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Mysterious Montana

TheQuixote

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Witnesses recount strange lights

By The Helena IR - 10/28/04
Editor's note: Helena's always had moments of weirdness. The following story was taken from the March 23, 1881, edition of the Helena Daily Herald.

Ghostly Visitations!

Strange and Mysterious Lights in the Valley.

Does the Murdered Man's Spirit Visit its Old Stamping Ground?

Investigation to be Made by the Helena Scientific Club


For a long time past we have frequently heard that mysterious lights have been seen moving about, of their own accord apparently, over the farm and around the house and outbuildings of the late Charles Tacke, who was murdered last fall by Peter Pelkey who was hanged here in February for the crime. ...

For a while, no attention was given them, but so often have people who were passing the Tacke ranch in the night saw these lights and told about them on their arrival here, that night before last a party of our citizens, who have the organ of inquisitiveness developed to a litttle more than the ordinary, concluded to ride down to the ranch and witness for themselves the phenomena, if such there were. ...

One stolid German farmer, who lives close by, and who told us his story with all gravity, and whose word we would not think of doubting, for he believes all he says, is sure he saw these lights about the time the snow began to fall. They looked like the light thrown from a red glass lantern at first, but have been growing paler and lighter in color ever since. He has seen from one to four of an evening moving about the place, some going up as high as twenty feet and moving around in different directions, and sometimes, apparently, settling on the corners of the fence; the moving around the house, barns, corrals, etc., then finally sinking down and disappearing in an instant, leaving darkness behind. He couldn't think what it was made them do so. ...

Another farmer, who lives near, says he has seen the lights ever since the nights began to close in early last fall. ... We should believe this man fully if we did not know he takes a good deal too much stimulus sometimes to be a good judge of such wonderful sights as he describes, and think his imagination plays him tricks. Yet he is truthful and believes what he says.

The gentlemen of Helena who went down to satisfy their curiosity are all sober-minded, reliable men. They were a little belated on account of the bad roads, and had got off the direct track a little, and arrived there about 10 o'clock.

Two of them, who we happened to see first on their return, agreed that as they turned the corner and went into the road which led by the farm, and after riding awhile along the fence, all of a sudden they saw a large, bright light moving over the open field, somewhere from ten to forty feet above the ground; that it was apparently from four to six inches in diameter and from eighteen to twenty-four inches high, the body of the light being of an orange color, occasionally flashing off rays of a greenish or sometimes of a bluish tintage; that it moved up and down over the fields slowly, and gradually sank down and vanished. They also saw two other lights moving around which looked like a lamp light surrounded by a porcelain glove, the body of the light not being visible, but white, mild and distinct. ...

We have heard of no ratinal attempt to account for the singular lights seen. Some believe they are connected with the end of world, which Mother Shipton prophesied will take place this year.

Others say they are electric lights that have escaped from Edison's or Brush's laboratories, but they cannot see why they hang around one place so persistently. Others are sure they sent out from h—l by the murderer to find the place where the murdered man had buried his money. Not having seen them, we pretend to give no theory.

http://www.helenair.com/articles/2004/10/28/helena/a06102804_01.txt


Montana also boasts a House of Mystery!:

[...] you’re in for an even bigger treat as you head east along US-2. The town of Hungry Horse, a service center for the large reservoir to the southeast, proclaims itself "The Friendliest Dam Town in the Whole World," and boasts ever bigger roadside attractions, starting with the House of Mystery ("Montana’s Only Vortex"), on the north side of US-2 (Apr.–Oct. only, daily 9 am–dusk; ; 406/892-1210).

Located along the Flathead River at the mouth of Bad Rock Canyon (which Native Americans thought was haunted), this is among the more credible of these places where, to quote from the brochure, "the laws of physics are bent, if not broken altogether. . . where birds won’t fly and trees grow at odd angles. Could it be a bearing point for extraterrestrial visits centuries ago? . . . Nobody knows!" It’s as fun as these places get (which is to say, very, if you get into the "spirit" of the place), and well worth the minimal admission fee; there’s a good gift shop, too.

[...]

http://www.roadtripusa.com/us_2/montana.html
 
Thursday, April 14, 2005


Film claims town attracts alien visitors


By MARTIN J. KIDSTON - IR Feature Writer - 04/14/05


DEER LODGE — Stories in this dusty cow town come a dime a dozen, hardly a surprise given its hold on the old prison, the new state prison, its historic cattle ranch, and its fabled car museum. But here, 50 miles southwest of Helena, stories of a different sort have become the talk of the town — stories exposed by a former Deer Lodge resident and her new docudrama, "The Secret of Redgate."

From her Texas home, Lynda Cowen, a 1963 graduate of Powell County High School, attributed the making of her new film to her brother's own UFO encounters as a kid. The results have propelled Deer Lodge to the front of Montana's most mysterious destinations.

"My brother consciously remembers having a lot of encounters with aliens as a child — playing with them as a child," Cowen explained. "We didn't know anything about them growing up."

