Topic: 1897

The 1896-1897 airship mystery involved sightings by thousands of witnesses across the United States, contradicting claims that the events were mere newspaper hoaxes. Charles Delschau’s drawings describe a propulsion method involving a green liquid called "soup," created by Peter Mennis. This chemical substance, combined with a specialized motor, allegedly allowed the "Aeros" to achieve anti-gravity and advanced propulsion.

Jim Marrs highlights the April 1897 UFO crash in Aurora, Texas, as a "smoking gun" for non-human craft, noting it occurred six years before the Wright brothers' first flight. He cites a contemporary report from the *Dallas Morning News* which stated that the pilot of the crashed silver cigar-shaped object was "not an inhabitant of this world." Marrs uses this to counter the argument that all UFOs are secret government test craft.