In the autumn of 1896 the city of Sacramento California became the center of one of the earliest well documented UFO waves in American history.

Beginning on the evening of November 17 residents reported seeing a large cigar shaped craft equipped with brilliant lights flying slowly and silently overhead.

The object was described as approximately 150 feet long with wings or fins and a bright white searchlight at the front.

Crowds gathered in the streets as the airship passed over the state capitol building and the Sacramento Bee newspaper office.

Police officers on duty confirmed the sightings and noted that the craft appeared to be under intelligent control as it changed direction and altitude.

Similar reports continued for several nights with witnesses in nearby towns also describing the same object.

Some accounts mentioned faint humming sounds while others insisted the craft moved without any noise at all.

Newspapers across the country carried the story and speculation ranged from secret inventor experiments to visitors from another world.

No earthly explanation was ever confirmed and the wave of sightings gradually faded by early December.

The 1896 Sacramento airship incidents remain a foundational case in UFO research because of the large number of credible witnesses and contemporary newspaper documentation.