Incident Report: Atlanta, Georgia, 7 July 1953

This document details a 1953 incident in Atlanta, Georgia, involving a reported sighting of a flying saucer and three small creatures. Three individuals, led by barber Edward Watters, claimed they were driving on Highway 78 near Mapleton when they encountered a red, saucer-shaped object. They alleged that two of the creatures escaped in the saucer, while the third was struck by their car and killed. The carcass was subsequently taken to a newspaper office in Atlanta. Following an investigation by the 35th Air Division, the Intelligence Office, and local authorities, the report was officially classified as a hoax. It was determined that the 'creature' was a monkey that had been shaved and had its tail removed. The perpetrators confessed that the story was fabricated to gain publicity and to win a $10 bet regarding whether they could get their picture in the newspaper. The primary observer, Edward Watters, was fined $40 by Cobb County Superior Court Judge James T. Manning for obstructing the highway. The document includes various press clippings and reports confirming the hoax, noting that the incident was one of many similar reports received by Project Blue Book. The file also contains photographic evidence of the monkey carcass used in the hoax, which was examined by authorities at Emory University and the State Crime Laboratory to confirm its identity as a terrestrial animal.