Buzz
Charles Hoy Fort, whose name later became associated with the Fortean Society, emerged as the somewhat unwilling pioneer of contemporary paranormal research. His work primarily involved gathering unusual stories, meticulously searching through newspapers, journals, and magazines for phenomena that defied scientific explanation. With a fascination for UFOs, teleportation, and mysterious falling objects, he authored several books filled with eccentric theories on the supernatural, often criticizing the rigid dogmas of science, which he referred to as “priestcraft.
10. The Marsh Paper
Throughout his adult life, Charles Hoy Fort dedicated himself to documenting strange occurrences, often mocking the scientific community for their interpretations. His 1919 publication, The Book of the Damned, delved into peculiar phenomena, including the enigmatic marsh paper.
Based on his findings, a group of laborers in the German town of Memel stumbled upon a strange substance on the icy, snow-covered ground in 1686. Witnesses reported that the substance, described as a flaky, damp, leafy, black material with a faint seaweed-like odor when wet, had seemingly fallen from the sky. Once dried, the unpleasant smell vanished, and it took on a fibrous, paper-like texture.
The prevailing explanation at the time was that the substance was plant material carried by a recent snowstorm and deposited on the ground. The Royal Irish Academy asserted that they could identify it—a rare substance known to form in marshlands under specific conditions.
Fort was deeply dissatisfied with this comparison, criticizing the scientific community for hastily labeling the unknown as known without proper investigation. He noted that the Memel marsh paper was black and leafy, while the Irish marshland substance was green and felt-like. Despite some similarities, Fort concluded they were clearly not the same.
Later, Fort mentioned that the so-called “meteor-paper” was found to be primarily of plant origin. He compared this conclusion to equating a peanut with a camel, a flawed analogy that arises from focusing solely on superficial similarities. He also dismissed the theory that the substance was carried by wind or a storm, pointing out the absence of other unusual debris like fence posts.
Records from 1686 also describe another mysterious material, resembling burned paper and identified as black scale from meteorites. Fort refrained from stating his own beliefs about the substance but emphasized its misidentification. He speculated whether otherworldly writings might have been present on the sheets, offering clues if anyone had taken the time to examine them closely.
9. Princess Caraboo
In 1817, Mary Baker, an Englishwoman, became infamous by pretending to be Princess Caraboo from a distant island. She communicated in an unfamiliar dialect and worshipped an unusual deity. A Portuguese sailor later claimed to understand her language, but her ruse was uncovered when a housekeeper recognized her from a previous act. While most saw this as a simple case of deception, Fort offered a unique perspective on the matter.
Fort discovered an alternate version of the story, where her language was deciphered by a mysterious “gentleman from the East Indies.” He also noted that her mother, Mrs. Willcocks from Devonshire, identified her and admitted to the hoax. Additionally, records suggested she spoke Malay, which the translator misidentified, further complicating the narrative.
Despite the varying accounts, Fort believed her confession was incomplete and suspicious, omitting key details like the origin of her language. He theorized that Baker might have been teleported to England from an exotic location, explaining her appearance and linguistic abilities. Fort concluded that her confession was partially fabricated and that she could be one of the rare individuals whose presence might be explained by teleportation.
8. The Krakatoa Conspiracy
Fort frequently argued that mainstream science often fabricated explanations, forcing mismatched evidence into preconceived theories. He believed scientists were more inclined to obscure facts or ignore inconsistencies to uphold accepted narratives rather than pursue genuine understanding.
In The Book of the Damned, Fort highlighted a significant event to illustrate his point. The 1883 Krakatoa eruption had global repercussions, with its atmospheric effects documented not only in scientific records but also in artworks like The Scream. The skies displayed unusual hues during sunsets and sunrises, and the Moon and Sun appeared distorted due to volcanic particles. Fort noted that the most severe impacts occurred during the autumn and winter of 1883–1884, which he saw as undeniable evidence of the scientific community’s tendency to overlook inconvenient truths.
Fort argued that scientists used the Krakatoa eruption as a scapegoat, attributing dust-filled skies and other phenomena to it long after the event. He noted that unusual atmospheric occurrences were reported in places like Trinidad and South Africa even before the eruption, suggesting that the planet had been affected by extraterrestrial forces. For instance, marble-sized ash balls fell in Queenstown post-eruption, which were incorrectly linked to Krakatoa.
Fort further criticized the scientific community for blaming Krakatoa for phenomena observed years later, even after extended periods of normal skies. He emphasized that nothing could remain in the atmosphere for such a prolonged duration, calling the explanation absurd and a clear example of scientific laziness.
