Newspaper Articles Regarding Charles Fort

[gordonrutter]

Spent so much time trying to find a compression which was still readable, I might be forgiven - eventually could hardly focus.

No worries, not complaining. They’re great finds.

 

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I have come across the following and thought it was worthy of highlighting.

It's an obituary published by, 'The Baltimore Sun', on 6 May 1932.

Aside from being a wonderful eulogy, I wondered if we know how much truth there is in the assertion re Fort's aversion to medical science?

 

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A letter from Charles Fort, whilst living in London, to 'The Daily Times', Chattanooga and published on June 24, 1924.

The full letter, of significant length, is a large file, hence:

www.forteanmedia.com/Chat.jpg

That's one off my 'bucket list' - I have reason to use 'Chattanooga' (and also inadvertently learned the locals are, 'Chattanoogans')!

 

[EnolaGaia]

A letter from Charles Fort, whilst living in London, to 'The Daily Times', Chattanooga and published on June 24, 1924. ...

Oops ... Fort seems to have been premature in writing to the Chattanooga Times about the airship sightings. If he'd reviewed that newspaper's clippings from a few days after the dates he cited for the sightings he'd have been advised the "airships" had received a mundane explanation in a January 17th article.

"AIRSHIP" IS CAPTURED

It Alighted Yesterday in the Ninth Ward.

SQUIRE BASS AND OTHERS PERPETRATED THE JOKE

With Other Small Boys He Fooled People for Whole Week - Nothing But Paper Balloons Sent Skyward for Fun.

Airships, aeroplanes, dirigible balloons, biplanes and aerial craft of all kinds, must take a tumble in the minds of Chattanoogans for the time being. Those things in the sky which thousands of people in this city and vicinity have been accepting as the real, genuine all-wool and a yard wide airship were not real airships at all. They were no more than toys sent up as a practical joke. The perpetrator was Squire Ed Bass and some more of the small boys out in South Chattanooga. ...

""Airship" is Captured", article in The Chattanooga Times newspaper, Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA, January 17, 1910.

FULL TRANSCRIPT OF THE ARTICLE: https://ufologie.patrickgross.org/ce3/1910-01-13-usa-chattanooga.htm

 

[EnolaGaia]

Curiously, the Chattanooga Times gave a different (?) explanation in 1924 when they published their response to Fort's letter.

Many years later, the newspaper gets a letter from nobody else that Charles Fort, and publish it on June 19, 1924. Charles Fort, who does not seem to have read the explanation of the 1910 Chattanooga sightings, explains that he is interested in information about it from the witnesses, and speculates that the Earth is visited by extraterrestrial exploration vessels.

On June 26, 1924, in answer to Charles Fort's question, the newspaper publishes a letter from a policeman of the city who asserted that he and a fellow policeman, now dead, and a salesman, set loose three balloons shortly after Christmas, 1909, and caused the excitement.

SOURCE: https://ufologie.patrickgross.org/ce3/1910-01-13-usa-chattanooga.htm

Here's the transcript of the 1924 newspaper's published reaction to Fort's letter.

POLICEMAN EXPLAINS OLD AIRSHIP "MYSTERY"

A veteran Chattanooga policeman claims that he can account for the "mysterious airship" reported to have hovered over this city for a period of three days during January, 1910, referred to in a letter received by The Times and printed in the issue of Tuesday from Charles Fort, of 39 Marchmont street, Russell square, London, England. This policeman asserts that he and a fellow policeman, now dead, and a salesman set loose three balloons shortly after Christmas, 1909, and caused the excitement.

"Policeman Explains Old Airship "Mystery"", article in The Chattanooga Times newspaper, Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA, June 26, 1924.
SOURCE: https://ufologie.patrickgross.org/ce3/1910-01-13-usa-chattanooga.htm

 

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Curiously, the Chattanooga Times gave a different (?) explanation in 1924 when they published their response to Fort's letter.

How fascinating to see this discussed and suddenly realise we going back almost a century to Fort's letter!

Thank you so much for explaining the background, which I was unaware of.

This is the sizable article from the 'Chattanooga Daily Times', published on 17 January, 1910 (easier to upload the entire page), as a .pdf file:

www.forteanmedia.com/Chat_2.pdf

This is the brief article published by the 'Chattanooga Daily Times', on 26 June, 1924:

Either explanation would presumably also have to encompass a report I noted from the 'Montgomery Advertiser', on 14 January, 1910:

How also, do these lanterns, or balloons explain the sightings in Huntsville, Alabama.

