1904 Picture Possible UFO

originally posted by: Groot

LOL ! Thought it was an interesting pic and really didn't research it much because of the page it came from.They just post historic photos of Texas, where my wife is from. You probably know who she is. We all use to be facebook friends.

And yes, I believe IAMTAT is correct. Would like to see if there are more photos with this anomaly in the picture as further proof.

AHA...I knew I liked you for a reason.

originally posted by: Phage
a reply to: llama

That is not an enhancement.
It's an exaggeration.

'Zactly. Starred. See, Phage. This is where you're great. I keep telling' ya', Mang.

originally posted by: The GUT
Here's a ufo trivia question that's related to the pic: What do we have in the way of "cowboy" era UFOs?

I recall the "airships" of late 1800's if memory serves. Aurora, Tx was 1897. Do we have much in the way of any earlier cowboy/ufos? Of course sightings are as old as mankind, and the Native Americans reported amazing experiences, but I just got to thinking how "quiet" this timeframe seems to be.

Aurora Texas Incident

During the 1896–1897 timeframe, numerous sightings of a cigar-shaped mystery airship were reported across the United States.

One of these accounts appeared in the April 17, 1897, edition of the Dallas Morning News. Written by Aurora resident S.E. Haydon,[2] the alleged UFO is said to have hit a windmill on the property of a Judge J.S. Proctor two days earlier at around 6am local (Central) time,[3] resulting in its crash. The pilot (who was reported to be "not of this world", and a "Martian" according to a reported Army officer from nearby Fort Worth)[4] did not survive the crash, and was buried "with Christian rites" at the nearby Aurora Cemetery. (The cemetery contains a Texas Historical Commission marker mentioning the incident.[5])

Reportedly, wreckage from the crash site was dumped into a nearby well located under the damaged windmill, while some ended up with the alien in the grave. Adding to the mystery was the story of Mr. Brawley Oates, who purchased Judge Proctor's property around 1935. Oates cleaned out the debris from the well in order to use it as a water source, but later developed an extremely severe case of arthritis, which he claimed to be the result of contaminated water from the wreckage dumped into the well. As a result, Oates sealed up the well with a concrete slab and placed an outbuilding atop the slab. (According to writing on the slab, this was done in 1957.)

Zeppelins were being prototyped in the 1890's in Germany. The US Navy was also doing their own versions. Here's a photograph:

"commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Review_of_reviews_and_world%27s_work_(1890)_(14773493445).jpg"
This would match the "sausage shaped craft with what looked like a railway carriage underneath and a searchlight at the front".

There was a wave of sightings at this time, which were documented in newspapers. Some people think these were just fake news to keep readership numbers up. But it's entirely possible that someone with the resources to build an airship could have crossed the USA if not the Atlantic. That would have required steel to make a frame, linen or canvas to make
the airbags and tar to make that airtight. Add a disused railway carriage or lifeboat to form a passenger compartment, some control wires for the rudder and flaps, and it would be perfect. Legend is they used a boat anchor to land.

It's cowboys and aliens.

a reply to: stormcell

Interesting thoughts. Maybe a mix of a real airship sighting here or there and the mythology-making of a mass media. That probably makes the most sense.

Now that I think about and you mentioned a boat anchor, I believe there were some earlier "airship" reports in Europe. Maybe as early as late 1700s?

originally posted by: 5StarOracle
a reply to: IAMTAT

Seeing as the image has neither the same shape or identical location of the object in the sky in question well I’m sure we can rule out either of your 2 possible proposed indication of either lens or paper...

The fact that there are multiple images with anomalies, and even multiple anomalies on one image (the 2nd image), leads me to believe that "image artifacts of some sort rather than a real object" is a highly plausible explanation, even if we can't pin down the exact cause of the image artifacts.

originally posted by: Soylent Green Is People

originally posted by: 5StarOracle
a reply to: IAMTAT

Seeing as the image has neither the same shape or identical location of the object in the sky in question well I’m sure we can rule out either of your 2 possible proposed indication of either lens or paper...

The fact that there are multiple images with anomalies, and even multiple anomalies on one image, leads me to believe that "image artifacts of some sort rather than a real object" is a highly plausible explanation, even if we can't pin down the exact cause of the image artifacts.

AND the fact that the camera in both images is pointed in two entirely different directions...look at the distant skyline in both images.

originally posted by: Soylent Green Is People

originally posted by: 5StarOracle
a reply to: IAMTAT

Seeing as the image has neither the same shape or identical location of the object in the sky in question well I’m sure we can rule out either of your 2 possible proposed indication of either lens or paper...

The fact that there are multiple images with anomalies, and even multiple anomalies on one image (the 2nd image), leads me to believe that "image artifacts of some sort rather than a real object" is a highly plausible explanation, even if we can't pin down the exact cause of the image artifacts.

I agree. Another image.



Image Link

I don't know much about this early photographic process.

However, since these marks are all in the same area of the upper right corner of the image, it may be the result of some dipping tool/tongs, grasping the photo there during the development process.

originally posted by: Groot
Thoughts?

Somebody was looking at the pictures while eating barbecued ribs.

i would say that its something in the film, likely dirt

originally posted by: The GUT
a reply to: stormcell

Interesting thoughts. Maybe a mix of a real airship sighting here or there and the mythology-making of a mass media. That probably makes the most sense.

Now that I think about and you mentioned a boat anchor, I believe there were some earlier "airship" reports in Europe. Maybe as early as late 1700s?

Late 1700's + Europe + "airships" = Montgolfier brothers probably?