On December 2, 1974 at 10:30 p.m., dairy farmer William Bosak, aged 68, owner of a dairy farm for 40 years close to the rural city of Frederic, in the north-western part of Polk County, Wisconsin, USA, had attended the meeting of the Fanner co-operative in Frederic and was driving back by car to his rural house of the south-east of Frederic, when, at approximately a mile of his farm, he spotted an object on the left side of the road, in front of him.
He was driving slowly because of the packs of fog. The headlights of the car reflected on the object, and he slowed down while approaching.
The object was motionless and seemed to have between 8 and 10 feet in height. It was not luminous, but reflected the headlights and had a transparent sector resembling glass in the shape of shell, or bell, or conical with a peak, on the top of the machine, which was lighted and in which Bosak saw an occupant of which the top of the body was visible and who had his arms raised above his head.
Although Bosak spoke about a man, the character or the creature who had a head and two arm showed characteristics that were not very human: stiff hair or hairs came out of the sides of its head whose face itself was hairless, and a beardless chin. Its eyes were large and protruding, and its ears were described as pointing on 8 centimeters and resembling those of a young calf.
It seemed to be dressed of something tight-fitting covered of brown fur, or to be covered with brown hairs on the higher part of the body including the arms. No collar or features were visible on the possible suit. The bottom of the character was lost from sight in the fog; which dissimulated it and dissimulated the bottom of the craft as well.
Bosak was very frightened, but saw that the face of the creature also showed signs of fear. He had slowed down almost to a halt when he had arrived at the object, but overcome with fear, he accelerated to drive away from the object. When he did that, the inside of his car became darker as if the headlights had weakened, and he heard a noise of friction like that of branches of tree sweeping the car.
Back home, it tried to look at the sector where the encounter had occurred from the advantageous point of view of his house, but he could not see anything because of the fog.
The next morning, he returned to the location in search of any landing traces or evidence of the presence of object, but he found nothing, except that according to one version of the story there was a flattened circular area in the field.
Bosak did not tell what he has seen to anybody during almost a month, not even to his wife and son, but finally decided to reveal the incident, apparently by contacting a newspaper which published the story.
Two APRO investigators met him and it was said that Bosak was sincere and a man with a good reputation in his community. Understanding of the skepticism of the newspaper and neighbors, Bosak commented on that he would welcome a lie detector test to prove he was not lying. The story then entered the ufological and Fortean literature as example of "bigfoot piloting a flying saucer" while Bosak rather seems to have thought that it was some space creature.
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[Ref. ap1:] APRO BULLETIN:
APRO indicates that farmer William Bosak, aged 68, of the rural town of Frederic, in the northwest section of Polk County, Wisconsin, had attended a Fanner's Co-op meeting in Frederic and was driving to his rural home southeast of Frederic at 10:30 p.m. on December 2, 1974, when, about one mile from his farm, he spotted an object on the left side of the road ahead of him.
He had been driving slowly because of patches of fog and his headlights reflected off the object so he slowed as he approached it.
The object was standing still and appeared to be between 8 and 10 feet in height. It was not lighted, but reflected light from the headlights of Mr. Bosak's car. It had a transparent glass-like area bullet-shaped at the top, or tapered to a peak, through which Bosak could view the occupant. APRO quotes Mr. Bosak telling journalists:
"It had a curved front of glass and inside I could see a figure with its arms raised above its head."
He was later interviewed by Field Investigator Everett E. Lightner, and said that the newspaper account which appeared in the St. Paul Pioneer-Press was basically accurate except that the ears on the "human" he saw inside were placed higher on the head.
The "human," as Bosak referred to it, had hair sticking out from the sides of its head with ears protruding out about three inches and they were shaped like a calf's ear. It had no collar or shirt with seam in front but appeared to be clothed in something tannish-brown in color and skin-tight like a diver's suit. Both arms were extended above its head and hair stuck out from the outside of the arms. He had no beard, but there was hair or fur on the upper part of the body. The rest of it, from the waist down, was not visible because of the fog. Its eyes were very large and protruding.
Bosak said he was very frightened at the time but the look on the face of the occupant of the craft indicated that it was frightened too.
He had slowed nearly to a stop when he came up to the object, but then fear took over and he hits on the accelerator and left the object behind. He said that when he did so, the inside of his car became dark and he heard a swishing sound like branches of a tree brushing against the car.
