Springfield’s forgotten UFO? The bizarre 1897 airship seen over Missouri Kathryn Skopec Wed, December 10, 2025 at 3:28 AM UTC 4 min read SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — In the spring of 1897, residents across southwest Missouri described sightings of a mysterious “airship” — a craft they said resembled a giant mechanical dragonfly and appeared to drift silently over trains, towns and backyards. This was years before the first powered airplane was invented. The reports, published in the Springfield Weekly Republican, contains detailed descriptions from Judge J.A. Frink, a respected and trustworthy man who told the newspaper he spotted the craft on the night of April 21, 1897, near Cabool. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Frink was riding a train when it stopped so abruptly that it roused sleeping passengers and startled the more nervous ones. Frink said he stepped onto the platform to investigate. He reported that instead of standing in the pale moonlight, he found himself in a shadow — one cast not by a cloud but by a large airship overhead. With bright lights illuminating the craft, Frink said he could compare its size to the train below. He described two sets of wings shaped like those of a dragonfly: an upper pair about twice as wide and six times as long as a passenger coach, and a lower pair about half that size, extending to the rear. The vessel’s main body, he said, matched the length of a passenger coach but was not as deep, and was cigar-shaped with a long, narrow extension to the rear. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Frink believed the tail section housed lighting and motive apparatus. On either side of the tail were fixed wings that rose or fell as the ship changed altitude. He speculated that aluminum formed the hull and that hollow plates may have been filled with hydrogen gas. He said there was no balloon in the usual sense, though a large canvas cover swayed in the breeze and may have held a “gravitation resisting gas.” Electricity appeared to power the craft, with wires running from what Frink described as a dynamo room to the rest of the vessel. An AI-generated rendering of what the airship may have looked like, based directly on the judge’s description. Two rotating searchlights were mounted at the front, capable of instantly shifting colors between clear, green, red and blue. Lamps with colored incandescent globes lined both sides of the deck, and the tail could glow “like something phosphorescent.” Frink said a captain briefly appeared on deck as the vessel lifted from above the train. He reportedly carried a fluoroscope with modifications allowing him to use it outdoors, enabling him, witnesses said, to see through darkness and even through rooftops as easily as windows. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The craft made little noise, though a crackling like that of a trolley car in rainy weather was heard when it passed. At rest, the only sound was the gentle swaying of its large wings. The train had stopped because a horse had been mysteriously struck and killed on the tracks. The track had been clear moments earlier, leading some to speculate that the horse may have fallen — or been thrown — from the airship, the newspaper said. The craft was later reported over Springfield, where several residents came forward with their own accounts. George Pepperdine said he and his family watched the airship for half an hour from their back porch as it approached. He said it descended to about 30 feet above his yard, where he observed the captain and tipped his hat. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Pepperdine said he asked the captain his mission, and the man replied, “We are shooting ducks and canvassing for Bryan’s book on the First Battle and Bimetallism.” According to Pepperdine, the captain tossed him a copy before ascending. That literary gift is likely a reference to William Jennings Bryan’s 1896 book about the year’s United States presidential campaign, where bimetallism (free silver) was a central issue. The book is a firsthand account of Bryan’s run against William McKinley. Another resident, Charles J. Wright, said he was on his St. Louis Street porch in Springfield when the machine passed within a few feet. Wright said he spoke briefly with the operator at the controls, who told him that President McKinley was dissatisfied with reports from a recent municipal election in Springfield’s Fourth Ward and had sent the airship to investigate. The man added that his “supply was limited.” Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement G.B. Cunningham described hearing music, horns and drums before he and his wife saw the ship descending toward their home. Cunningham said it hovered about 15 feet above the ground, and the captain called down asking whether he had a Republican available because he wanted to know how Springfield City Council had decided the slot machine question. Cunningham said he invited the captain inside, but the man declined, saying he had “a pile of Missouri presidential appointments” on the ship. Moments later, the vessel ascended. Not everyone claimed a firsthand view. Frank B. Parker said he didn’t see the aerial visitor, though he believed his friends’ consistent stories meant “they must have seen ‘something’” or had been affected similarly by “something they had for supper.” Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Parker added that he believed “there is something in the air over our country” since the first of March — “more of a substantial reality” than people imagined and something all would soon see “no matter how blind to it they may be.” Whether the 1897 sightings were misinterpretations or hoaxes, the accounts remain one of several “mystery airship” reports that swept across the Midwest that spring. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Source: https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/springfield-forgotten-ufo-bizarre-1897-032807598.html