Carrollton, OhioJuly 1956

On the evening of July 31, 1956, three witnesses in Carrollton, Ohio reported seeing unidentified objects in the sky. The sighting lasted approximately one and a half hours. The objects were described as oval to cigar shaped, with sizes ranging from as small as a pea to as large as a grapefruit. Their color shifted between silver, blue, and orange. According to the witnesses, the objects moved erratically up and down before disappearing behind a house.

The Air Force investigation was conducted by mail and phone, without personal contact to the witnesses. A check of astronomical conditions revealed no possibility of the sighting being an astronomical phenomenon. The Air Technical Intelligence Center also checked with the Canton Ground Control Center (a radar facility used to track aircraft) and the 662d Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron (an air defense unit). Neither found any radar tracks or flight plans for aircraft in the area at the time of the sighting.

The investigating officer noted that the initial report came from a doctor and his wife, though a sergeant at the nearest Air Force base had simply forwarded their account without having observed the objects himself. The tone of the investigation suggests some skepticism, with investigators noting the possibility that the witnesses had either made a hoax report or had exaggerated what they saw.

The Air Force formally evaluated the sighting as unknown. However, the headquarters intelligence unit that reviewed the case added a caveat: while officially unidentified, they detected a slight possibility that the incident was either a hoax or an exaggerated description of a known phenomenon.

The full case file, comprising 30 pages, is reproduced below as held by the National Archives.