonel H.G. Shaw. This was apparently first reported and published in the Stockton, California Daily Mail in 1897. Colonel Shaw claimed that he and a friend were harassed by three tall, slender humanoids that were covered with a fine, downy hair covering their entire bodies. Colonel Shaw and his friend claimed to have been able to (after a struggle) battle off the alien abductors!
Source: California Daily Mail


Location. Sacramento, California
Date: November 25, 1896
Time:  
Summary: On November 25, a mysterious light was seen moving rapidly from the Northeast and heading in a southwesterly direction. As it neared the southern boundary of the city of Sacramento it turned directly toward the west and after passing the city went south, being distinctly visible for upward of 20 minutes.
Source:


Location. Lorin, California
Date: November 26, 1896
Time:
Summary: On November 26, an airship that looked like a great black cigar with a fishlike tail neared Lorin tremendous speed.  It turned quickly and disappeared in the direction of San Francisco. The body was at least 100 feet long and attached to it was a triangular tail, one apex being attached to the main body. The surface of the airship looked as if it were made of aluminum, which exposure to wind and weather had turned dark. At half past 8 we saw it again, when it took about the same direction and disappeared.” 
Source: From the Oakland Tribune, Dec 1.


Location. San Francisco, California
Date: November 26, 1896
Time:
Summary: The great Airship Flap of 1897 actually started in late 1896 in San Francisco.  Hundreds saw a large, cigar-shaped object, shining brilliant beams of light, and moving northwest passing over Oakland. Later reports came from other northern cities. A light was observed by many prominent individuals including Deputy Secretary of State George A. McCalvy, District Attorney Frank D. Ryan, and E. D. McCabe, the governor’s personal secretary.
Source: From the San Francisco Call, Nov 26.

Source: San Francisco Call.


Location. Arolla, Switzerland near Zermatt (Swiss Alps)
Date: November 26, 1896
Time:
Summary: Author Aleister Crowley was walking in the mountains when he suddenly saw two little men. He made a gesture to them, but they did not seem to pay attention and disappeared among the rocks.
Source: Magic Without Tears, by A. Crowley


Location. New York
Date: Nov 28,1896
Time:
Summary:
Source:


Location. 1896-7
Date:
Time:
Summary: Great Airship Wave :
An amazing series of sightings, stretching from the East to the West coast of the U.S., occurred in 1896 and 1897. Many newspapers carried sightings of “airships” seen travelling through the air. These mechanical contraptions often shone spotlights on the ground and made lots of clanking and other noises as they moved through the sky. Speculation about the “airships” focused on a series of “inventors” who were testing these new craft and would soon be making them commercially available for the public. Some people claimed that the airships landed and that they met these “inventors.” Some airship pilots claimed to be from Mars; others insisted they were “from a place where it never rains.” Yet others claimed the airships were being built in rather mundane workshops on the East coast. Some witnesses protested that the airships were dropping ballast or cargo on them. (H.G. Wells wrote a short story about this time, Master of the Air , about a man named Robert L’Conqueror, who conquers the world through his secret lighter-than-air airship technology and various weapons.) Not surprisingly, shortly after the airship “wave,” the first terrestrial zeppelins and dirigibles began being built and used commercially, as if the UFO was always one step ahead of our own technology. There would be some repeat airship encounters during the so-called “Christmas Wave” of 1909-10, when airships with ‘searchlights’ were seen over New England.

One of the most curious episodes of the whole Airship wave – which, like many of the others, was thought to be a newspaper hoax – was a story of an airship which crashed into Judge Proctor’s windmill in Aurora, Illinois. A body of a small “martian” was said to be recovered and buried with some of the wreckage. In 1972, rumors were sparked anew as a man appeared and claimed to know the whereabouts of this wreckage. This man, a Frank Kelley of Corpus Christi, said he was a treasure hunter, and produced several pieces of metal found with his metal detector, which turned out to be mostly aluminum. No body was ever found by UFO investigators, and, like so many other weirdos in the UFO world, this guy with a fake address and phone number disappeared as abruptly as he turned up. Not unsurprisingly, in late 1972 the U.S. was already experiencing the beginnings of the massive UFO wave of ’73, which shattered post-Condon report complacency.
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Location. Canada, British Columbia:
Date: 1897
Time:
Summary: Two Canadian fishermen in saw a pear-shaped craft flying southwards
Source:


