Buzz
As air travel advanced in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, humanity gained unprecedented access to the skies, reshaping our myths and legends. The dragons and angels of old gave way to tales of secretive inventors and strange atmospheric occurrences, reflecting the era's fascination with the unknown.
10. The New Zealand Zeppelin Scare
In 1909, concerns about Germany's growing military power, particularly its zeppelin fleet, spread across the British Empire. Many in Australia and New Zealand worried that the British navy might withdraw to protect the homeland, leaving them vulnerable. These fears, combined with the popularity of aerial warfare in science fiction, fueled widespread panic and speculation.
In July 1909, the Otago Daily Times reported that residents of Kaitangata witnessed a zeppelin hovering over the Wangaloa Hills for half an hour. The Evening Star suggested it was launched from the German ship Seestern. Over the following two months, thousands of sightings of German airships were reported nationwide. In Kelso, 23 schoolchildren and their supervisor claimed to see an airship flying over the town, prompting a police-led search in the nearby Blue Mountains.
At Kaka Point, a group of boys spotted a glowing object that appeared to be landing on the beach, causing them to flee. Rumors spread of an airship crash near Waikata, allegedly killing several Germans. The Geraldine Guardian described a crowd gathering outside a post office to discuss sightings of a strange orb, which was later revealed to be a prank involving a candle inside a hollow turnip placed on a flagpole.
By late August, the frenzy subsided, with one last sighting of a dark, cigar-shaped object near the Tapanui Hills. An investigation by the Southland Times concluded that the phenomenon was caused by large flocks of starlings preparing for nesting season, temporarily roosting in a group of pine trees.
9. The Swimming White Horse
In 1878, the Cincinnati Commercial reported a peculiar telegram from Parkersburg, Virginia, detailing a farmer’s encounter with a mysterious skyborne creature while working in his field, as cited by The New York Times.
At approximately 7:00 PM, the farmer noticed a strange object in the clear western sky, about 1 kilometer away. He described it as a white, horse-like figure with distinct features—head, neck, limbs, and tail—appearing to swim while ascending at a 45-degree angle.
Initially doubting his vision, the farmer rubbed his eyes, but the apparition remained. He called out to nearby men, who also confirmed seeing the airborne horse. While they were frightened, the farmer calmly watched until the phenomenon vanished into the sky.
The Cincinnati Commercial noted: “Various illusions have been observed in the area, alarming the superstitious and amusing the skeptical.”
8. The Flying Snake That Chased a Train
In 1882, the Los Angeles Times shared a bizarre account from a Southern Pacific express train crew, supported by passengers. Near Dos Palms, the engineer spotted a sand-like column approaching the tracks, initially mistaken for a dust storm. As it drew closer, it became evident that the column was a living creature.
The report described the creature as “standing almost upright, with its tail dragging and propelled by two large wings near its head.” It was estimated to be 9 meters long and 30 centimeters wide, resembling a hybrid of a bird and a snake.
Passengers leaned out of windows to witness the spectacle. As the train passed, the creature’s tail was severed, provoking it to chase the train. The report stated, “The snake turned aggressively and pursued the train with remarkable speed.”
The creature attacked the train, smashing windows and terrifying passengers. Despite attempts to shoot it, the snake remained unharmed. After a few minutes, it retreated on its own. The incident was corroborated by all onboard and later reprinted in the Brooklyn Eagle.
7. The Wisdom Lamps
Hsu Yun, a renowned 19th-century Buddhist monk who lived to 119, recounted a UFO-like experience in his autobiography. While on a pilgrimage across China’s sacred sites in 1884, he ascended Daluo Peak to witness the famed “wisdom lamps” often reported in the region.
On his second night atop the peak, he observed, “A massive ball of light traveled from the Northern to the Central Peak, descending and splitting into more than ten smaller orbs of varying sizes. That same night, I saw three luminous spheres hovering and moving above the Central Peak, while four others of different sizes appeared over the Northern Peak.”
