THE ROSWELL INCIDENT
In
the first week of July 1947, something crashed near Roswell during
a severe thunderstorm. The next morning, rancher Mack Brazel, while checking
on his sheep herd, noticed unusual debris scattered over a large area.
He also came across a shallow trench, several hundred feet long, had been
gouged into the land. Suspecting that he may have come across wreckage
from a UFO or a government project he reported the wreckage to authorities.
This debris was later gathered up by the military from
the Roswell Army Air Field under the direction of base intelligence officer
Major Jesse Marcel. The debris site was closed to the public until the
wreckage was cleared. On July 8, 1947, public information officer Lt. Walter
Haut issued a press release under orders from base commander Col. William
Blanchard reporting that they had recovered wreckage from a large saucer-like
object. AP Wire reported: "The Army Air Forces here today announced a flying
disk had been found"
Hours later the first press release was rescinded and
the second press release stated that the 509th Bomb Group had mistakenly
identified a weather balloon as wreckage of a flying saucer was issued
July 9, 1947. AP's follow-up press release stated: "Reports of flying saucers
whizzing through the sky fell off sharply today as the army and the navy
began a concentrated campaign to stop the rumors."
From other sources there were even reports of the recovery
of alien bodies. Glenn Dennis, a young mortician working at the Ballard
Funeral Home, received a request from the morgue at the military air field.
The Mortuary Officer requested hermetically sealed coffins, and wanted
information about how to preserve bodies that had been exposed to the elements
for a few days, without contaminating the tissue. He was refused entry
to the base hospital but nurse told him about strange bodies and drew pictures
of them. Within a few days she was transferred to England.
This Roswell Incident, the crash of an alleged flying
saucer, the recovery of debris and bodies and the ensuing "cover up" by
the military was of such magnitude and so shrouded in mystery, that it
has been the centre of a media frenzy: books, TV documentaries, movies,
and furious debate between witnesses and believers and skeptics. It was
natural then that a Roswell UFO Museum and Research centre would become
a major attraction. The Museum is located in the centre of Roswell at:
114 N. Main, Roswell, NM 88203 ~ Phone: 575-625-9495
~ Website:
www.roswellufomuseum.com
People from around the world travel to Roswell to visit
the Museum and Research Centre. The exhibits include information on Roswell,
crop circles, sightings, Area 51, ancient astronauts and abductions. Organizers
have purposely designed the museum exhibits to take the subject seriously
and to generate curiosity in the visitors. The city of Rosville has tapped
into this phenonemon with gusto and visitors will find images of aliens
and flying saucers everywhere: lamp posts, billboards, marquees, murals,
advertising, souvenirs, window displays, store fronts, etc. There is even
an annual Roswell UFO Festival which features parades, carnivals, trade
shows, UFO lectures, alien costume contests, fireworks, and celebrity guests.
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