Back home, he attempted to view the area where the incident had occurred from the vantage point of his house, but he could see nothing because of the fog. He later told journalists:
"I was so goldarned scared I was afraid to go out at night for a few days."
He added that he wished that he had had somebody with him in the car at the time.
The next morning, Mr. Bosak returned to the location to search for any landing marks or evidence of the object's presence, but he found nothing.
Bosak said nothing to anyone about his encounter for nearly a month, not even telling his wife and sonm but finally decided to divulge the incident.
After reflecting on the experience for a few weeks, Bosak said that he felt he did the wrong thing by speeding away from the object and "should have stopped and tried to show it I was friendly. I wish I could meet up with it again."
Everett E. Lightner, who investigated the case, said he found Bosak to be sincere and a man with a good reputation in his community. He had operated a 450-acre dairy farm east of Frederic for the past 40 years, and said that prior to his frightening experience, he had been skeptical of UFO stories. He stated:
"And I'm sure a lot of people are going to be skeptical after hearing what happened to me. But if people don't believe me, I'll take a lie detector test to prove this isn't just something I made up."
[Ref. jf1:] JEAN FERGUSON:
The author indicates that at the beginning of December 1974 in Frederic in Wisconsin, William Bosak, 70 years old, returned from a farmers meeting at 10:30 p.m. and had almost arrived at his place when his attention was drawn by an object on the left side of the road. He stopped within a few meters of the craft which was a sort of vehicle in the shape of a transparent bell inside of which stood a strange character lit by a diffuse source of light. This occupant had the top of the body visible, the bottom of the body not visible, raised hands, the stiff hair of 3 centimetres which came out to him on each side of its head like those of a rag puppet, no hair on the face, its body was covered with natural fur of ginger brown color, straight ears like those of a small calf that measured 8 cm. Its body was thin and of a size of step more than 1 meter 80.
Bosak could not see whether the machine were posed on the ground or floated above ground-level. He was within 2 meters of the apparatus and the creature looked at him; Bosak started his car again and when he passed the craft, the strange vehicle appeared to project itself directly towards him, and it became very black in his car while he heard a rustle as if something passed very close to the car.
[Ref. ra1:] JAY RATH:
In his book on Wisconsin unusual events, the author notes that at approximately 10:30 p.m. on December 2, 1974, near Frederic in Polk County, 69 years old dairy farmer William Bosak was driving home when he saw a disc-shaped craft beside the road.
The author met the witness who specified that he can remember the incident just as if it happened the day before. The lower half of the craft was shrouded in mist, it had a curved glass window, and inside the brightly lit compartment Bosak saw a creature covered with dark tan fur, except for its face and chin.
Bosak told the author that the creature was looking out the window, and "it was a different kind of character than you'd see on this earth," adding that it looked a good deal like a man, but it had a different-looking face, "a kind of a cow-looking face."
Bosak explained that the face had hair on its sides, that the ears stuck out from the head about three inches, and the eyes were large and protruding. The character held its arms above its head, and its expression led Bosak to believe that it was just as scared as he was.
Bosak quickly drove away after about 10 seconds, and when he did so his car lights dimmed, the engine sounded as if it were missing, and he heard a soft "whooshing" noise.
When he came back the next day, Bosak found a round spot of 6 feet in diameter that was pressed down into the hayfield, and he specified that other people had seen something like that right in this area.
Bosak said that neighbors questioned his story and the editor in town did not believe it. He insists that it happened as he told and voices that the creature must have come from outer space.
[Ref. ra2:] JAY RATH:
In a 2001 article for the Wisconsin State Journal, the author mentions several strange encounters in Wisconsin, and wonders what to make of the story of William Bosak of Polk County, who claims that "in 1974 he saw Bigfoot ... piloting a UFO." He notes that even if those stories are not always scientific, reports of unexplained phenomena are fascinating as modern folklore.
[Ref. mr1:] MARK RODEGHIER:
In his catalog of cases with vehicle interferences, Rodeghier indicates that on December 2, 1974, at 10:30 p.m., in Frederic, Wisconsin, a 69-year-old dairy farmer saw a disc-shaped object next to the road. As he drove by, he could see a figure moving inside since the object was partially transparent. He tried to quickly drive by the object, but as he did so, his headlights became dim and he heard a "whooshing" sound. The engine was unaffected throughout the sighting. Rodeghier indicates the APRO Bulletin for February 1975 as source.
