Somewhere in the Skies - UFOs of the Wild West

Episode Date: January 11, 2026

Long before the modern UFO era, settlers, cowboys, soldiers, and newspapers across the American frontier were reporting strange lights, mysterious craft, and even non-human beings in the skies. In this episode of Somewhere in the Skies, we travel back to the late 1800s to explore remarkable cases from Montana’s glowing “sky chariots” and New Mexico’s ghost lights to early reports of crashes, humanoid encounters, and the bizarre airship wave that swept the West. From silent orbs following cattle drives to alleged crashes in Colorado and Texas, these encounters blur the line between folklore and something far more technological. Together, they suggest the UFO phenomenon did not begin in the 20th century, but has deep roots in the Wild West, appearing in forms shaped by the time, culture, and understanding of those who witnessed it. Please take a moment to rate and review us on Spotify and Apple. Book Ryan on CAMEO at: https://bit.ly/3kwz3DO Patreon: http://www.patreon.com/somewhereskies ByMeACoffee: http://www.buymeacoffee.com/UFxzyzHOaQ PayPal: [e-mail] Substack: https://ryansprague.substack.com/ All Socials and Books: https://linktr.ee/somewhereskiespod Email: [e-mail] SpectreVision Radio: https://www.spectrevision.com/podcasts Opening Theme Song by Septembryo Copyright © 2025 Ryan Sprague. All rights reserved. #WildWest #Cowboys #UFOs #UFO #UAP #Alien #Aliens #Paranormal #WildWestUFOs #OldWest #Somewhereintheskies Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Fit for your ambition for Citizens Bank. Spector Vision Radio. The American West has always been a place where the extraordinary feels strangely at home. Amid the dusty plains, rugged mountains, and isolated frontier towns, the line between myth and reality. often blurs, leaving behind stories that feel more like legends than lived events. Yet throughout the late 19th century, a curious pattern emerges in the archives of newspapers, journals, and oral histories. Frontier settlers, ranchers, soldiers, and even newspaper editors reported strange lights, impossible craft, and even mysterious.

beings long before the modern UFO era even began. The following accounts are not simply odd tales told around campfires. They form a timeline of high strangeness that stretches across all of the Wild West, creating an unexpected bridge between the rugged frontier and the mysteries of our skies. While our government's official position is not to speculate on this subject, we can choose to let our minds explore other possibilities, to use our imaginations. For if we consider that astro-scientists agree on one point that the possibility of life elsewhere is not only quite probable, some field is there without a doubt. Let us suppose them that these objects are real space vehicles, extraterrestrial origin, and not an illusion of the mind. I'm Ryan Sprang, and you are now somewhere in the skies.

We start in the 1870s with the Great Falls Montana Sky Chariots. The earliest known frontier encounters come from the Montana Territory, where settlers near Great Falls began reporting unusual lights moving over the plains. These lights were described as bright orbs, sometimes blue, sometimes gold, drifting silently across the skies like lanterns, being carried by invisible hands. Native tribes in the region spoke of these apparitions as sky chariots or wandering star messengers. The sightings were so consistent that soldiers stationed near Fort Benton submitted written reports, puzzled by the lights that moved against the wind,

within intelligence not easily dismissed. Eyewitness testimony often emphasized the quietness of these objects. In a land where the slightest sound could carry for miles, the silence was unsettling. The lights hovered over encampments or moved slowly across riverbeds before eventually streaking upward at incredible speeds. Cowboys described being followed by these orbs, As they rode at night, their horses becoming nervous as the glowing spheres shifted closer.

One ranger wrote in his journal that the lights behaved as if they were inspecting the land, rather than just passing through. As more sightings begin to appear, the local newspapers cautiously began printing short mentions of the strange aerial visitors. Editors framed them as curiosities. wonders of the natural world, or possibly atmospheric phenomena that settlers had yet to understand. But letters to the newspaper suggested something entirely different. Witnesses insisted these were not stars or comets or lanterns or atmospheric phenomena. These were controlled objects, moving with purpose.