7. Copernicus Had It Backward
Fort’s writings were often chaotic, eccentric, and could be likened to the unfiltered musings of someone teetering on the edge of madness. It’s challenging to discern which ideas he genuinely believed, which were conspiracy theories, and which were merely provocations aimed at exposing what he saw as flaws in mainstream science.
In New Lands, Fort directed his criticism at astronomy, a field he considered deeply flawed. He was particularly irked by the widespread acceptance of Copernicus’s theory on celestial motion, arguing that his own observations suggested Copernicus might have gotten it entirely wrong.
Fort illustrated his point with the analogy of a boat. To an observer on the shore, the boat appears to move while the shore remains still. However, from the boat, it seems as though the shore is moving. Fort argued that Copernicus chose the simpler explanation—Earth’s rotation—to avoid grappling with complex issues like the mechanisms driving stellar motion, the nature of space, and the forces maintaining celestial distances.
Fort contended that simplified explanations are rarely correct and that the uncritical acceptance of Copernicus’s theory set the stage for a series of fundamental errors in our understanding of the cosmos.
6. No Scientific Principle Has Been Proven
Engaging with Fort’s writings feels like an unpredictable, surreal journey, leaving you far from where you began. He aimed to highlight the abundance of paranormal explanations and undocumented phenomena, asserting that science itself is inherently flawed. Fort believed that no theories have ever been definitively proven, suggesting we inhabit a fluid, ever-changing reality where the unimaginable is possible.
Fort challenged the notion that widely accepted scientific facts are proven truths. He argued that truth is universal, yet our understanding is limited to our observations and experiences. Using chemistry as an example, he claimed it isn’t a universal constant, as it would change if conditions like Earth’s distance from the Sun altered. Our existence, he concluded, is entirely relative to our time and place.
Fort also criticized Newton, dismissing his three laws as mere “articles of faith” comparable to mythical beings like angels and demons. He argued that inertia, a cornerstone of Newton’s laws, couldn’t be isolated or proven as a distinct force, leaving room for the possibility of other unseen, infinite forces at play.
Fort further contended that distinguishing between animals and vegetables is impossible, as no definitive test exists to classify them. He famously wrote, “As distinct from vegetables, animals do not exist. There is nothing to prove.”
5. The Connecting Forces
Fort proposed that everything in existence is interconnected by an unseen force. He used the example of fruits and vegetables, suggesting they are linked through the tomato, much like coincidences are tied together by tangible, albeit hidden, connections.
In Wild Talents, Fort detailed numerous events that could be classified as coincidences. For instance, in 1894, multiple deaths occurred at a vineyard near Fresno, California. Similarly, in 1921, people in Zetel, Germany, and the Meuse Valley, Belgium, in 1930, experienced unexplained fainting spells. In 1909, three hunters on Sand Island in the Caspian Sea died without cause, and in 1903, three hikers near Coalbridge, Scotland, were found—two dead and one describing a mysterious “shock.
Fort also highlighted the bizarre events of April 10, 1893, when at least 12 men in Brooklyn were hospitalized after being struck by falling objects or collapsing. On January 26, 1873, two fox-hunters died during a hunt, followed by other unexplained hunting-related deaths. Additionally, on April 30, 1911, several soldiers from Colchester, England, were hospitalized with injuries they couldn’t explain.
Creepy and strange? Absolutely. True? That’s debatable. Fort, however, proposed a different explanation: these events were linked by a paranormal or supernatural force beyond human perception. The common thread, he suggested, was the manifestation of this unseen force. Using the fox-hunting example, he clarified that he wasn’t suggesting a literal monster but rather pointing to the longstanding tension between fox-hunters and English farmers. Perhaps the collective resentment toward the hunters and their destructive practices was enough to trigger these phenomena.
4. The Mysterious Hair Clippings
Not all of Fort’s collected oddities led to theories about invisible forces or scientific conspiracies. While reviewing global newspapers, he documented numerous accounts of mysterious hair-cutting incidents. Fort speculated that some cases were simple thefts, with perpetrators selling hair to wig-makers and hairdressers. Most victims were women, and though he initially considered it a fetish (similar to his collection of ear-related oddities), he later concluded that financial motives or mass hysteria drove many of these reports.
The volume of hair thefts Fort recorded is undeniably disturbing. For instance, in 1913, a Parisian man was arrested with hair from 94 women. Similarly, in 1928, an elderly man in Newark, New Jersey, broke into a home and cut the hair of three young sisters.
However, as this involves Charles Hoy Fort, the narrative shifts to the supernatural. He referenced the 1889 account of Dina McLean, residing in Quebec with a family that had adopted her from an orphanage. She reported not only having her braid tugged and severed, leaving it dangling by a few strands, but also hearing a voice. The family enlisted an investigator named Percy Woodcock, whose findings were multifaceted. Initially, it was noted that the family was in conflict with their neighbors. These neighbors were believed to have conjured a creature to harass Dina’s family. When Woodcock confronted the spirit and denounced its vulgarity, it immediately expressed remorse, sang a brief hymn, and vanished without further incident.