[Ref. jr1:] JEAN-PAUL RONECKER:
The author indicates that according to the book Faces of the Visitors, by Kevin Randle, and the APRO Bulletin for January-February 1975, on December 2, 1974, in Frederic, Wisconsin, USA, farmer William Bosak, aged 68, who was returning late in the night to his farm while driving slowly because of the fog which had risen, suddenly saw something on the left side of the road.
His headlights were reflected on a craft of approximately 3 meters in diameter, which was dark and without any source of light. Through a transparent wall of this craft, William Bosak saw a strange being of entirely human appearance except for its ears which resembled those of a calf. This character carried a kind of tight-fitting suit without collar and of brown color.
William Bosak was intrigued and slowed down to stop, but he was suddenly grabbed by fear and then accelerated. At the time when he exceeded the craft, he heard a "brush" sound against the side of his car, "like the noise of the leaves of a tree which brush in the wind." He continued to drive as fast as possible to his farm without daring to look back.
[Ref. ar1:] ALBERT ROSALES:
Albert Rosales indicates that near Frederick, Wisconsin, on December 2, 1974 at 10:30 p.m., 69 years old farmer William Bosak was driving home when he noticed something parked in the opposite lane of the road ahead.
Slowing down to look, his headlights illuminated an object with a curved, transparent front, behind which could be seen a figure visible from the waist up, with arms upraised over his head, as if in terror. The figure, which seemed to be "a little taller than a tall man," had a square face with hair "sticking straight out from the sides," long, narrow ears that stuck straight out, brown furry arms, and fur or hair on his torso. The eyes were large and protruding.
Frightened, Bosak sped past the object, which was surrounded by a kind of fog, and as he passed, the car "darkened, as if in shadow," and he heard "a kind of soft whooshing sound." No traces were visible at the site the following day.
Rosales indicates that his sources are Dewey Berscheid, Edward E. Lightner and Jerome Clark.
While this is a high strangeness case, it has only one witness and lack corroboration from others or from some physical traces or other evidence.
There might exist a detailed investigation report with more details or more clarity on the story, which might help discarding possible distortions in the later ufological literature.
If an explanation in the order of a confusion should be attempted, I would suggest that the least unreasonable explanation might be some car blurred by the fog in the opposite lane. The feature of the supposed car must then be interpreted as someone who would have worn a "monster" disguize, possibly taking advantage of the situation to frighten the farmer by raising his arms and making a scary face.
Most Fortean researchers and cryptozoologists included the case as a bigfoot sighting although one can wonder whether a bigfoot in some glass-domed flying saucer is more or less weird than a furry space creature or a space creature in a fur suit.
| Id: | Topic: | Severity: | Date noted: | Raised by: | Noted by: | Description: | Proposal: | Status: |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Data | Severe | October 20, 2006 | Patrick Gross | Patrick Gross | Missing a probably investigation report by Edward E. Lightner and Dewey Berscheid, APRO. | Help needed | Opened. |
| 2 | Data | Severe | October 20, 2006 | Patrick Gross | Patrick Gross | Missing a probable newspaper article in the Saint Paul Pioneer-Press, of Saint-Paul, Minnesota. | Help needed. | Opened. |
| 2 | Ufology | Severe | October 16, 2011 | Patrick Gross | Patrick Gross | Single witness case.Missing a probable newspaper article in the Saint Paul Pioneer-Press, of Saint-Paul, Minnesota. | - | - |
Extraterrestrial visitor or rare confusion.
* = Source I checked.
? = Source I am told about but could not check yet. Help appreciated.
| Main Author: | Patrick Gross |
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| Contributors: | None |
| Reviewers: | None |
| Editor: | Patrick Gross |
| Version: | Created/Changed By: | Date: | Change Description: |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.1 | Patrick Gross | October 20, 2006 | Creation, [ap1], [jf1], [mr1], [ra1], [ra2], [jr1], [ar1]. |
| 0.2 | Patrick Gross | October 20, 2006 | First published. |
| 2.0 | Patrick Gross | October 16, 2011 | Conversion from HTML4 to XHTML Strict. |
