The Roswell, New Mexico, incident refers to the purported crash landing of an unidentified flying object (UFO) during the summer of 1947. An unidentified craft reportedly crashed at the Foster ranch near a U.S. Air Force base in Roswell, New Mexico, and some allege the craft was carrying extraterrestrial life forms. Furthermore, stories began to circulate that the bodies of alien creatures were recovered at the crash site. Although the United States government identified the object as a military surveillance balloon, the incident has sparked a number of controversial conspiracy theories that have persisted for decades. Witnesses and military personnel allegedly were forced to participate in the cover-up, the details of which began to surface in the late 1970s. Regardless of what really happened, Roswell has become synonymous with the UFO movement and remains one of the most prominent conspiracy theories in recent history.
In this photograph, USAF Major Jesse Marcel poses with debris found 75 miles northwest of Roswell, New Mexico, in June 1947. Some alleged that the wreckage was an alien spacecraft. The Air Force denied these claims and identified the fragments as a destroyed radar target. (United States Air Force/AFP/Getty Images)
The incident was not reported immediately by the witness of the wreckage, a local rancher by the name of William “Mack” Brazel (1899–1963). It appears that July 2 is the most likely date, since a number of sightings were reported then, and a violent thunderstorm took place. Much of what is known about Brazel’s role in the Roswell incident is gleaned from secondhand accounts because, some accounts contend, Brazel swore an oath of secrecy to the air force. His son Bill Brazel, who was eleven years old at the time of the incident, has provided many of the details of his and his father’s accounts. According to reports, Brazel heard what appeared to be a very loud crash, and sometime between July 2 and July 5, 1947, he found and stored the remains of the object, which were strewn over an area nearly three-quarters of a mile long and several hundred feet wide. He then took some of the material to his neighbor’s ranch, owned by Floyd and Loretta Proctor. Recovered material has been described as being lightweight, but virtually indestructible. As the story goes, Brazel and other witnesses tried breaking, tearing, and burning this metallic material, with no results. It could be wrinkled, yet would return to its original shape. Some pieces of the wreckage also had odd, unidentifiable writing on it. A few days later, Brazel went to Roswell to report the crash to the local sheriff and the military. Brazel reported his findings to local law enforcement, specifically Chaves County sheriff George Wilcox, who then notified Major Jesse Marcel (1907–1986), an air intelligence officer for the 509th Bomb Group at the Roswell base.
The uncertainty over what really occurred is further complicated by the fact that contradictory reports were released by the military shortly after the crash. The initial report, released by Lieutenant Walter Haut (1922–2005), under the orders of Colonel William Blanchard (1916–1966) of the 509th Bomb Group, indicated that a disc had crashed and been recovered. Shortly thereafter, a second press release indicated that the earlier report was erroneous and that the object recovered was the remains of a weather balloon. This second report was issued by Brigadier General Roger Ramey (1905–1963), who was the commander of the Eighth Air Force Base in Fort Worth, Texas. Obviously, the stories stand in conflict with each other, and an attempt to indicate that Blanchard misidentified the item does not seem plausible to those who believe the incident is a UFO cover-up by the military. They tend to believe that the original report is the one that is true, and the second is merely a cover story.
Marcel plays a prominent role in the Roswell incident and the subsequent conspiracy theory. While the debris was loaded onto one plane, alien bodies were supposedly loaded onto another. Marcel allegedly accompanied the wreckage to the base of the Eighth Air Force in Fort Worth, Texas, where he and Ramey were photographed handling the debris. He later participated in a 1978 interview with UFO researcher Stanton Friedman (1934– ), in which he indicated that the materials recovered appeared to be not native to the planet Earth. It is speculated that the debris were switched for the photo opportunity, and what Ramey and Marcel are shown holding, in fact, is not the material recovered at the crash site. Marcel’s son, Dr. Jesse Marcel Jr. (1937–2013), also contributed his observations to numerous talk shows, documentaries, books, and magazines over the years, which has helped to fuel speculation of a cover-up. Though he was not an actual witness to the crash, he did have recollections of his father’s experiences and reportedly handled the debris himself.
