Proceedings of the UFO History Workshop PPRROOCCEEEEDDIINNGGSS OOFF TTHHEE SSIIGGNN HHIISSTTOORRIICCAALL GGRROOUUPP UUFFOO HHIISSTTOORRYY WWOORRKKSSHHOOPP TThhee SSiiggnn HHiissttoorriiccaall GGrroouupp Thomas Tulien, editor i Proceedings of the UFO History Workshop PPRROOCCEEEEDDIINNGGSS OOFF TTHHEE SSIIGGNN HHIISSTTOORRIICCAALL GGRROOUUPP UUFFOO HHIISSTTOORRYY WWOORRKKSSHHOOPP TThhee SSiiggnn HHiissttoorriiccaall GGrroouupp Thomas Tulien, editor ii Proceedings of the UFO History Workshop Published by The Sign Historical Group P.O.Box 40, Scotland, CT 06264 Copyright Sign Historical Group, SHG ©11/1999 For extract or copying permission please contact the respective authors. Finding Treasures in the Archives, courtesy of James Neff and Investigative Reporters and Editors, Inc. FOIA Strategies and Tactics, courtesy of Michael Ravnitsky and American Society of Newspaper Editors ©1998. The cover image is from USAF Technical Report No. F-TR-2274-IA, titled, UNIDENTIFIED AERIAL OBJECTS: PROJECT ‘SIGN’ released in February 1949. It was prepared by L. M. Truettner and A. B. Deyarmond of the Technical Intelligence Division, Intelligence Department, Air Materiel Command, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Dayton, Ohio. The USAF officially began an investigation into “the flying discs” in December 1947 that would continue until the end of 1969. Image courtesy of Wendy Connors. Design and editing by Thomas Tulien Special thanks to Jan Aldrich. Portable Document Format version Copyright Sign Historical Group; SHG ©11/2001 i Proceedings of the UFO History Workshop Foreword History is often concerned with heritage and origins. The question applies as much to UFOs as any other subject. For ex- ample, where in time do genuine UFOs begin? Was 1947 the beginning or a turning point in UFO history, as opposed to human perceptions of the phenomenon? We all know that anomalous aerial phenomena have always been with us, as the portents and prodigies of primeval and medieval times, the Fortean anomalies of the scientific age, the phantom airships, ghost fliers, foo fighters and ghost rockets that predate Kenneth Arnold. But is there a genuine continuity in the phenome- non? Folklorist, Thomas Bullard affirms, “UFOs as the experiential phenomenon and UFOs as the popular cultural myth entan- gle in a knot of confusion. I suspect that this entanglement stands as one of the greatest impediments to understanding the nature of UFOs, and scientific acceptance of UFOs as a subject worthy of serious attention. A historical perspective offers a grip on the end of the string, a chance to untangle the mess to some degree.” Behind this perplexing UFO history is a whole history, or mythology of modern science, less well known, stretching back to the sixteenth century. What Karl Guthke terms “a heritage of Copernicanism; the modern myth, or the myth, of the modern era, [without which] the image of man since the Copernican revolution would be decidedly poorer.” The fact is, the question of extraterrestrial life, rather than having arisen in the twentieth century, has been accepted by the majority of educated persons since, at least, the Scientific Revolution, and in many instances was employed to formulate philosophical and religious positions in relation to it. As William Whewell observed, in his 1853 treatise, Of A Plurality of Worlds: An Essay, popular ideas about a multiplicity of inhabited worlds “are generally diffused in our time and country, are common to all classes of readers, and as we may venture to express it, are popular views of persons of any degree of intellectual cul- ture, who have, directly or derivatively, accepted the doctrines of modern science.” So as Professor Michael Crowe put it, “even if no UFOs hover in the heavens, belief in extraterrestrial beings has hovered in human consciousness for dozens of decades.” UFOs, and, the experiential aspects of UFO history are, seemingly, inextricably entangled in the myth of the modern era. This then, is simply an attempt to grab hold of the end of the string. Thomas Tulien ii Proceedings of the UFO History Workshop Table of Contents Foreword TT hh eee SS iii gg nn HH iii sss ttt oo rrr iii ccc aa lll GG rrr oo uu pp 22 Statement of Purpose UUFFOO HHIIISSTTOORRYY WWOORRKKSSHHOOPP AAGGEENNDDAA 44 Proposed Sessions III NN TT RR OO DD UU CC TT III OO NN 88 Why a UFO History Workshop? by Jan Aldrich 8 CC OO NN TT RR III BB UU TT EE DD PP AA PP EE RR SS 2200 A Brief History of UFO History by Jerome Clark 20 Research Opportunities In UFO History by Thomas Bullard 28 Ruppelt’s Coverup by Brad Sparks 40 Establishing a Common “Who Has What” Database by Maurizio Verga 50 The Project 1947 EM Effects Catalog: A History and Plan For Development by Mark Cashman 54 The Freedom of Information Act As a Research Tool by Jan Aldrich 61 FOIA Strategies and Tactics By Michael Ravnitzky 78 Succession Planning for UFO Materials by Jan Aldrich 81 iii Proceedings