The stories came out years later, grabbing Cowen's interest. She met writer Jim Marrs through her "remote viewing" classes in Texas, and together, the two decided to investigate the stories.

Cowen returned to her old stomping ground, surprised at how many Deer Lodge residents were willing to come forward with their experiences. She soon had more stories than she could use in her movie.

"We went back to Deer Lodge for two weeks and found out there were a lot of people with this experience, all the way from young high-school kids to people in their 80s," Cowen said. "No one ever talked about this stuff growing up."

Throughout the Deer Lodge Valley, stories of close encounters aren't hard to come by. Over the last 20 years, Cowen said, there have been hundreds of sightings within a 150-mile radius of the town.

Some say there's a vortex nearby while others say it's the area's rural nature. Some even believe that "lay lines," or energy bands, sit close beneath the earth. The water has been suggested, and the Clark Fork River has been blamed.

Whatever it is, the stories have become widely known, but they're not so easy to explain.

Louie Menicucci, a retired Deer Lodge baker, recalled several events that took place down the valley at Sunnyside near Anaconda.

"When I lived in Sunnyside we had some things go on," Menicucci said. "There was stuff landing up there. I'm not sure if it was the Air Force or UFOs, but they left big circles in the grass."

One morning at the bakery, a man saw a Polaroid photo of the mysterious rings left in the grass. Amazed, he told Menicucci he had never seen such large tipi rings. Menicucci informed him — those weren't tipi rings he was looking at.

The rings, Menicucci said, matched the UFOs he had seen, and the strange lights pulsating underneath.

"They were like big round circles that had a light underneath and it flashed, like red, yellow, blue," he said. "The light went in circles. I heard the same thing was going on over in Boulder at the same time."

Menicucci thinks back, recalling how his neighbor woke up one snowy morning to find two of his horses mutilated, their ears, eyes and lips missing. Strangely, he said, there weren't any tracks in the snow.

"My neighbor raised Ginny hens, poodles and peacocks, and he never heard a thing that night," Menicucci said. "I don't even know if it goes on anymore. But they were landing up in that basin and there's a lot of rose quartz up there."

Gene Hughes of D&L Auto Supply in Deer Lodge hasn't experienced anything firsthand, but he's heard the stories from others.

"My aunt saw some things years and years ago," Hughes admitted. "She's since passed away, but she knew what she saw and I believed her. I don't question her in the least."

Hughes also heard stories from his sister, whose own experiences took place at the nearby ranch. Hughes doesn't doubt the accounts.

"You just don't know about those things," he said. "I think it very well could be happening. I don't know that I could truly say there's nothing going on out there."

Ron Kelly, a local banker, attended high school with Cowen in the 1960s. Like much of the town, he's also heard the stories, many coming from inside the family.

A scene in the film recounts how Kelly's brothers were returning from a late-night dance in 1962. That night, they were pursued and overcome by a bright light. The light filled their car, surrounding them. Then it vanished as quickly as it came.

"I remember them talking about it — being chased by the light, the light coming around," Kelly said. "There are a handful of people who knew about it. At that time, that's what was going on and you didn't think much of it."

Kelly knows where the fabled red gate lies and he's acquainted with the stories surrounding it. Back in the '60s, the events split the community's opinion down the middle. Some accepted the stories as fact. Others passed them off as juvenile pranks — kids out driving around and drinking beer.

"It began to feed off itself," Kelly said. "I believe there are people who see things all the time. There are things that take place. What significance does it have? I don't know. I haven't had lunch with any little green people, I can tell you that. But I'm one of those who think something took place."

Cowen graduated from Powell County High School in 1963 before enrolling in Montana State University's nursing program. Years later she found herself in Texas where she became interested in remote viewing.

"I've been involved in remote viewing for years," Cowen said. "I really believe in UFOs because of that."

Remote viewing is a technique once used by the military, Cowen claimed. Often called psychic spying, the skill allows one to transfer his or her mind to any place at any time to retrieve information.

For the film, Cowen employed the services of Lyn Buchanan, a professional remote viewer, as well as several others. The viewers were asked to look at Bill Kelly's account, but were given no clues.

Cowen explained the process, how a person sent a target code representing the UFO encounter to a monitor. Not knowing what the target code represented, the monitor passed the code to the remote viewer. Cowen called it a "double blind" session in which neither the viewer nor the monitor knows the target.

The results impressed even Cowen.

"Three male subjects driving at night in a rural area," the viewers concluded. "The target seemed to be an actual event involving a vehicle and a blindingly bright light. The event involved transporting subjects. The subjects were frightened, shocked and awed… It seemed like an alien abduction by means of a bright light beam."

Those who shared their encounters for the film also underwent hypnosis and polygraph tests, Cowen said.

"The Secret of Redgate" won the People's Choice Award at the 2004 UFO Congress in Texas, selected from 15 films by more than 700 participants.

"You can find people here that have heard these stories," Kelly said. "But not everybody has heard of them. They're not a secret."