Methinks Mr Fort would be no more convinced than myself.

 

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How also, do these lanterns, or balloons explain the sightings in Huntsville, Alabama.

Any thoughts on this - something which I found online and can locate no further information regarding same.

A small, private airship in 1908?

(Start)
Report in 1908 of Mr. Sam Lewis and his airship

By Jim

I stumbled across this wee gem while researching another topic and thought it might be of interest to you. It appeared in the December 9, 1908 News in the "Personal" column. -jim

"Mr. Sam Lewis occasionally makes flying trips, being the only owner in town of an airship. He left here Monday morning of last week; went to Nashville, Chattanooga, Mobile and Atlanta, transacting business in all those cities, returning Tuesday night following. He is very fond of navigating the air." - Adair County News


Thanks, Jim: Indeed, this dramatically changes what many of us knew about the history of flight in Adair County. It would be nice to have a photo or other corroboration of the facts in the item - then maybe a historical marker. - CM
(End)

http://columbiamagazine.com/index.php/index.php?sid=63641

 

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A small, private airship in 1908?

I am reminded of an old text file in my archives:

(Start)
In 1899, Charles Dellschau, a grouchy retired butcher, began to paint amazing airships. His intricate collages show shiplike decks supported by striped balloon pontoons; they show bright-colored helicopters and evil-looking striped dirigibles outfitted for war; they show crews of dapper little gentlemen accompanied by the occasional cat. Many pages are bedecked with little newspaper clippings about aviation, and text in his weird Germanic lettering celebrates the pure, unexcelled marvelousness of the flying machines.

Nearly a century later, folk-art collectors hold the works in high esteem. A page from Dellschau's notebooks can fetch as much as $15,000,ba hefty price even in a booming market. A New York Times reviewer said that Dellschau possesses "a charming style that presages Monty Python"; the Village Voice called the works "sweetly bizarre."

It's hard to say what the old man would have made of such praise; he doesn't seem to have thought of himself as an artist. It's not clear even whether he intended the notebooks for anyone's eyes but his own.The drawings are crudely sewn together with shoelaces and thread, and newsprint is glued on the edge of each leaf as a spine. Watercolor airships occupy both sides of the pages.

Taken at face value, Dellschau's collages document the feats if the Sonora Aero Club, a secretive group dedicated to the creation of "aeros," or flying machines. In code, and bad spelling in both English and German, Dellschau recounted how, in his youth 50 years before, he and fellow club members gleefully ruled the skies of Gold Rush California, piloting fantastical airships of their own invention.
(End)

The full article has been uploaded to:

www.forteanmedia.com/Dellscha.txt

 

[EnolaGaia]

Any thoughts on this - something which I found online and can locate no further information regarding same.
A small, private airship in 1908?

Small dirigibles were widely distributed in the first decade of the 20th century. They were still novelties, didn't work at that well or for that long, and were primarily limited to exhibition shows at county fairs, carnivals, etc. Long distance cross-country flights weren't something anyone attempted often.

See, for example:

https://www.earlyaviators.com/eparkev2.htm

... which summarizes one aviator's dirigible activities from 1908 onward.

 

[EnolaGaia]

It's interesting that the Chattanooga sightings occurred the same week as the Huntsville sighting(s). It's even more interesting that these sightings were all occurring in the same week as the seminal Los Angeles International Air Meet (January 10 - 20) - the first major air show in the USA, and the event credited with igniting Americans' aviation mania.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1910_Los_Angeles_International_Air_Meet_at_Dominguez_Field

This event included biplanes, monoplanes, dirigibles, hot air balloons, and experimental aircraft concepts. It was a huge news story at the time.

 

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It's even more interesting that these sightings were all occurring in the same week as the seminal Los Angeles International Air Meet (January 10 - 20) - the first major air show in the USA, and the event credited with igniting Americans' aviation mania.

Incredible - was quite oblivious to any of this.

Only fitting that by way of a thank you, I have managed to find some related YouTube material!

These early airships are absolutely fascinating.

 

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The following is a review of 'LO!' by Lucy Templeton, for the 'Knoxville News Sentinel', published on 12 May, 1931.

Highlighted because it seems to encapsulate all the elements which bring us an appreciation of Charles Fort's endeavours to reach that point in his final year.

I think Lucy just 'gets it' and such a poignant tribute.