of the UFO History Workshop FFOORREEIIIGGNN CCOONNTTRRIIIBBUUTTIIIOONNSS 8866 UK Historical UFO Data Collections by Jenny Randles 86 Ufology Down Under by Bill Chalker 92 A Summary of Official UFO Research in Italy by Edoardo Russo 110 Indonesia: J.Salatun Communiqué #1 to J. Allen Hynek 114 AA RR CC HH III VV AA LL RR EE SS OO UU RR CC EE SS 112200 Newspaper Resources for UFO Historical Research By Thomas E. Bullard 120 Latin American Library Newspaper Holdings 140 Finding Treasures in the Archives: Tips and Resources By James Neff 142 The Library of Congress 145 The National Archives and Record Administration 149 National Archives I Building, Washington, DC 150 National Archives II, College Park, Maryland 151 Washington National Records Center, Suitland, Maryland 153 Proposed Archives Team Visit By Jan Aldrich 154 Air Force Historical Research Agency at Maxwell AFB 158 National Personnel Records Center 159 Wright-Patterson, AFB 160 Preliminary Proposal for a ‘Government UFO Document’ Archives by Jan Aldrich 162 CC OO LL LL EE CC TT III OO NN SS 116666 Archives for UFO Research: Personal Recollections Preserving the History of UFOs by Anders Liljegren 166 The J. Allen Hynek Center for UFO Studies Collection 175 The Barry Greenwood Archives 176 The Jan Aldrich Collection / Project 1947 179 The Donald E. Keyhoe Archives 183 iv Proceedings of the UFO History Workshop The Project Sign Archives 185 The SHG Audio Archive Project 186 The SHG Audio Archive Listing 186 The Loren E. Gross Collection 195 The Karl Pflock Collection 197 The Michael Sword Collection 198 The Edward Ruppelt Papers 198 The George Hunt Williamson Papers 199 The Gray Barker Collection 199 The Colorado Project Collection/E.U. Condon Papers 200 The James McDonald Collection 200 The Donald Menzel Collection 201 The Sign Oral History Project 202 The George Fawcett and Elmer Sabo Collection 204 The Leon Davidson Collection 205 The John Fuller Files 205 The Ohio State University UFO Collection 206 The Bill Chalker / Australia Collection 206 The Murray Bott Archives 211 The Arthur Bray Collection 211 The Bruno Mancusi/ Switzerland Collection 212 Research Projects in Italy 216 Collections in Holland 219 v Proceedings of the UFO History Workshop Participants in the Sign Historical Group’s foundational meeting include, left to right, Wendy Connors, Michael David Hall, Jerome Clark, Dominique Weinstein, Richard Hall (Moderator), Maurizio Verga, Loren Gross, Mark Rodeghier, Jan Aldrich (Moderator), Michael Swords (Moderator), Jean-Jacques Velasco, Bruce Ashcroft, Mark Chesney, Thomas Tulien (Administrator), Frank Reid, and not shown, Bernard Thouanel. Photo courtesy of Bernard Thouanel ©1999. 1 Proceedings of the UFO History Workshop T h e S i g n H i s t o r i c a l G r o u p T h e S i g n H i s t o r i c a l G r o u p Statement of Purpose (SHG) is an association of scholars and researchers who have come together to facilitate and promote the discovery and preservation of materials, and the production and dissemination of publications, about the history of the UFO phe- nomenon and the institutions and persons who investigated it. The SHG pursues these goals in the traditional manner of historians and archivists working on a subject of widespread public interest and cultural impact. Interests of the SHG include the interface of the UFO phenomenon with governmental, military, and academic concerns, folklore and popular culture, technological advances, and those aspects of the human, technical, and natural landscapes that may serve to illuminate the history of the UFO phenomenon and our various human responses to it. The SHG espouses no theory as to the cause of the UFO phenomenon, though individual members may well have their own beliefs. The SHG is an independent, non-profit, association of persons who adhere to this Statement of Purpose and is not affiliated with any other group or philosophy. The SHG shares, whenever possible, its information and archives with all group members and all interested scholars and researchers worldwide. Membership in SHG is not open to general members of the public and is by invitation only. Sign Historical Group Membership Committee Governance General or Daily As the SHG is young and small, an interim democratic and consensus-oriented governance style may be appropriate, with the understanding that more formal structures may be required for certain issues (e.g., membership) or special projects. And, as the group grows and matures, a more formal structure may be inevitable. Of What Does “Governance” Consist? At our current organizational stage what is needed is an organizational contact point for both members and outside persons. This could be one person or a small group of people in regular communication. Probably, the small group is the best choice for this beginning period. The group could be available to: Receive inquiries about issues relating to SHG affairs from members of the SHG.