Trenton, New Jersey, USA, on July 8, 1947:
ACUFO-1947-07-08-TRENTON-1
The newspaper The Philadelphia Enquirer, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, reported on page 3 for July 9, 1947, that a sportsman pilot reported seeing a "red ball" traveling north-eastward over New Jersey. He was bound for Trenton, he said, when the object passed on his right, quickly outdistancing his small plane.
In his 1967 book "Report on the UFO Wave of 1947", or in one of its revised edition, US ufologist Ted Bloecher dated the case July 8, 1947.
| Date: | July 8, 1947 |
|---|---|
| Time: | ? |
| Duration: | ? |
| First known report date: | July 9, 1947 |
| Reporting delay: | Hours, 1 day. |
| Country: | USA |
|---|---|
| State/Department: | New Jersey |
| City or place: | Trenton |
| Number of alleged witnesses: | 1 |
|---|---|
| Number of known witnesses: | 1 |
| Number of named witnesses: | 0 |
| Reporting channel: | The Press. |
|---|---|
| Visibility conditions: | Night. |
| UFO observed: | Yes. |
| UFO arrival observed: | ? |
| UFO departure observed: | Yes. |
| UFO action: | Flies fast. |
| Witnesses action: | |
| Photographs: | No. |
| Sketch(s) by witness(es): | No. |
| Sketch(es) approved by witness(es): | No. |
| Witness(es) feelings: | Puzzled. |
| Witnesses interpretation: | ? |
| Sensors: |
[X] Visual: 1.
[ ] Airborne radar: N/A. [ ] Directional ground radar: [ ] Height finder ground radar: [ ] Photo: [ ] Film/video: [ ] EM Effects: [ ] Failures: [ ] Damages: |
|---|---|
| Hynek: | ? |
| Armed / unarmed: | Unarmed. |
| Reliability 1-3: | 1 |
| Strangeness 1-3: | 1 |
| ACUFO: | Insufficient information. |
[Ref. phe1:] NEWSPAPER "THE PHILADELPHIA ENQUIRER":
|
Scores of "flying saucers" were reported over the Philadelphia area last night. Eye-witnesses spotting them said they ranged in numbers from one to dozens and in description from a red ball to a lamp shade. Virtually all sections of the city and many in the suburbs contained at least one resident or visitor who reported he had viewed the phenomenon, now sweeping the world.
PASSENGERS AGOG
One informant said "hundreds of persons" watched one of the "saucers" in full flight over a river steamer near Pennsylvania. N.J. The incident caused a flurry of excitement, he added.
Thomas Miller, 17, of 6448 Palmetto st., said he and a group spotted one while playing baseball in Tookenay Park, Cheltenham township. But, when he and his playmates started to chase it, the "saucer" disappeared.
Miller said the object resembled a huge lamp shade, being cone-shaped and colored gray.
IT'S A 'RED BALL'
Tom Morrell, of 3692 Krail st., said the appearance of a "saucer" in the vicinity of Ridge and Midvale aves, aroused curiosity of many East Falls residents.
A sportsman pilot reported seeing a "red ball" traveling north-eastward over New Jersey. He was bound for Trenton, he said, when the object passed on his right, quickly outdistancing his small plane.
[Ref. tbr1:] TED BLOECHER:
Ted Bloecher indicated that while numerous UFO sightings were reportedly taking place during the evening of July 8, 1947, in Philadelphia and southern New Jersey, an anonymous sportsman-pilot bound for Trenton from Philadelphia reported that he saw on July 8, 1947, an object described as "a red ball" traveling in a northeasterly direction over the south of Trenton, New Jersey. The object passed the pilot on his right and quickly outdistanced his small plane.
[Ref. wia1:] "WIKIPEDIA" (EN):
| Report publish date | Location | Date of claimed sighting | Names | Notes | Bloecher # |
| Jul 9 | Trenton, New Jersey | Jul 8 (479) | #761 |
The source "479" is detailed as: "Philadelphia Inquirer, July 9, 1947".
No information on the airplane is available to me; but it was lilely a small private plane, likely a sports plane.
|
The infotmation available to me so far is indufficient. The date is unsure, it is not known whther it was a daytime or nightine sighting, whether the red ball had a trail or not, etc.
Insufficient information.
* = Source is available to me.
? = Source I am told about but could not get so far. Help needed.
| Main author: | Patrick Gross |
|---|---|
| Contributors: | None |
| Reviewers: | None |
| Editor: | Patrick Gross |
| Version: | Create/changed by: | Date: | Description: |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.1 | Patrick Gross | June 26, 2026 | Creation, [phe1], [tbr1], [wia1]. |
| 1.0 | Patrick Gross | June 26, 2026 | First published. |
