File 013 · 12 September 1952
Flatwoods, Braxton County
Flatwoods, West Virginia, United States
Opened 9/4/2026
Ledger illustration of the file — not a photograph of the object. Ledger illustration of the report. A wooded hill of the kind the Flatwoods party climbed. — Night Ledger illustration of the file
Standing
Unidentified
On the public record, and still open. A claim, paper, or film — not a finding that it was ours, and not a finding that it was not.
What was claimed
A glowing object appeared to land on a hill. A party of children and a mother walked up and reported a tall figure in the mist.
What is on the record
This file is a working record — a report, not a verdict. Official paper, if any, is linked where we have it.
Just after dusk a group of boys in Flatwoods saw a light arc behind a hill. They fetched Kathleen May and a National Guardsman, and the party climbed through tall grass. They described a pulsing red object, an acrid metallic odor, and a tall figure with a spade-shaped head and glowing eyes that seemed to float.
Several of the witnesses became ill. A local reporter and, later, Gray Barker and Ivan Sanderson collected statements. Explanations have included a meteor, a barn owl in the vegetation, and mass panic. The odor and the sickness remain the hardest pieces for the owl story.
No photograph of the figure exists. The case lives as a written account from a small mountain town, taken down while the witnesses were still coughing.
Could this have been ours?
The known sky, that night.
Before Sputnik the known lights were planets, meteors, aircraft, and balloons. No station. No Starlink.
Always
Aircraft, balloons, meteors
Landing lights, flares, lanterns, reentries, fireballs. They are on the known sky. They do not close a file by themselves — they are what a serious look has to hold the claim against.
The known sky
None of the above land
Stations, trains, and planets do not set down in a field or leave a body. This file is a ground report. The known sky still has to be named. It does not answer the claim.
Orbit · Space — the desks for lights that are already named.
Sources
Paper on this file
Official or public documents that belong with this case — not a verdict.
Related files
Same craft, same place, same years. A neighbor in the catalogue — not a conclusion.
Same craft · Same country · April 30–May 1, 2023
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Las Vegas, Nevada · United States
Unidentified
A family in northwest Las Vegas called 911 after a bright object fell from the sky and they observed two very tall (8–10 ft), non-human entities with large eyes and shiny skin in their backyard near heavy equipment. Multiple family members corroborated the account to responding officers. Police bodycam footage captured the initial sky sighting and the family's terrified statements. Officers search
Same craft · Same country · August 6, 1977
Tom Dawson and the White Humanoids
Pelham, Georgia · United States
Unidentified
Retired automobile salesman Tom Dawson, 63, encountered a circular craft that landed near a pond while walking his dogs. He was paralyzed, along with his dogs and nearby cattle. Seven white-skinned humanoids (some nude, some in shimmering suits) with pointed ears and no necks emerged, examined him with devices, and a voice claiming to be Jimmy Hoffa was heard from the craft.
Same craft · November 19-20, 2008
Cláudio Military Police Humanoid Chase
Cláudio, Minas Gerais · Brazil
Unidentified
Multiple military police officers, led by Captain Eisenhower Guerck Austriaco, observed luminous objects and then pursued two small luminous humanoid beings gliding through sugarcane fields without touching the ground. The beings were about 90 cm tall with oval heads and no visible eyes. A detailed official police report was filed, photographs of objects were taken, and the case includes multi-wit
Same craft · August 11, 2003, ~4:35 AM
Lech Chacinski Encounter
Near Szczecinek, Poland · Poland
Unidentified
Truck driver Lech Chacinski encountered three tall humanoid figures in silvery suits standing in a triangular formation on the road. They communicated telepathically, stated they were from the 'Eight Galaxy,' and entered a large disc-shaped craft via a beam of light. Traces were reportedly found in an adjacent field.
Same craft · July 8-9, 1996
Certesti Police Encounter
Certesti, Galati County · Romania
Unidentified
Police Sergeant Marian Mancu and voluntary guardian Marcel Rusu observed a bright object with colored lights and encountered a strange being during night patrol. TV interference and dog barking were reported by other residents that night. Researchers interviewed multiple witnesses.
Same craft · July 8-9, 1996
Certești Police Sergeant Encounter
Certești, Galați County · Romania
Unidentified
Police sergeant Marian Mancu and guardian Marcel Rusu encountered a hovering disc-like object with colored lights and small humanoid figures in the village center during a night patrol. Other locals reported related effects.