Wilmot claimed that he saw the craft fly overhead on July 2, 1947. A local rancher by the name of Mac Brazel claimed to hear a loud crash or explosion the night if July 2, but it was not until the next morning that Brazel’s suspicions were confirmed. Brazel located strange looking debris on his ranch, and for the next few days told several neighbors of his findings. Brazel stated that he had found several weather balloons on his property in the past, but what found that morning did not resemble any weather balloon that he had previously recovered. Brazel, his wife, and two young children began scavenging the debris and storing them in large garbage bags. Brazel’s ranch was located West of Roswell in a small town named Corona. Being slightly anxious and somewhat suspicious of what he had found, Brazel proceeded to call the county sheriff and tell him about the mysterious debris on his property. On July 9, 1947, the Roswell Daily Record detailed Brazel’s account of what had happened the night of July 2, and the morning of July 3 and July 4. The article entitled, “Harassed Rancher Who Located ‘Saucer’ Sorry He Told About It,” claimed that Brazel did not know what he had recovered in his yard until he had heard rumors of flying saucers circling overhead the quiet New Mexico city. Brazel encountered the debris, on his ranch then went to Roswell to …show more content…
Seemingly respected and trustworthy individuals witnessed a spectacularly unusual event at approximately the same time. The Roswell event stood in stark contrast to their rather ordinary lives. Whether or not civilians saw a vessel of extraterrestrial origin is still unknown, but the collection of eyewitness accounts that numbered in the hundreds provides a strong case of speculation that something irregular dashed across the New Mexico night sky on July 2, 1947. The Roswell case separates itself from other UFO sightings with its sheer number of eyewitness accounts. Also, individuals that had no previous contact with each other before or immediately after the event shared similar stories. The amount of eyewitnesses immediately following the crash numbered in the hundreds, and a 1600 page document by the FBI simply titled “UFOs” gives credence to the many eyewitness accounts. Hundreds of Roswell citizens as well as those in neighboring towns and villages were interviewed, and most of the individuals offered the same exact explanation of what they saw the night of July 2. Terms such as “bright white light” and “oddly shaped aircraft” populate the 1600 page document of interviews. Whether or not the flying object in question was an alien aircraft or experimental American stealth bomber is unknown to this day, but the civilian witness accounts of the Roswell