Location. Homan, Arkansas
Date: 1897
Time:
Summary: Capt. James Hooton was hunting in the vicinity of Homan when he heard the noise of a steam engine and found an object in a clearing.  It looked like a cylinder with pointed ends, lateral wheels, and horizontal blade over it. Hooton spoke with a man who wore dark glasses and walked behind the craft. There were three or four occupants. The witness was told this was indeed “The Airship” and that it used compressed air for propulsion. Hooton saw the wheels spin as the craft rose and flew away.
Source:


Location. McKinney Bayou, Arkansas
Date: 1897
Time:
Judge Lawrence A.Byrne of Texarkana, Arkansas, was surveying a tract of land when he saw a peculiar object anchored on the ground. “It was manned by three men who spoke a foreign language, but judging from their looks one would take them to be Japs.”
Source:


Location.   Iowa
Date:  1897
Time:
Summary: An abduction of a witness was reported. One object was observed by one male witness (Hibbard).
Source: FSR


Location.   Hastings, Nebraska
Date:  February 1 1897
Time: 21:30
Summary: A large glaring light circled for a few minutes in the sky over Hastings, Nebraska at 9:30 p.m. It then descended to an altitude of 200 feet, traveled at a remarkable speed, slowed, and again circled for 15 more minutes. Finally, it descended once more and disappeared mysteriously.
Source: Corliss, William R.


Location. Sioux City Iowa
Date: March 26, 1897
Time:
Summary: Approximate Date: Robert Hib- night bard was caught by an anchor dropped from an un- known flying machine 22 km north of the town. He was dragged over 10 m and fell as his clothes were torn.
Source: FSR 66, 4


Location. Omaha, Nebraska
Date: Mar. 28, 1897
Time: 10:30 p.m.
Summary: The majority of the population 2230 observed an object arriving from the southeast. It looked like a huge light, flew northwestward slowly, came to low altitude. A crowd gathered at a street corner to watch it.
Source: 


Location. Winnipeg, Canada
Date: April 1897
Time:
Summary: A mysterious airship flew over Winnipeg, the capital of Canada’s Manitoba province, in full view of many citizens for a full fifteen minutes.”  “The strange visitor” approached from the west, following the Assiniboine River. After passing over St. Boniface Hospital, the UFO veered sharply to the north and “was lost from view” as it flew toward the town of Stony Mountain.
Source: From the Vancouver, B.C. News-Advertiser, Saturday May 1.


Location. Moberly, Missouri
Date: April 1897
Time: 
Summary: Crashed airship. An object was observed. Metallic traces found. One object was observed.
Source:  Eberhart, George M. A Geo-Bibliography of Anomalies Greenwood Press, Westport, 1980


Location. Bethany, Missouri
Date: April 1897
Time: 
Summary: Farmer wrote letter to Missouri newspaper, claimed he saw airship crash into flagpole in town. Bodies of two occupants mangled beyond recognition. Close encounter with a an unidentified craft and its occupants. A crashed disc was reported.
Source:  Rife, Philip L. It Didn’t Start with Roswell Writers Club Press, Lincoln, 2001


Location. Baltimore, Ohio
Date: April 1897
Time: After 2000
Summary: Animal reaction: horse showed signs of fear and distress. Object with brilliant white lights fore and aft descended into field, lit up countryside, whirring/hissing noise. two men spoke unknown language. Close encounter with a craft and its occupants which attempted to communicate with a witness. One object was observed. A whirring sound was heard. Two humanoids were seen.
Source:  Eberhart, George M. A Geo-Bibliography of Anomalies Greenwood Press, Westport, 1980


Location. Everest, Kansas
Date: April 01, 1897
Time: 9:00 p.m.
Summary: The whole town saw an object fly 2100 under the cloud ceiling. It came down slowly, then flew away very fast to the southeast. When directly over the town it swept the ground with its powerful light. It was seen to rise up at fantastic speed until barely discernible, then to come down again and sweep low over the witnesses. At one point it remained stationary for 5 min at the edge of a low cloud, which it illuminated. All could clearly see the silhouette of the craft.
Source: FSR 66, 4


Location. Nilwood, Illinois
Date: April 12, 1897
Time: 2:30 p.m.
Summary: On the property of Z. Thacker, 19 1430 km north of Carlinville, an unknown object landed. Before the three witnesses could reach it, the craft, which was shaped like a cigar with a dome, rose slowly and left majestically toward the north.