Fort posited that there are additional instances of enigmatic hair-cutting attributed to poltergeist activity, such as an occurrence at the residence of a Wisconsin man living with his second wife shortly after his first wife's demise, as well as a series of similar events in London.
3. Ancient Extraterrestrials And The Blue Britons
In 1919, Fort released The Book of the Damned, marking him as the first individual to openly speculate that humanity had been colonized, genetically manipulated, and influenced by ancient extraterrestrial beings.
Fort sought to address the mystery of why, if extraterrestrial life exists, we have not been contacted. He proposed a dual explanation: contact has indeed occurred, and the alien civilization responsible is cautioning others to avoid Earth. Fort imagined a historical scenario where Earth's surface was a battleground for warring alien factions. The eventual victor issued a stern warning to others: Earth is off-limits.
This is only part of the story. Fort speculated about Earth's significance to these alien beings, suggesting that humans might serve a purpose for them. Whether as laborers, a resource pool, or even inhabitants of extraterrestrial harems, he was uncertain. Earth could have been a mining or agricultural hub for a species unable to endure our planet's environment, or perhaps a trading post. It might have even been a distant colony in the galaxy.
Regardless of our role, Fort believed that Earth was influenced by multiple alien races, not just one. He theorized that various extraterrestrial groups shaped the evolution of life on our planet. While he admitted uncertainty about many details, he was convinced that the aliens who settled in ancient Britain and Celtic regions were blue-skinned. While mainstream anthropologists argue that Celts merely painted themselves blue, Fort pointed to historical records of a blue-skinned child as evidence supporting his claim.
Fort even crafted a narrative to support his theory. The 'blue Britons' originated from Azuria and arrived on Earth as missionaries. They attempted to transform Earth's inhabitants into blue beings, but when met with resistance, Azuria unleashed divine retribution. Their wrath manifested as alien lightning, striking stone fortifications. Remnants of these conflicts can still be seen today in the vitrified forts scattered across Britain, Ireland, Bohemia, and Brittany.
2. Sky Continents
While most people assume continents exist solely on a planet's surface, Fort proposed the possibility of continents floating in the sky as well.
Fort suggested that auroras, which occasionally illuminate the night sky, are evidence of something above us. He dismissed the conventional explanation that auroras result from electrical interactions with Earth's poles, calling it nonsensical. If this were true, he argued, phenomena like the Northern Lights wouldn’t appear in Pennsylvania without being visible further north. He believed that labeling such lights as auroras ignores the truth: there are lands in the sky, not far from Earth. By embracing the idea that Earth isn’t unique, humanity could connect with these higher forces and thrive.
Fort also documented various phenomena to support his theory of sky continents. He referenced years of strange lightning and noises over Comrie, Scotland, as well as unexplained explosions heard in Barisal, Bengal, in 1874. Additionally, he noted reports of cannon-like sounds over Tunis in 1881 and similar noises resembling heavy gunfire in Cambridgeshire and Essex in January 1869. In 1883, the crew of the steamship Resolute, isolated in the Arctic Ocean, recorded what sounded like gunfire from the skies above.
Fort reasoned that meteors and other falling objects could originate from massive sky continents. He even claimed to identify the location of one such continent, pointing to unusual activity over a triangular area in England bounded by Worcester, Reading and Berkshire, and Colchester in Essex. He dubbed this area the “London Triangle.”
1. Angels And Demons Are Aliens
Those who’ve encountered Ancient Aliens while flipping through channels are familiar with the theories suggesting Earth was once colonized by extraterrestrial beings. This peculiar pseudo-history is filled with allegedly inexplicable artifacts, advanced technologies, and cryptic messages. Fort explored this concept in his 1923 book, New Lands.
On October 3, 1843, a group of farmers and laborers witnessed something extraordinary in the skies above Warwick. Multiple witnesses reported seeing a cloud with three angels suspended beneath it, as if held by invisible belts. The angels hovered just above the trees, drifting with the cloud while emitting a “loud and mournful noise.” Fort noted that this eerie scene didn’t align with the typical depictions of heavenly salvation taught in Sunday school.
Fort argued that the event wasn’t a case of mass hysteria or optical illusions. He believed that all reported sightings of angels and demons weren’t spiritual or psychic phenomena but rather encounters with extraterrestrial visitors. Whether the witnesses were priests, meteorologists, or astronomers, he was convinced that these figures in the sky were space travelers, a truth humanity would eventually uncover.