Not anymore at least.

Source
 
I lived in Montana for 3 years and being an outoorsman I saw many very strange things in the wilderness.

The state would prove a fertile ground for anyone interested in investigating or even just witnessing firsthand .... strange phenomena.
 
Seminole said:
I lived in Montana for 3 years and being an outoorsman I saw many very strange things in the wilderness.

The state would prove a fertile ground for anyone interested in investigating or even just witnessing firsthand .... strange phenomena.

Oooooooooo now you know you can't leave that hanging there ;)

More details!!!
 
Yes, Seminole, more details please
hyper.gif
 
A top-ten list for aliens

By Martin Kidston - 12/28/2005

I get tired of all those top 10 lists and New Year’s resolution stories this time of year.

There’s the top 10 local stories, the top 10 Montana stories, the top 10 AP stories, health stories, business stories and Dave Barry’s top 10, too.

My question is, how can you plan ahead when you’re always looking back?

The truth is, these top 10 lists are an easy way out when there isn’t any “real” news. So to be a sport, I’ve made my own top 10 list for lack of other work.

Needless to say, it was a big year for local “otherworldly” circles, to include UFOs, Big Foot stories, and other oddities that don’t get much publicity or get laughed at when they do.

You certainly won’t find them on any top 10 list either.

Lynda Cowen, a 1963 graduate of Powell County High School who now lives in Texas, discussed her recent docudrama, “The Secret of Redgate,” this year, even though she filmed the movie last year in Deer Lodge.

She told me her film was inspired by her brother’s own UFO encounters as a boy. The stories down in that small prison town are strange. I used to live there but I never heard any talk of UFOs. Back then, it was arsenic in the Clark Fork River and the local lumber mill that got all the attention — that and the prison siren that sounded curfew at 10 p.m. every night.

“My brother consciously remembers having a lot of encounters with aliens as a child — playing with them as a child,” Cowen told me over the phone in March. “No one ever talked about this stuff growing up.”

The film propelled Deer Lodge to the fore of Montana’s most mysterious destinations. The film also won the “People’s Choice Award” at the UFO Congress in Texas — selected by 700 people from 15 films as a matter of fact.

This year’s talk of UFOs was nothing new. Last year, Timothy Good — perhaps the world’s leading UFO authority — came to Helena to interview Leo Dworshak.

Dworshak’s book, “UFOs Are with Us — Take my Word,” shares his own alien encounter as a child. But what strikes me as strange is not Dworshak’s alleged encounter, but rather how Good, who lives in England, found out about it.

It seems that Good heard of Dworshak through a man named Lucius Farrila. And who’s Farrila you ask? He runs a UFO news clipping service in Arkansas.

At any rate, even Art Bell’s “Coast To Coast AM” was interested in that story. They called me trying to track down Good. I don’t know if they ever connected though.

This year’s oddities were contained to the sky; there was Sasquatch too.

In July, former Helena resident Matt Flanders, who moved to the Dark Side that is New York City, came home to film his new Bigfoot documentary here.

While researching his film, Flanders undertook a good bit of research by attending Bigfoot conferences in Bellingham, Wash., and the Salt Fork State Park in Cambridge, Ohio.

“I’ve interviewed so many people that have had these Bigfoot sightings,” Flanders told me outside the Grandstreet Theatre one summer afternoon. “I’d describe them as people with an open mind and an active imagination.”

Flanders said he met a lot of people around the country, including one man who communes telepathically with Bigfoot and another who studies the creature’s genitals, his mating habits and his wish to live monogamously.

There’s other stuff, too, that won’t make anybody’s top 10 list, except mine.

In November, I called Patrick Marsolek, one of the founding members of the Drum Brothers. He’s made a name in Helena as a practicing hypnotherapist. I wasn’t looking to be hypnotized, but rather to find out about this psychic stuff he does.

After all, Marsolek is the director of Inner Workings Resources — a place where he teaches skills like remote viewing, intuition and trance exploration.

A few months back, he and Ellen Baumler, a local historian and expert on hauntings, led a “telepathic” tour of the Broadwater Resort in Boulder too see what, if any, residual energies remained.

“Everything we do leaves an imprint, or a field of information, or an energy that can be accessed,” Marsolek told me in a November interview. “All the physical matter has an energy and a physical consciousness at its core. We’re not separate from what we perceive.”

In November, historian Jon Axline also gave a lecture, “Like Two Dimes in the Sky: The Great Falls Flying Saucer Film and the Cold War,” at St. Paul’s Methodist Church.

I usually talk to Axline about historic bridges and such, so when I read all about the lecture in the paper, this UFO bit caught my eye. He put it best when he said, “The more unusual (event) tells you a different side of the story. It shows people’s fears during the time.”

Our times are indeed new times. My hope is that in, say 50 years, someone will read this and see that common people like me feared top 10 lists the most.

www.helenair.com/articles/2005/12/29/yo ... 228190.txt
 
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