And this distinction haunted many of the frontier families who saw them. The Montana Sky Chariots would continue to be seen intermittently throughout the decade but would eventually fade from the public record. Yet their presence marks a foundational moment in the strange saga of the Wild West UFO mystery. They represent a time when the skies over unsettled land seemed to be alive with the unknown motion and intention of these objects. Even decades later, descendants of the original witnesses would recall the lights as a profound and unexplained part of their family stories moving forward. Our next story comes from the 1880s with the Pekoyma, New Mexico ghost lights.

As settlement pushed deeper into the southwest, a new series of encounters emerged in the canyons and mesas of New Mexico. Cowboys traveling near what would become Pekoyma began reporting bright, floating lights that moved independently of the wind. These lights danced across the ridges and dipped low into the valleys, illuminating the terrain in ways no natural lantern or flame ever could. The riders described the orbs as intelligent, reacting to their presence, sometimes drifting close enough to cast sharp shadows, across the desert floor. The lights became a persistent companion to many night travelers. They appeared suddenly, sometimes startling riders and causing their horses to buck or flee. But despite the fear, many cowboys eventually grew accustomed to the phenomena.

They spoke of the lights almost fondly, calling them spirit lamps or wandering souls of the canyon. Yet beneath the folklore, a deeper unease because the lights often behaved as if they were studying the humans below. Local ranchers told stories of lights that followed cattle drives for miles, weaving between the animals and gliding above the herd in total silence. Occasionally, one would shoot straight upward and vanish without a sound. Older residents tried to connect the sightings to tribal legends of watchers in the sky. But even these stories failed to fully capture the otherworldly precision that these lights seemed to demonstrate. By the end of the decade, the ghost lights had become

a regional mystery. They left behind no physical evidence, no crash debris, no sign of their origin, but the stories endured. For many in New Mexico, these encounters represented the first time the land itself felt haunted, not by spirits of the dead, but by something alive and observant in the night skies. And they were a prelude to a greater wave of strangeness that was about to sweep across the entire frontier. In the spring of 1884, a group of railroad workers in Blue Canyon in Colorado experienced one of the earliest reported crashes of a UFO. The men witnessed a bright flash in the sky, followed by a loud whistling sound that grew rapidly closer. An object straighted overhead and slammed into a nearby ravine with enough force to shake

the ground beneath them. When the workers arrived at the crash site, they found metallic fragments scattered across the rocks. The pieces were described as unusually light, far lighter than any known metal sheet used in construction at the time. Several men attempted to gather fragments, but many of the pieces crumbled when touched, dissolving into a fine powder as if they had been overheated or even made of an unfamiliar alloy. Other pieces remain solid but exhibited in odd shimmering.

surface. Almost reflective, but not quite mirror-like. One worker claimed that the debris gave off a faint warmth, even though the crash had occurred hours earlier. The newspaper reports of the time described the wreckage as both mechanical and impossibly delicate. The story spread quickly throughout the region, draining curious miners, surveyors, and travelers who wanted to see the remains for themselves.

But by the time that most arrived, however, much of the debris had already begun to break down naturally or had been removed by unknown individuals. Rumors circulated that government agents had passed through the area, giving us

perhaps our first ever reports of men in blood, black in the Old West. So while any debris from the crash does not remain, what does remain are the written testimonies of the railroad crew who maintained until their dying day that they witnessed something no earthly technology could ever explain. The Blue Canyon incident became a quiet legend in Colorado history, overshadowed by more dramatic tales of bandits, gold strikes and

Frontier Wars. Yet for those who knew the story firsthand, it did mark a turning point. This was no drifting light or distant object. This was a crash. A physical event that suggested intelligent machinery operating far beyond the capabilities of the era. It set the stage for even more astonishing encounters that would soon emerge across the West. In the Arizona Territory, a distinctly different kind of aerial mystery took shape. In April of 1890, two cowboys outside Tombstone claimed that they encountered an enormous creature gliding through the air. They described it as having a long, leathery body with massive wings that spanned nearly a hundred feet across. Its head resembled that of an alligator or a serpent, and its flight was strangely smooth,

as if buoyed by some force rather than relying on raw muscle. The men pursued the creature on horseback, eventually claiming to wound it with rifle fire. When the creature descended, the men examined its body more closely. They insisted it had no feathers, and that its hide was tough, like dried rawhide. The wings were structured in a way that reminded them of thin, stretched metal rather than bone. The creature's eyes were said to glow faintly,