A pictorial biography corroborated his account, noting that Hsu Yun paid homage to the wisdom lights. It added, “Visitors often gathered here hoping to glimpse their fortunes. Initially, nothing unusual occurred, but soon the lights appeared—large, small, and medium-sized, each fireball distinct in its brilliance.”
In his autobiography, Hsu Yun recounted witnessing Buddha lights at Mount Emei’s Jinding Peak in 1888. He described them as resembling “a cluster of stars in the sky, their beauty beyond words.”
6. The Luminous Wheels
Charles Fort’s The Book of the Damned includes a letter from Lee Fore Brace, who reported a strange phenomenon in 1880 aboard the British India Company’s Patna in the Persian Gulf. Around 11:30 PM, two massive glowing wheels appeared on either side of the ship, their spokes seemingly grazing the vessel.
Brace noted that each wheel had 16 spokes and measured approximately 460 to 550 meters in diameter, emitting a phosphorescent light that illuminated the surrounding water. He likened the sight to “shining a bull’s-eye lantern horizontally across the water’s surface in a circular motion.”
In a letter published in Knowledge, “A. Mc. D.” mocked Brace, dubbing him “the modern Ezekiel.” He calculated the wheels’ speed at roughly 550 kilometers per hour and insinuated Brace was intoxicated during the sighting.
Brace, signing his response as “J.W. Robertson,” defended himself, stating, “While I don’t believe ‘A. Mc. D.’ intends malice, it’s unfair to accuse someone of drunkenness for witnessing something extraordinary. I take pride in never consuming anything stronger than water in my life.”
Charles Fort offered alternative theories, suggesting the wheels could be underwater lights projecting upward, giant bioluminescent sea creatures, or massive extraterrestrial structures that entered Earth’s atmosphere, glowed as they disintegrated, and sought refuge in the ocean.
Similar sightings of glowing wheels were reported in the Persian Gulf, Gulf of Oman, and Straits of Malacca around the same time. One account from the Danish East Asiatic Company’s Bintang described a massive, rotating wheel with radiating arms visible for 15 minutes.
5. The Electric Cloud
A 1904 article in The Philadelphia Inquirer detailed an unusual event aboard the British steamer Mohican during its voyage from Romania to Delaware. Captain Urquhart recounted, “Just after sunset, at latitude 37 degrees 16 minutes and longitude 72 degrees 48 minutes, the sea was calm, and the air was still. As darkness crept in, the lookout spotted a peculiar gray cloud in the southeast. Initially a speck, it quickly grew to the size of a balloon.”
The cloud had a grayish hue with glowing patches that intensified as it approached the ship. Upon enveloping the Mohican, the vessel began to glow phosphorescently. The crew’s hair stood on end, and the compass spun uncontrollably. When the captain instructed the crew to move chains on deck, they found the metal objects magnetized and immovable.
The dense cloud obscured visibility, plunging the ship into a glowing, metallic haze. Sounds were muffled, leaving an eerie silence after the initial panic. The crew experienced stiffness in their joints, making movement difficult. After 30 minutes, the cloud lifted, the compass stabilized, and the ship resumed its journey.
4. The Spook of Diamond Island
In 1888, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported widespread rumors in Hardin, Mississippi, about a mysterious glowing object near Diamond Island. Described as a barrel-sized fireball, one local businessman claimed, “I could see a hazy shape within the flames.”
A group of young men, armed with revolvers, knives, shotguns, and clubs, rowed to the island to investigate. They hid among the trees, waiting for the phenomenon to appear.
Suddenly, a red glow illuminated the island, and a bright red object emerged from the water, rising 37 meters before vanishing. Their weapons proved useless against the apparition. Panicked, the group fled to their boat, only to find it drifting away with the fiery orb inside.
The fireball then transformed into a small, elderly man in denim overalls, his face hidden under a slouch hat. The boat glowed eerily as the oars moved on their own.