Ramey, who was photographed handling the recovered debris, would be the center of controversy again decades later, when analysis of photographic evidence seemingly revealed incriminating text present in a document he was holding. In the actual photo, the document is impossible to read, but according to conspiracy theory, enhancement of the image revealed isolated words that implied that a saucer had crashed and the bodies of victims were recovered. Skeptics were quick to point out that the text, even when translated as such, was not at all clear, and it certainly falls well short of being definitive evidence of a cover-up. As a matter of fact, this new look at old photographic evidence has not provided a clear answer to those on either side of the debate.
Haut would later contribute more to the conspiracy theory when, after his death, an affidavit was released indicating that a cover-up took place, and that not only was a crash disc recovered, but two alien bodies, as well. Haut also posited that there were in fact two crash site reports of alien remains, which have been part of the Roswell lore almost from the beginning. Rumors indicate that the bodies were taken to Wright Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio. Other reports indicate that the entire wreckage was shipped and stored there. Regardless, Haut’s involvement in the incident seemed to grow over the years, with the posthumous affidavit providing more specific details of his role. In 1996, he would be instrumental in founding the International UFO Museum and Research Center in Roswell.
Another prominent element of the Roswell narrative is the belief that autopsies were performed on the two victims of the crash. Most sources indicate that these occurred at the Roswell base in Hanger 84. Marcel allegedly mentioned the presence of a small being to Frank Joyce (1923–2008), a news announcer for KGFL, a local radio station in Roswell. According to some sources, the local mortician in Roswell was contacted and was asked about the availability of child-sized coffins. Supposedly, a nurse witnessed the autopsy, but there is no evidence of who this nurse was, or if she even existed. Footage from this event supposedly exists and became the basis of a pseudodocumentary in 1995, which was entitled Alien Autopsy.
Government attempts to explain what really happened in 1947 have largely failed to dissuade believers of UFOs and conspiracy theorists. In fact, these reports have seemed to fuel even more speculation. In 1994 the Air Force attempted to explain the incident as being part of a top-secret project called Mogul, which featured very large weather balloons equipped with radar reflectors and other equipment designed to detect Soviet nuclear tests, an explanation that even accounts for the mysterious writing Marcel reported seeing. Another report followed in 1997, entitled The Roswell Report: Case Closed, which explains that the bodies found at the site were lifelike crash dummies. Skeptics point out that such experiments were not known to have taken place until at least six years later.
The Roswell Incident has become an archetype for UFO crash stories and subsequent theories of government cover-ups. Despite the fact that very few, if any witnesses were present in 1947, their number seems to grow with each passing decade. Even though most of the participants in the incident have died, new witnesses have emerged to provide details that those who were present never reported themselves. Attempts by military officials to explain what happened have either been dismissed in their entirety, or the information provided has been interpreted as proof of a cover-up. With regard to the incident itself, some facts are indisputable. An item did crash in the desert sometime in July 1947. Elements of the wreckage were turned over to law enforcement and military officials shortly thereafter. The military did release contradictory statements as to the exact nature of the recovered items. For decades, the military maintained an eerie silence on the topic, and securing information about the incident was extremely difficult, even after hundreds of pages of material were declassified, albeit in a severely redacted state. This mysterious event remains a focal point for those who believe in UFOs, as well as for those who are prone to believe in the mythology of governmental conspiracy theories.
Daniel Patrick Compora
See also Alien Abduction Stories and UFOs; Area 51; Conspiracy Theories; Crop Circles; Hopkinsville Goblins
Further Reading
Berlitz, Charles, and William L. Moore. 1997. The Roswell Incident. New York: Fine Communications.
Klass, Philip J. 1997. The Real Roswell Crashed-Saucer Coverup. Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books.
Marcel, Jesse, Jr. 2008. The Roswell Legacy: The Untold Story of the First Military Officer at the 1947 Crash Site. Pompton Plains, NJ: New Page Books.
Randle, Kevin D. 2000. The Roswell Encyclopedia. New York: HarperCollins.
