The Texas Airship Crash

On April 17, 1897, during the Great Airship Wave, a mysterious craft allegedly crashed into a windmill in Aurora, Texas. The pilot was reportedly “not of this world” and was buried in the local cemetery—America’s first alleged UFO crash, predating Roswell by 50 years.

The Great Airship Wave

Context:

• 1896-1897
• Nationwide sightings
• Mystery airships
• Pre-Wright Brothers
• Mass phenomenon

Aurora, Texas

The town:

• Small farming community
• North of Fort Worth
• Population declining
• Economic troubles
• Looking for attention?

The Crash

According to the Dallas Morning News:

• April 17, 1897
• Airship malfunctioned
• Struck windmill
• Exploded
• Debris scattered

The Pilot

S.E. Haydon’s story:

• Badly disfigured body
• “Not an inhabitant of this world”
• Small humanoid
• Buried in cemetery
• Grave unmarked

The Debris

Material found:

• Metal pieces
• Strange writing
• “Hieroglyphics”
• Unknown material
• Mostly collected

The Burial

According to accounts:

• Christian burial given
• Aurora Cemetery
• Unmarked grave
• Later sought
• Location disputed

The Original Article

April 19, 1897:

• Dallas Morning News
• Written by S.E. Haydon
• Local cotton buyer
• String correspondent
• Only source

Hoax Theory

Strong possibility:

• Town dying economically
• Seeking attention
• Other tall tales existed
• No other witnesses came forward
• Possible promotion

Later Investigations

1970s revival:

• Researchers visited
• Metal detector surveys
• Cemetery searches
• Some anomalies found
• Inconclusive

The Well

Part of the story:

• Debris thrown in well
• Contaminated water
• Later sealed
• Owner refuses access
• Evidence lost?

MUFON Investigation

1973:

• Frank Kelley investigated
• Found possible grave marker
• Court order denied
• Property owners uncooperative
• Frustrating

True Believers

Arguments for authenticity:

• Consistent story
• Physical location exists
• Some debris found
• Possible cover-up
• Worth investigating

Skeptics’ View

Arguments against:

• Single source
• Hoax era
• No corroboration
• Town needed publicity
• Too convenient

Significance

Either America’s first UFO crash or a remarkable 19th-century hoax that anticipated modern UFO mythology by decades.

Legacy

The Aurora incident remains debated—a fascinating story that predated Roswell, involves buried alien remains, and has never been definitively proven or disproven.