The full and lengthy review is here:

www.forteanmedia.com/Lucy.jpg


So... in closure, what might Charles Fort make of us all...

Would he think we were plain daft, spending so much time still persuing his own passion for the anomalous, a century later...

I suspect he could, in the first instance, be as much amused as bewildered!

I should also think he would be rather impressed by our embracing of modern technology and consequential established, delightful small community.

How befitting that today's the day I must decide whether to renew my subscription to newspapers.com.

All I will be doing if going ahead, is precisely what Charles himself did a hundred years ago.

Searching through newspapers and finding questions which seem challenging, within present understanding of such matters.

Personally, I still don't get the half of it and especially how it's scientifically validated the universe is ever expanding into space... which is outside the universe.

I'm sure there's a related Charles Fort quote... in fact, probably about 101 of them.

 

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Whilst a magazine and not a newspaper - it doesn't seem to justify a new thread (unless declared otherwise!) - there is a profound acknowledgement of Charles Fort's influence in an article published within the July-August 1955 issue of 'Flying Saucer Review' (FSR):

Towards New Conceptions of the Cosmos
Arthur Constance
Pages 12-15

Constance's article alone merits highlighting, it's tremendous!

This is the entire issue - a terrific snapshot of 'flying saucer'/UFO perceptions of the time as viewed from a 'scientific/'academic' perspective.

As a subscriber back in the 70s and 80s, I always thought FSR was rather 'posh'!

www.forteanmedia.com/1955_Jul-Aug_FSR.pdf

 

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Whilst not newspaper sourced, trusting no necessity for a new thread.

I wondered if these two, relatively short, publications, if not known, might be of interest?

I can't see them having been mentioned previously.

X-FILES OF THE HUMANITIES
WRITTEN BY JACK HUNTER OCTOBER 13, 2016

TOWARDS A FORTEAN RELIGIOUS STUDIES

"The following essay is a modified version of the introductory chapter to the book Damned Facts: Fortean Essays on Religion, Folklore and the Paranormal".

https://xfilesofthehumanities.wordpress.com/2016/10/13/towards-a-fortean-religious-studies/


'Re-Thinking Charles Fort.'
Bulletin of the British Association for the Study of Religion, No. 131, November 2017, pp. 22-24.
Jack Hunter, University of Bristol

www.forteanmedia.com/Re_Thinking_Charles_Fort.pdf

 

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I can not locate the following article, published late in Charles Fort's life, having previously been highlighted:

'Morning Avalanche' (Lubbock, Texas)
5 February, 1932

16,000 Things That Can't Be Explained

Miracles are today discredited by wise men, but Charles Fort of Bronxville, N.Y., has made it his life work to study all the phenomena that scientists say couldn't, and never did happen.

BY ELEANOR EARLY

CHARLES FORT believes nothing. He doesn't believe in heaven. He doesn't believe in hell. And science is worse. Mr. Fort does not believe that the earth is round, and revolves about the sun. Nor that men descended from monkeys.

"Science." he declares, "is the accumulated
lunacy of 50 centuries".

(...)

The entire, full-page article, is available on my website:

www.jceaston.com/1932_02_05_Morning_Avalanche.pdf

 

[Ronnie Jersey]

I can not locate the following article, published late in Charles Fort's life, having previously been highlighted:

'Morning Avalanche' (Lubbock, Texas)
5 February, 1932

16,000 Things That Can't Be Explained

Miracles are today discredited by wise men, but Charles Fort of Bronxville, N.Y., has made it his life work to study all the phenomena that scientists say couldn't, and never did happen.

BY ELEANOR EARLY

CHARLES FORT believes nothing. He doesn't believe in heaven. He doesn't believe in hell. And science is worse. Mr. Fort does not believe that the earth is round, and revolves about the sun. Nor that men descended from monkeys.

"Science." he declares, "is the accumulated
lunacy of 50 centuries".

(...)

The entire, full-page article, is available on my website:

www.jceaston.com/1932_02_05_Morning_Avalanche.pdf

Been watching you on facebook, very impressive.

 

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Been watching you on facebook, very impressive.

Just trying, as always, toany proverbial 'wheat from the chaff'.

Delighted I can still unearth Charles Fort material, which seems to never previously have been highlighted on the Forteana forums.

It so happens, I have also been browsing through the entire publications of 'Flying Saucer Review' since 1955 (available online) and some of the time, could have been reading one of Charles Fort's books!

(The 'Spring-heeled Jack' article, I have bookmarked for when I get a moment)!