Airshipcat:

"The Canadian Press, which reported on the puzzling events taking place in California, seemed to take the airship possibility very seriously, even though one of the most intriguing report of the year cane from Rossland, British Columbia, on August 12, 1896. It told of a strange aerial body that approached the town, paused momentarily above a nearby mountain peak, made several circles in the sky, and then sped away on a straight course. The thing was described as "a luminous ball of fire that glowed amidst a halo of varigated colours." The object took a quarter of an hour to complete its manoeuvers and was watched by many citizens of Rossland." [1]