In stunned silence, the glowing figure transformed back into a fiery orb midstream, ascending into the sky and vanishing. Stranded, the men’s cries for help alerted a nearby fisherman, who rescued them. Several in the group were reportedly nearly paralyzed by terror. Subsequent sightings of the red orb occurred, but no one dared to investigate further.
3. The 1897 Airship Phenomenon
Between late 1896 and early 1897, a wave of mysterious airship sightings swept across the US. It began in northern California, with numerous reports of an airship manned by humans and equipped with dazzling searchlights. The craft allegedly fled when approached. As stories spread, increasingly bizarre details emerged across the West and Midwest.
In a letter published by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, W.H. Hopkins recounted encountering an airship in a clearing, accompanied by a nude woman singing and gathering flowers. Upon noticing Hopkins, she screamed and fled to a naked man near the craft.
Hopkins claimed he assured them of his peaceful intentions. When he inquired about their origin, they responded with a word resembling “Mars.” They showed him around their ship, expressing curiosity about his clothing, gray hair, and watch. They then departed, laughing and waving as they ascended.
In another incident, a Sioux City man alleged he was caught by the anchor of an unidentified flying machine, which tore his clothes. Elsewhere, an object reportedly landed near Gas City, Indiana, for repairs, causing livestock to panic. In Michigan, farmers witnessed a 3-meter-tall man emerge from a landed craft, suffering from heatstroke.
In one of the final cases, Constable John J. Sumpter Jr. and Deputy Sheriff John McLemore were investigating cattle theft in Jessieville. While riding through the Ouachita Mountains at night, they observed a bright light that vanished and reappeared nearby. The light descended, revealing an airship on the ground with men holding lanterns.
The lawmen drew their weapons and demanded identification. A bearded man explained they were traveling the country in their airship and invited them aboard to visit “a place where it does not rain.” Declining the offer, the officers watched the airship depart. Returning later, they found no evidence of the craft or its occupants.
2. The Galisteo Apparition
An 1880 article in the Santa Fe Daily New Mexican described a telegraph operator and his friends in Galisteo Junction hearing voices from above during an evening stroll. Looking up, they saw a fish-shaped airship approaching from the west, adorned with elegant writing and powered by a fanlike mechanism. They heard music, laughter, and conversations in an unfamiliar language.
The group observed several objects falling from the airship. Initially, they found only a flower accompanied by a silk-like paper inscribed with characters resembling those on Japanese tea chests. The next day, they discovered “a uniquely crafted cup, unlike anything made in this country.” These items were reportedly sold to a collector who believed they originated in Asia, possibly from “Jeddo.”
A follow-up article mentioned the arrival of tourists, including a “wealthy young Chinese man” who recognized the dropped items. He claimed China had been developing aerial navigation and that the airship was the first in a planned communication line between the “Celestial Empire” and America.
The young man further claimed his fiancée was aboard the airship and had dropped the note in the cup, knowing he would be in the area. Under the headline “Solved At Last,” the story concluded with the man boarding a train to New York to reunite with his beloved.
1. Phantom Balloons and the Boer Signal
During the Boer War (1899–1902), the British employed observation balloons to monitor enemy movements and guide artillery, sparking fear among the Boers. They worried the balloons could be used to bomb Pretoria and other cities. Transvaal headquarters instructed telegraph operators to report any aerial objects, triggering a wave of phantom balloon sightings.
Numerous reports of alleged balloon sightings were received, including one from Vryheid: “An airship with a bright light is clearly visible in the distant sky toward Dundee.” Shots were fired, and the Boers reportedly used searchlights to scour the skies. However, since British observation balloons were far from Transvaal, most sightings were likely cases of misidentification or mass hysteria.
On the British side, a phenomenon called the “Boer Signal” caused alarm. A British commander noted it appeared shortly after sunset, coinciding with the pitching of tents. Soldiers debated whether the light was a signal to the Boers revealing their camp’s location. It took considerable effort to convince them the light was merely the planet Venus setting.