Witnesses: Edward Teeples, William Street and Franklin Metcalf.
Source: Anatomy 12


Location. Girard, near Green Ridge, Illinois
Date: April 12, 1897
Time: 6:00 p.m.
Summary: A large crowd of 1800 miners saw an unknown object land 3 km north of Green Ridge and 4 km south of Girard. The night operator of the Chicago-and-Alton Railroad, Paul McCramer, stated that he came sufficiently close to the craft to see a man emerge from it to repair the machinery. Traces were found over a large area. The object itself was elongated like a ship with a roof and a double canopy. It left toward the north.
Source: 


Date: April 13, 1897
Location: Lake Elmo, Minnesota
Time:
Summary: Frederick Chamberlain and O. L. Jones. Early landing trace case.
Source:


Location. Gas City, Indiana
Date: April 14, 1897
Time: 3:00 p.m.
Summary: An object landed 2 km south of Gas City on the property of John Roush, terrifying the farmers and causing the horses and cattle to stampede. Six occupants of the ship came out and seemed to make some repairs. Before the crowd could approach the object, it rose rapidly and flew toward the east.
Source: Magonia #16, 188


Location. Cleveland, Ohio
Date: April 14, 1897
Time:
Summary: Joseph Singler, captain of the “Sea Wing,” was fishing with S. H. Davis, of Detroit, when they saw on the lake what they thought was a ship, about 13 m long, with a canopy. A man, about 25 years old, wearing a hunting jacket and a cap, was fishing from the deck of the object. Near him were a woman and a 10-year old child. When the “Sea Wing” came close to the craft, a large, colored balloon rose from the object, which flew up with it to an altitude of about 150 m and circled “like a hawk” before flying away.
Source: Magonia #17, 189


Location. Linn Grove, Iowa
Date: Apr. 15, 1897
Time: Morning
Summary: A large object was seen to fly morning slowly toward the north. It seemed ready to land and five men (F. G. Ellis, James Evans, David Evans, Joe Croaskey, Benjamin Buland) drove toward it. About 7 km north of Linn Grove, they found the craft on the ground, came within 700 m of it but it “spread its four giant wings and rose towards the North.” Two strange figures aboard the craft made efforts to conceal themselves. Witnesses were surprised at the length of their hair. Most residents of Linn Grove saw the craft in flight.
Source: Magonia #18, 190


Location. Howard-Artesian, South Dakota
Date: Apr. 15, 1897
Time: nightfall 
Summary: A flying object nightfall coming closer and closer to the ground followed a train, as reported by the engineer, Joe Wright
Source: Magonia #19, FSR 66, 4


Location. Perry Springs, Missouri
Date: Apr. 15, 1897
Time: 9:00 p.m.
Summary: A passenger train on the 2100 Wabash line, going toward Quincy, was followed by a low-flying object for 15 min between Perry Springs and Hersman. All the passengers saw the craft, which had a red and white light. After Hersman it flew ahead of the train and disappeared rapidly, although the train was then running at 65 km/h.
Source: Magonia #20, 190


Location. Springfield, Illinois
Date: Apr. 15, 1897
Time:
Summary: Two farm workers, Adolf Winkle and John Hulle, saw a strange craft in a field. They had a discussion with its occupants, a woman and two men, and were told the ship-had flown from Quincy to Springfield in 30 min and that the crew. was making electrical repairs.
Source: Magonia #21, FSR 65,1


Location. St. Louis, MO
Date: April 15, 1897
Time: 7:45 p.m.
Summary: This is the first report from the entire period to be declared a possible UFO.  A Medical doctor/amateur astronomer observed a cigar shaped object with a telescope.
Source: Dr. Eddie Bullard provided this report to Brad Sparks in Dec. 2006.


