8–9 July 1947; debris discovery earlier / T034
Roswell: the 1947 debris episode and its later reinterpretation
Foster ranch near Corona; Roswell, New Mexico; Fort Worth, Texas
Witness account
Roswell Army Air Field announced possession of a flying disc on 8 July after ranch debris was brought to military attention. Higher headquarters identified balloon and radar-reflector material; contemporary photographs show debris displayed in Fort Worth. The July news should be distinguished from the familiar crashed-spacecraft-and-bodies narrative, which expanded after Jesse Marcel was interviewed in 1978 and The Roswell Incident appeared in 1980.
Public record
The strongest contemporary record is the press sequence, photographs, military correspondence and FBI teletype. Later accounts differ over discovery dates, materials, handling and locations.