Saler, Benson, Charles A. Ziegler, and Charles B. Moore. UFO Crash at Roswell: The Genesis of a Modern Myth. Washington, DC: Smithsonian Institution Press.
Roswell (New Mexico) UFO Landings—Primary Document
FBI Investigation of UFOs (1947)
On July 8, 1947, an Air Force public relations officer issued a press release stating that a “flying disc” had been recovered near Roswell, New Mexico. Soon, reports of UFO sightings became so frequent that they prompted FBI involvement. Between 1947 and 1954, the bureau kept files detailing hundreds of accounts of disc-like objects and hazy glowing shapes, particularly in the West. Documents like this FBI memo regarding the Twin Falls, Idaho, sightings in September 1947 became part of UFO lore and reinforced belief in a government conspiracy to conceal proof of alien spacecraft and extraterrestrial beings.
Office Memorandum—United States Government
65–481
TO: Director FBI DATE: September 2, 1947
FROM: SAC Butte
SUBJECT: FLYING DISCS
Remytel August 20, 1947.
With reference to the above-described teletype, Mr. __________ Twin Falls, Idaho, was the principal source of information. Mr. __________ who is the Executive Director of the __________ explained that he and his wife and Mrs. __________ a neighbor, were sitting on their front porch at approximately 9:30 P.M., August 19, 1947. He said that Mrs. __________ suddenly shouted and pointed to the sky and thereafter stated that she had seen an object traveling at a terrific rate of speed in a northeasterly direction. The object was out of sight before Mr. __________ and Mrs. __________ could see anything.
While they were discussing what Mrs. __________ had seen, approximately ten minutes later all three saw ten similar objects proceeding rapidly in the same direction in the form of a triangle. As the group of objects was disappearing, three of the objects on the left flank peeled off and proceeded in a more northerly direction. The remaining objects appeared to close ranks and proceeded in a northeasterly direction.
From three to five minutes later these same individuals saw another group of three objects proceeding in the same direction, and again in the shape of a triangle. From three to five minutes later all three observed another group in a triangular formation consisting of five or six objects. They were proceeding in the same direction.
A few minutes later the three persons saw a large group of objects estimated at from thirty-five to fifty flying in a triangular formation in the same direction. Approximately twenty or twenty-five minutes after the large group of objects was observed, similar objects were noted coming back over the city in a southwesterly direction. These objects were generally in groups of three, five and seven and followed each other at approximately five minute intervals.
Mrs. __________ called Detective __________ of the Twin Falls Police Department, a next door neighbor, who was then accompanied by __________ also members of the Twin Falls Police Department. The three officers watched for a few minutes and observed a group of about twelve objects flying in formation over the city in a southwesterly direction. The members of the Police Department did not continue watching, although Mr. __________ later saw other groups, which were also seen by the __________ and Mrs. __________. Mrs. __________ had also called her husband, who saw some of the objects.
On the night in question the sky was overcast and objects could not be seen closely; however, they were distinct enough so that all persons could observe what they described as a glow going through the air. They said that the objects appeared to be lighted from the inside and were of a color similar to regular electric lights.
Detective __________ and Mr. __________ both stated that they could not be meteors or comets, that they flew on a level line and did not appear to drop. They flew at a terrific rate of speed and were visible for only a few minutes at a time. Both persons interviewed said that the objects could not have been geese or ducks and that the lights were not a reflection of the city lights on some object or objects.
None of the persons interviewed noticed any flames or anything except the glow of lights. None of the persons who claimed to have seen these objects were drinking at the time. No other persons in Twin Falls reported seeing the objects mentioned herein; however, Mr. __________ and Mr. __________ stated that it was purely by accident that they had seen the objects and that they would not have seen them unless they were looking for them, because of the speed at which they traveled. On account of the overcast sky they were unable to estimate the size of the objects or the height at which they flew.
No further investigation is being conducted by the Butte Office, and the case is being closed.
RJG:FO’S
Source: FBI Records: The Vault. Available online at https://vault.fbi.gov/UFO/.