even after it was dead. Their descriptions blurred the line between animal and machine, something that puzzled later researchers who viewed the case not as cryptozoology, but possibly of an early misinterpreted, UFO encounter. Eventually, the Tombstone Epitaph, a newspaper at the time, published the story without mockery, detailing the measurements and the testimony of the cowboys. The tone of the article suggested genuine belief in the event, which is unusual given the paper's reputation for

sensational frontier reporting. Some townspeople claimed to have seen the creature in the day's prior, always at a distance, moving silently across the desert skies, like a drifting shadow against the sun. Over time, the flying serpent became local legend, often retold but seldom analyzed through a technological lens. Yet the descriptions remain fascinating, an enormous gliding object, metallic wings, an unnatural silence in flight and glowing eyes all read very differently when viewed through a modern UFO framework.

Whether a creature or craft, the tombstone incident captures the eerie crossroads between folklore and frontier reality. In the fall of 1896, Colonel H.G. Shaw and a companion near Stockton, California, reported one of the strangest encounters of the airship era. Shaw claimed that the two men were traveling through a rural road when they came upon three tall, thin beings, unlike anything you'd ever seen before. The beings stood over seven feet tall,

with elongated limbs, smooth, pale skin, and large eyes that shimmered in the moonlight. They wore no clothing, and appeared weightless, struggling to walk as though Earth's gravity was unfamiliar to them. Shaw described how the beings attempted to seize him, gently but firmly, as if urging him toward a waiting craft. He resisted and eventually broke free, though he admitted that the beings exhibited surprising strength. The craft itself was described as a large metallic vessel, resting, in a nearby field. It emitted a soft humming sound and glowed faintly from within. Before Shaw and his

companion could observe more, the beings retreated back into the object, which ascended silently and disappeared into the night sky. The newspaper accounts of this encounter described Shaw's story in great detail, noting the sincerity of his report, despite its fantastical, nature. Skeptics at the time suggested that Shaw had misinterpreted a theatrical performance, or had encountered a group of pranksters, but the physical description was so unusual for any known hoaxers of the era. The beings did not resemble any cultural concept of extraterrestrials that would exist later on. They were simply unlike anything in the American. American imagination at the time.

Shaw himself later reflected on the encounter with a mix of awe and confusion. He speculated that the beings might have come from the moon, which seemed an understandable conclusion given the era. But however interpreted, the Stockton case stands today as a remarkably early, remarkably humanoid encounter that aligns effortlessly with modern, production narratives. It's a story far ahead of its time, emerging decades before science fiction created similar imagery, and it remains unexplained. Only days after the Stockton event, in 1896, another extraordinary encounter occurred in Lodi, California, deepening the mystery

of the burgeoning airship wave. A group of vineyard workers reported seeing a metallic craft descending into the rows of grapevines during the early morning hours, the object landed with surprising gentleness, and it emitted a soft bluish glow that illuminated the vineyard like moonlight on water. The workers initially terrified, watched as several humanoid figures emerged from the craft. These figures were described as small, possibly no more than four feet tall, with round heads and large reflective eyes. They carried strange tools that emitted faint clicking or buzzing sounds.

The beings appeared to examine the grapevines methodically, touching them with handheld devices that caused the leaves around to shimmer. The workers later said the figures didn't speak or even acknowledge them. Instead, they moved with calm precision, entirely focused on the tag. on the task at hand, whatever that was. After several minutes, the beings returned to the craft, which lifted into the air without stirring the vines beneath it at all. The craft ascended vertically, paused,

and then shot off across the sky at remarkable speed. The workers fled the area and reported the event to their employer, who in turn informed the local newspaper. The article published about the incident, treated the story with seriousness, suggesting a broader awareness that something highly unusual was occurring across California. The Lodi encounter is often overshadowed by the larger airship cases at the time, yet it stands out as one of the earliest documented instances of humanoids conducting what appeared to be scientific survey of the land. Its details echo modern UFO reports.

of biological sampling and agricultural interests by unknown aerial visitors. For a frontier world still grappling with basic survival, the idea of non-human entities, studying crops, must have felt both wondrous and downright terrifying. By late 1896, sighting some mysterious airships had spread across the West. Reports described cigar-shaped craft with brilliant headlights, mechanical noises that resembled engines, yet exceeded any known technology, and strange occupants spotted on decks or platforms. These craft, as noted, were seen everywhere from California to Nebraska, drifting slowly across the skies before suddenly accelerating at impossible speeds. Many encounters involved attempts at communication. Witnesses describe figures aboard the craft shouting greetings, asking questions, or even laughing before disappearing into the night skies.

