Correspondence Regarding July 4, 1964 Clearwater Beach Sighting

This document collection contains a series of letters and reports regarding a sighting of unidentified red lights over Clearwater Beach, Florida, on the night of July 4, 1964. Numerous witnesses, including families watching fireworks displays at Clearwater Beach and Dunedin Marina, reported seeing five to six stationary red lights in the sky. Many witnesses described the lights as appearing to be at a high altitude, stationary, and resembling red balloons or flares. Some witnesses noted that the lights eventually disappeared or faded out. Several observers reported seeing aircraft in the vicinity, which led to speculation about whether the lights were related to the fireworks display or aircraft activity. The Air Force, specifically the Aerial Phenomena Branch at Wright-Patterson AFB, investigated these reports. Major Hector Quintanilla, Jr., concluded that the objects were railroad flares attached to parachutes, which had been dropped by the pilot of a Cessna aircraft. This explanation was communicated to the public via a news release from the Information Officer at MacDill Air Force Base. The collection also includes various other reports of aerial phenomena from different locations, such as Georgia, Ohio, and New Jersey, which were compiled by the American UFO Committee.