Samuel Eaton Thompson
Encyclopedia
Samuel Eaton Thompson was an American contactee who claimed to have been in contact with extraterrestrials. Though his claims earned little publicity during his life, Thompson might have been the first North American contactee.
Researcher Jerome Clark
describes the account as "surely the most outlandish story in early UFO history [and] also one of the most obscure."
The story earned brief mention in a local newspaper in 1950 (on April 1, leading some to suspect the entire story was a hoax
or prank), and the full story was not publicised until more than three decades afterwards.
home, he came across a large flying saucer in the woods. The saucer, he claimed, was about 80 feet across and 30 feet tall. Two naked, deeply tanned children human in form but very attractive, were playing near the craft's entrance ramp.
Thompson claimed to have approached to within about 50 feet of the saucer, which emanated a strong heat like the sun’s rays. Several naked adults—humanoid, attractive, and also deeply tanned—then appeared at the craft's door. After realizing Thompson meant them no harm, they beckoned him closer. The crew consisted of 20 adults and 25 children, the latter from about 5 to 15 years of age.
Thompson claimed to have spent the next 40 hours with the humanoids. They were from Venus, he learned, and had stopped at Earth despite the fact that other Venusian saucers had been shot by Earthly military forces. The Venusians said that all of Earth's problems stemmed from astrology
-- humans were born under different, star signs, while Venusians were all born under the sign of Venus, as was Thompson.
The Venusians further claimed, said Thompson, they were vegetarian, and never grew ill. Thompson also claimed the Venusians were naïve and childlike: they did not know who had built their flying saucers, and had little to no curiosity.
Thompson claimed that he was the first of many Earthlings who would meet the Venusians, and that after humanity had seen the wisdom of Venusian ways, Jesus Christ would return in A.D. 10,000.
Thompson claimed to have stayed on the spaceship until March 30, 1950. He tried to photograph the spaceship, he claimed, but the object was too bright to appear on film as more than a blob of light. He could see the Venusians any time he wanted, but could not tell all the information he had learned from them.
Afterwards, pilot Kenneth Arnold
-- whose 1947 sighting had sparked widespread public interest in UFOs—interviewed Thompson. Arnold did not believe the story was literally true, but neither could he accept that the poorly-educated, seemingly sincere Thompson was a blatant liar or prankster; Arnold speculated that Thompson might have had a psychic
experience.
In 1980, Arnold donated a copy of his 1950 Thompson interview tape to Fate magazine. Clark's article "The Coming of the Venusians" was published in the January, 1981 issue of Fate. Clark speculated that Thompson had a visionary experience, which was inspired by, and which drew on, UFO lore and Biblical stories.
reports. There are also some similarities between Thompson's story and the later, and far better known account of George Adamski
, but Clark argues it's unlikely that Adamski knew of Thompson.
Researcher Jerome Clark
Jerome Clark
Jerome Clark is an American researcher and writer, specializing in unidentified flying objects and other anomalous phenomena; he is also a songwriter of some note....
describes the account as "surely the most outlandish story in early UFO history [and] also one of the most obscure."
The story earned brief mention in a local newspaper in 1950 (on April 1, leading some to suspect the entire story was a hoax
Hoax
A hoax is a deliberately fabricated falsehood made to masquerade as truth. It is distinguishable from errors in observation or judgment, or rumors, urban legends, pseudosciences or April Fools' Day events that are passed along in good faith by believers or as jokes.-Definition:The British...
or prank), and the full story was not publicised until more than three decades afterwards.
Thompson's story
A retired railroad worker in his 70s, Thompson claimed that on the evening of March 28, 1950, while driving to his Centralia, WashingtonCentralia, Washington
Centralia is a city in Lewis County, Washington, United States. The population was 16,336 at the 2010 census.-History:In pioneer days, Centralia was the halfway stopover point for stagecoaches operating between the Columbia River and Seattle. In 1850, J. G. Cochran came from Missouri with his...
home, he came across a large flying saucer in the woods. The saucer, he claimed, was about 80 feet across and 30 feet tall. Two naked, deeply tanned children human in form but very attractive, were playing near the craft's entrance ramp.
Thompson claimed to have approached to within about 50 feet of the saucer, which emanated a strong heat like the sun’s rays. Several naked adults—humanoid, attractive, and also deeply tanned—then appeared at the craft's door. After realizing Thompson meant them no harm, they beckoned him closer. The crew consisted of 20 adults and 25 children, the latter from about 5 to 15 years of age.
Thompson claimed to have spent the next 40 hours with the humanoids. They were from Venus, he learned, and had stopped at Earth despite the fact that other Venusian saucers had been shot by Earthly military forces. The Venusians said that all of Earth's problems stemmed from astrology
Astrology
Astrology consists of a number of belief systems which hold that there is a relationship between astronomical phenomena and events in the human world...
-- humans were born under different, star signs, while Venusians were all born under the sign of Venus, as was Thompson.
The Venusians further claimed, said Thompson, they were vegetarian, and never grew ill. Thompson also claimed the Venusians were naïve and childlike: they did not know who had built their flying saucers, and had little to no curiosity.
Thompson claimed that he was the first of many Earthlings who would meet the Venusians, and that after humanity had seen the wisdom of Venusian ways, Jesus Christ would return in A.D. 10,000.
Thompson claimed to have stayed on the spaceship until March 30, 1950. He tried to photograph the spaceship, he claimed, but the object was too bright to appear on film as more than a blob of light. He could see the Venusians any time he wanted, but could not tell all the information he had learned from them.
Publicity
Thompson's story was little publicized during his life. According to Clark, an 11 paragraph account was printed in the April 1, 1950 edition of the Centralia Daily Chronicle.Afterwards, pilot Kenneth Arnold
Kenneth Arnold
Kenneth A. Arnold was an American aviator and businessman. He is best-known for making what is generally considered the first widely reported unidentified flying object sighting in the United States, after claiming to have seen nine unusual objects flying in a chain near Mount Rainier, Washington...
-- whose 1947 sighting had sparked widespread public interest in UFOs—interviewed Thompson. Arnold did not believe the story was literally true, but neither could he accept that the poorly-educated, seemingly sincere Thompson was a blatant liar or prankster; Arnold speculated that Thompson might have had a psychic
Psychic
A psychic is a person who professes an ability to perceive information hidden from the normal senses through extrasensory perception , or is said by others to have such abilities. It is also used to describe theatrical performers who use techniques such as prestidigitation, cold reading, and hot...
experience.
In 1980, Arnold donated a copy of his 1950 Thompson interview tape to Fate magazine. Clark's article "The Coming of the Venusians" was published in the January, 1981 issue of Fate. Clark speculated that Thompson had a visionary experience, which was inspired by, and which drew on, UFO lore and Biblical stories.
Similarities to other UFO cases
Clark noted similarities between the Thompson case and a 1897 claim during the mystery airshipMystery airship
Mystery airships or phantom airships are a class of unidentified flying objects best known from a series of newspaper reports originating in the western United States and spreading east during 1896 and 1897. According to researcher Jerome Clark, airship reports were made worldwide, early as the...
reports. There are also some similarities between Thompson's story and the later, and far better known account of George Adamski
George Adamski
George Adamski was a Polish-born American citizen who became widely known in ufology circles, and to some degree in popular culture, after he claimed to have photographed ships from other planets, met with friendly Nordic alien "Space Brothers", and to have taken flights with them...
, but Clark argues it's unlikely that Adamski knew of Thompson.