Strange Sightings in Reynolds County

by Mark Cheaney, Editor, The Mountain Echo, February 23, 2000

Unidentified Flying objects, or UFO's, is a subject that brings conspiratorial smiles to some and a shaking of the head to others. There is no fine line on the existence of UFOs - you either believe them or you don't. That is why I titled one of my weekly columns for The Mountain Echo newspaper in Ironton, Missouri, "Unidentified Flying Objects!"

This column, appearing in the March 3, 1999 edition, explained my beliefs in UFOs, and the reasons why. Back in December of 1999, five of us cigarette smokers, upon the request of our host, went out to the front porch to smoke. As we imbibed, one of my friends, who has witnessed countless UFO encounters in Reynolds County over a period of several years, calmly asked the rest of us if we would like to see a UFO. Naturally, we all turned and said yes.

As we did, "Doc" pointed his hand and forefinger skyward (it was dark), and there it was - three lights in the sky, above the horizon, not moving at all. All five of us pointed and shouted and stared in amazement at the lights. Then, one by one, the lights were extinguished, and not a sound was heard.

Because of the position of the lights, bright white, we knew they were not caused by swamp gas, a low-flying jet, a helicopter, a weather balloon, or anything else that might explain the existence of the lights. It was a UFO, no doubt about it.

At the end of my column, I asked my readers to share any similar stories about their encounters with UFO's, and that I would keep their identities secret so they would not have to face ridicule from their contemporaries. Over a dozen people responded, both by letter and by word of mouth.

Most of the stories involved sightings and/or encounters north of Reynolds County in Iron County, running the gauntlet of mysterious, unidentified lights in the sky to one woman's eye witness account of watching an alien ship take off from the earth and disappearing into the atmosphere.

The thing of it is, I know each and every one of the people who told me their tales. Most of them were in their fifties to seventies, and all of them were respectable, responsible citizens who had no need to lie. And, after each had told me their tale, they said they hadn't told anyone else about their experience out of fear of being called a crackpot.

But the premier UFO observing is the man I referred to earlier as "Doc." Doc has seen every kind of UFO imaginable, from flying saucers to blimp-like crafts to rocket-shaped and more. Doc can tell you what kind of fuel the alien ships require, the physics required to arrive in Earth's atmosphere, the structural design of the ships that would be needed to travel great distances in space, the different kinds of space travel, and anything and everything else necessary to understanding and believing in UFOs.

Doc (Ronald Henson) has lived all his forty-plus years in or near Lesterville in Reynolds County, and he knows just about every person in Reynolds County who has seen UFOs, complete with their descriptions. And Doc, who spends a lot of his time in the woods hunting or along the river fishing, has had UFO sightings every year, several per year.

These UFO sightings, by Doc and myself and by many others, including stories in the local newspapers, date back to the early 1970s, and continue to this day. If a person wanted to see a UFO, all he or she would need to do is to visit Reynolds County for a day, a weekend or a week, and gaze at the stars. It doesn't matter if you believe in UFOs or not. Just come to Reynolds County and you'll walk away a believer.

As a matter of fact, you might want to attend the Midwest UFO Rendezvous on Saturday, August 12, at the Black River Amphitheater, located along the Black River just a few miles from Lesterville, Missouri, where you are "By the River and Under the Stars." This event will coincide with the peak of the Perseids meteor shower (August 12), from the Swift-Tuttle comet. The keynote speaker will be Dr. Fred Bell, author of "Rays of Truth - Crystals of Light," a New Age musician who has performed in Germany and Colorado and other locations where aliens, attune to his music, have made their appearances.

Dr. Bell | Strange Sightings | Falling Stars | Seminars

Visit Dr. Bell's Website

Don't miss this spectacular celestial event!