Location. Downs Township, Illinois
Date: Apr. 16, 1897
Time:
Summary: While working in his field, Haney Savidge saw an aerial craft land near him. Six people emerged from it and spoke to him for a few minutes before leaving again.
Source: 


Location. Vincennes, IN
Date: April 16, 1897
Time: 9:00 p.m.
Summary: A mysterious airship passed over the city twice on the night of Friday, April 16. According to the Vincennes Morning Commercial, the airship first appeared about nine o’clock, traveling along the extreme eastern portion of the horizon: A sphere of golden light was first seen in the vicinity of the Union Depot, from down in the city. Those near the ship claimed they could clearly see the dark lines of its car, although no passengers were observed.
Source: (The Valley Advance, Vincennes, Indiana, March 18, 1980 Vol. 16, No. 28. Taken from Vincennes Morning Commercial April 16, 1897)


Location. Williamston, Michigan
Date: Apr. 17, 1897
Time: Morning
Summary: At least a dozen farmers morning saw an object maneuver in the sky for an hour before it landed. A strange man near 3 m tall, almost naked and suffering from the heat, was the pilot of the craft. “His talk, while musical, seemed to be a repetition of bellowing’s.” One farmer went near him and received a blow that broke his hip.
Source: Magonia #23; 196


Date: April 17 1897: Aurora, Texas Crash


Location. Leroy Kansas
Date: April 19, 1897
Time: 2230 
Summary: Alexander Hamilton was awakened by a noise among the cattle and went out with his son and his tenant. They saw an elongated cigar- shaped object, about 100 m long with a transparent cabin underneath showing narrow reddish bands, hovering 10 m above ground. They approached within 50 m of it. It was illuminated and equipped with a searchlight. Inside it were “six of the strangest beings” the witness had seen, also described as “hideous.” They spoke a language no witness could understand. A cow was dragged away by the object with the help of a strong red cable; it was found butchered in a field the next day. From a sworn statement dated 21 April, a prosperous and prominent farmer named Alexander Hamilton told of an attack upon his cattle at about 10:30 PM the previous Monday. He, his son, and his tenant grabbed axes and ran some 700 feet from the house to the cow lot where a great cigar-shaped ship about 300 feet long floated some 30 feet above his cattle. It had a carriage underneath which was brightly lighted within (dirigible and gondola?) and which had numerous windows.  Inside were six strange looking beings jabbering in a foreign language.  These beings suddenly became aware of Hamilton and the others. They immediately turned a searchlight on the farmer, and also turned on some power, which sped up a turbine wheel (about 30 ft diameter) located under the craft. The ship rose, taking with it a two-year old heifer, which was roped about the neck by a cable of one-half inch thick, red material. The next day a neighbor, Link Thomas, found the animal’s hide, legs and head in his field. He was mystified at how the remains got to where they were because of the lack of tracks in the soft soil. Alexander Hamilton’s sworn statement was accompanied by an affidavit as to his veracity. The affidavit was signed by ten of the local leading citizens.
Source: Anatomy 16; Magonia


Location. Homan, Arkansas
Date: April 20, 1897
Time: 1800 
Summary: Capt. James Hooton was hunting in the vicinity of Homan when he heard the noise of a steam engine and found an object in a clearing. It looked like a cylinder with pointed ends, lateral wheels, and horizontal blade over it. Hooton spoke with a man who wore dark glasses and walked behind the craft. There were three or four occupants. The witness was told this was indeed “The Airship” and that it used compressed air for propulsion. Hooton saw the wheels spin as the craft rose and flew away.
Source: FSR 66, 4; Magonia


Location. Rockland, Texas
Date: April 22, 1897
John M. Barclay was intrigued when his dog barked furiously and a high-pitched noise was heard. He went out, saw a flying object circling 5 m above ground. Elongated with protrusions and blinding lights, it went dark when it landed. Barclay was met by a man who told him his purpose was peaceful and requested some common hardware items to repair the craft. He paid with a ten-dollar bill and took off “like a bullet out of a gun.”
Source: 192; Magonia


Date: April 22 1897: Josserand Texas


Location. McKinney Bayou, Arkansas
Date: Apr. 23, 1897
Judge Lawrence A. Byrne of Texarkana, Arkansas, was surveying a tract of land when he saw a peculiar object anchored on the ground. “It was manned by three men who spoke a foreign language, but judging from their looks one would take them to be Japs.”
Source: Farish, in Allende Letters Award Special, 1968