Others spoke of landings in remote areas where the occupants claimed to be inventors testing new flying machines. The technology described was impossible for the era and far beyond anything publicly known, and the airships themselves behaved in ways that defied aerodynamics. But as swiftly as it all began, the wave diminished by late 1897, leaving behind countless unresolved reports. But one of the most fantastic events was soon about to occur. Hey guys, Ryan Sprague here from Somewhere in the Skies. The podcast has always been and always will be completely free for you to listen to. But creating it every week takes a lot of time, research, and resources.

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Residents awoke to a tremendous explosion and saw smoke rising from the property of Judge J.S. Proctor. According to eyewitness accounts, a strange airship had collided with the judge's windmill, scattering debris across the yard. Townspeople rushed to the scene and discovered fragments of metal unlike anything familiar. Some described the debris as a silver-colored alloy that crumbled easily. yet resisted heat. But more astonishing was the body found near the wreckage. The townspeople described the occupant as a small humanoid being with delicate features

and unusual clothing that seemed fused to its skin. The creature was reported to be severely injured and unfortunately would not survive the crash. Several residents speculated that it came from Mars. an explanation consistent with the era's fascination with the planet and also with the moon. Most endearing, the community would hold a funeral for the being, and they would eventually bury it in the local cemetery, marking the grave with a simple stone. Newspapers across Texas and beyond picked up the story, treating it as legitimate news rather than a tall tale.

reporters describe the craft as having been in distress before impact moving erratically and losing altitude some witnesses claimed that the craft had been seen earlier in the night drifting slowly until suddenly dropping in speed and veering toward the windmill the pure scale of the reporting makes the Aurora incident one of the most robust UFO crash stories prior to the modern UFO era. And despite attempts in later decades to dismiss the event as a hoax, many aspects of the story remain compelling, particularly the consistency of early eyewitness testimony. For the people of Aurora, the crash was not merely a curiosity. It was a profound moment

that forced them to confront the possibility that life existed beyond Earth, and that it had somehow collided with their quiet frontier town. In the broader narrative of Wild West UFO history, it serves as a dramatic culmination of decades of mysterious encounters. Taken together, these stories reveal an extraordinary pattern woven throughout the heart of the American frontier. At a time when the skies should have been empty and aviation was not even imagined as a practical reality, people across the West witnessed lights, craft, and beings that defied explanation. From Montana's glowing sky chariots to the explosive crash in Aurora, these events suggest that the UFO phenomenon is far older than many assume.

The Wild West was not merely a landscape of outlaws, pioneers, and untamed wilderness. It was also a place where the unknown revealed. field itself with startling clarity, leaving behind accounts that resonate eerily with modern encounters. Those separated by distance and time, the cases share an unmistakable thread of otherworldliness. Silent craft approaching witnesses with deliberate motion, beings appearing with unfamiliar bodies and tools. Objects landed, crashed, or drifted across the skies within the sky. This era reminds us that the phenomenon does not belong to the modern world alone. It spans generations, cultures, and landscapes, adapting itself to the understanding of the people

who witness it. Thank you so much for listening to this episode of Somewhere in the Skies. If you enjoyed the journey to the strange and storied skies of the Old West, be sure to subscribe on Spotify and Apple. And please take a moment to rate and review. It helps more curious minds discover the show. If you want early access, bonus episodes, and behind the scenes content,

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lets you listen the same way you do anywhere else. And I'll be completely transparent with you guys. We make a significantly larger portion of ad revenue when you listen or watch on Spotify. And trust me, I know switching apps is not always ideal, but Spotify, but Spotify, interface is super smooth and user-friendly, and I genuinely think you'll love the experience. More importantly, your support there helps us immensely in our goal to make summer in the skies a full-time endeavor for me. So you listening and watching on Spotify truly helps make that dream a reality. Thank you in advance for following and subscribing and commenting over on Spotify. Until next time, keep your lanterns lit, your saddle.

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