Correspondence and Reports Regarding UFO Sightings in California and Wisconsin (1959)

This document collection contains correspondence and reports regarding two distinct unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP) incidents in 1959. The first incident involves a reported explosion and the discovery of a device in Frick Park, Pittsburgh, on 15 September 1959. The Air Force investigation concluded that this object was a hoax, likely created by college students to attract attention. The device was constructed from various household items, including a lantern battery container, a steel pipe, flashlight batteries, mercury switches, a small electric motor, and a transformer. The Air Force determined that the object was never airborne and that the explosion and the object itself were part of a prank. The second incident involves a sighting in Door County, Wisconsin, on 13 September 1959. A witness reported seeing a strange object rising into the sky at 1:05 a.m. The witness described the object as having a round base with eight blue lights and five red lights, accompanied by a very loud, pulsating noise. The witness, a young man working as a paper maker, reported the sighting to the local Weather Bureau, which subsequently forwarded the information to the Air Force. The Air Force requested that the witness complete a formal questionnaire to provide more detailed information for analysis. The document includes the completed questionnaire, in which the witness provides a detailed account of the sighting, including sketches and descriptions of the object's motion and appearance. The Air Force's correspondence with the National Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomena (NICAP) is also included, detailing NICAP's inquiries into the Pittsburgh incident and the Air Force's responses. The collection provides a detailed look at the Air Force's process for handling public reports of UAP during this period, including the distinction between objects identified as hoaxes and those requiring further investigation.