Date: April 23, 1898
Location:  
Time:  
Summary:  
Source:  


Location. Merkel, Texas
Date: Apr. 25, 1897
Summary: People returning from church ob- evening served a heavy object being dragged along the ground by a rope attached to a flying craft. The rope got caught in a railroad track. The craft was too high for its structure to be visible but protrusions and a light could be distinguished. After about 10 min a man came down along the rope cut the end free, and went back aboard the craft, which flew away toward the northeast. The man was small and dressed in a light- blue uniform.
Source: Magonia #29, 194


Location. Aquila-Hillsboro Texas
Date: Apr. 26, 1897
Summary: A lawyer was surprised to see a lighted object fly over. His horse was scared and nearly toppled the carriage. When the main light was turned off, a number of smaller lights became visible on the underside of the dark object, which supported an elongated canopy. It went down toward a hill to the south, 5 km from Aquila. When the witness was on his way back one hour later he saw the object rising. It reached the altitude of the cloud ceiling and flew to the northeast at a fantastic speed with periodic flashes of light.
Source: Magonia #30, 195


Date: May 6 1897: Hot Springs, Arkansas Sighting


Location. Khyber Pass, Afghanistan
Date: 1898
Time:
Summary: Reported encounter with inhuman beings involving teleportation. Abduction by aliens was reported.
Source: Steiger, Brad Strangers From the Skies Award A171X, New York, 1966


Location. Sudan Sudan
Date: 1898
Time:
Summary: Disappearance Reported encounter with inhuman beings involving teleportation. More than one object was observed by numerous military witnesses (Brit.Platoon).
Source: Steiger, Brad Strangers From the Skies Award A171X, New York, 1966


Location. Lille, France
Date: 1898
Time:
Summary: An astronomer saw through his telescope a rectangular object with a violet colored band on one side, the rest being striped red and black.  It was not in the position of any known planet.  It remained stationary for 10 minutes, then ‘cast out sparks and disappeared.’
Source:


Location. Baye, France
Date: April 27 1899
Time: 16:00
Summary: At four o’clock in the afternoon a 10 meter in diameter red ball crossed highway N51 near the town of Baye, Marne department, France on a steady trajectory. It illuminated the surrounding area a red color, and went off to the southwest. There were many witnesses
Source: Lumieres dans la Nuit


Location. Nogales, Mexico
Date: September 1899
Time: 1:00 pm
Summary: Silver bowl follows posse. one witness sees humanoid in silver suit. Posse leader vanishes. Reported encounter with inhuman beings involving teleportation. One silver dome-shaped object was observed in a desert for 120 minutes.
Source: Hatch, Larry 


Location. Dordogne, Dourite, France
Date: November 15, 1899
Time: 7:00 pm
Summary: An object ‘like an enormous star’ was seen from 7:00 pm, ‘at times white, then red, and sometimes blue… moving like a kite’ in the southerly sky.
Source: Contact U.K.


Location. Luzarches, France
Date: October 28 1899
Time:
Summary: M.A. Garry observed a round luminous object rise above the horizon and shrink in size as it moved into the distance over 15 minutes.
Source: Contact U.K.


Location. South Africa
Date: 1899
Time:
Summary: After alerting its telegraph offices to be on the lookout for invading British aircraft, the Transvaal government was inundated with sighting reports. Phantom airships, often equipped with powerful searchlights, mysteriously appeared in the skies around. Of course, neither aircraft nor airplanes were known to exist in Africa at this time.
Source:


Location. Prescott, Arizona
Date: 1899
Time: 2:00 pm
Summary: Dr. Warren E. Day observed a luminous object that ‘traveled with the Moon all day’ until 2:00 pm.  A similar object had been observed the day before from Tonto, Arizona.
Source:


Location. El Paso, Texas
Date: 1899
Time: 10:00 am to 4:00 pm
Summary: A luminous object was seen in daylight from 10:00am to 4:00pm; Venus was two months past its secondary phase of maximum brilliance.
Source: 


Date: 1898
Location:  
Time:  
Summary:  
Source: