McMinnville UFO Photographs – Fake Or Real ?

Some black-and-white photographs from the 50s stirred the conversation that Ufos might be real. So are McMinnville UFO Photographs fake or real?

1. McMinnville UFO Photographs 

Aliens, UFOs, Spaceships, and Parallel Universe. You might have read about them or even seen one in one of the sci-fi films right? Some black-and-white photographs from the 50s stirred the conversation that Ufos might be real.

These were taken 65 years ago by farmers in Yamhill County. Two black and white photographs containing flying saucers became everyone’s hot topic to discuss. The farmers who took the photographs of flying saucers were Evelyn Trent and Paul Trent.

It was 11 May 1950, and Evelyn Trent was taking a walk in the back of her farmhouse. She had just finished feeding the rabbits. Before going inside, she saw a disc-shaped metallic object flying across the sky. Surprised by this visual, she called out for her husband, Paul Trent. He hurried outside and saw the object floating in the sky.

He went rapidly inside the house and took a camera with him. Paul claimed that he took two photos before the flying saucer fled away. Paul Trent’s father also saw the floating object before it went west. 

1.1 Characteristics Of The Photographs

The McMinnville UFo photographs were printed in the Life magazine and also all the newspapers across the entire nation. Due to the controversy and debates, they are considered one of the most famous UFO photographs ever taken. When Life magazine printed pictures of unidentified objects flying across the sky, the U.S. Air Force got interested in the subject.

One of the investigating officers visited Trent’s farm which was nine miles away from McMinnville. Paul confronted that the object was bright and tipped up. It was shiny enough to catch our attention. But there was no noise. The investigation officer was not at all surprised. The 50s witnessed a lot of UFO encounters and sightings. But Trent’s case was different. Usually, the UFO sightings were showcased by weather balloons or private planes passing by.

2. The Publicity 

The role of the film from Paul Trent’s camera was not immediately developed. The remaining frames were used to click pictures on Mother’ day. This proved that this act was not hoaxed or faked. Soon enough, Bill Powel a local newspaper reporter requested Paul for the negatives. He examined the negatives but did not find any evidence of the films being faked or hoaxed. He printed his story on the front page of the McMinnville Telephone Register. It was accompanied by the two pictures clicked by Paul.

The story was quickly spread. International News Service picked up the story very quickly. It gave the information to other newspapers and in no time the UFO photographs gained wide publicity. When Life magazine reprinted the photographs, it promised the Trents’ to return the negatives. But, the Trents’ never got them back. The Life magazine told them that they had misplaced them.

The Trents confronted that they first thought an unidentified object they photographed was just an aircraft mission by the Military and publishing these photos might get them into trouble. But when they had a proper conversation with their banker Frank Wortmann and showed him the photographs, he was not only surprised but intrigued and decided to display the photographs in the window of his bank in McMinnville.

3. Who Were The Trents’?

The Trents owned a farm in Oregon, McMinnville. Paul used to collect milk from the neighbouring farms and sell it in a local dairy. Evelyn also worked at a chicken cannery. They were citizens of McMinnville and were known as solid and honest citizens. This was reposted by the investing officer L.J. Hyder of the U.S. Air Force.

4. Scientific Study Of Unidentified Flying Objects 

Surprised by the photographs and the confession given by Evelyn and Paul Trent, in the year 1967, the U.S. Air Force authorized a nuclear physicist named Edward U. Condon to run a UFO study. The report was titled ‘Scientific Study Of Unidentified Flying Objects’.

It was 950 pages long. The report genuinely stated that the pictures were true and the Trents were honest. At the same time, they explained that the unidentified flying objects cannot be rationalized and properly describe their existence.

The study mentioned that the report is one of the UFO sighting reports. All the psychological, physical, and geometrical factors were examined and if they were in line with the extraordinary object flying across the sky witnessed by the two victims. The conclusion of the report stated that Evelyn had a history of witnessing the same kind of mysterious, slow-moving objects flying in the sky. She had seen these things three times but didn’t report it because nobody would believe it.

5. UFO Festival 

McMinnville eventually embraced the UFO sightings and one of the most famous UFO photographs. The town started organizing the annual UFO festival in 1999. Hundreds of people gather to enjoy this festival with family and friends. The duration of the festival is two to three days. The festival takes place in the McMenamins Hotel to celebrate the original UFO sightings by Evelyn and Paul Trent. Family-friendly events are organized all day long.

Speakers and UFO experts are invited to share their opinions. There are also pet costume contests and alien-themed parades organized in the events. This parade is one of the largest alien-themed parades in the west part of Mississippi. McMinnville UFO Festival is the second-largest UFO festival in the country after the festival held in New Mexico.

McMinnville UFO photographs are still considered one of the best-publicized UFO photographs. There are some accusations about the photographs mentioning that these were fake and hoaxed. But, every coin has two sides. Some ufologists still believe that these two UFO photographs are evidence that proves that UFOs are physical and real! The Trents were always seen as honest and responsible citizens of McMinnville. The annual UFO festival is a piece of living evidence that there was some amount of truth in their photographs.

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