Pulp Magazine Cover, June 1954

This document collection concerns a mysterious object that fell into Sardis Lake, Mississippi in June 1954 and was recovered on September 20, 1954. A fisherman named J. P. Phillips reported seeing the strange object fall near his boat three months prior. Corps of Engineers personnel maintained weekly surveillance of the receding lake waters and successfully recovered the item: a plastic case measuring 4 by 10 by 8 inches, containing parachute harness, metal radio tubes, and wires, with the serial number LU-2450-AN-AL. Captain Virgil Kuns of Greenville Air Force Base identified it as a Signal Corps radio transmitting device—a paradrop transmitter dropped from troop carrier planes to mark bailout zones. Air Force officials concluded the apparatus fell accidentally from a passing aircraft. The Army Corps of Engineers reported the identification to Air Force Intelligence, noting the resolution clarified one unconfirmed UFO report.