The modern era of UFO sightings began midyear 1947, shortly after I was born, which helps explain my lifelong fascination with unidentified flying objects and why I was drawn to a new book by technology writer Garrett M. Graff.

“UFO: The Inside Story of the US Government’s Search for Alien Life Here – and Out There” traces the history of the phenomena from the Old Testament when the prophet Ezekiel reported seeing a “flaming wheel” in the sky to today’s computer-driven searches for extraterrestrial intelligence.

Early sightings in this country included a six-month period in 1896-1897, when “mysterious airships” were seen from California to West Virginia moving at speeds of 5 to 150 mph. One report was from an Iowa railroad engineer who said he paced the object with his train.

The Iowa sighting was reported April 10, 1897, in the Detroit Free Press. The article, available online at Newspapers.com, said the object had “a blazing headlight, … (a) smooth hull, dark winglike extensions,” and made “a hissing sound as it glides through the air.”

A follow-up article on May 4, which Graff does not mention, said the object was “a cross between a kite and a balloon,” created by John Sorter, a railroad telegraph operator. Sorter admitted he built several using a balloon the size and shape of a large bed mattress and capable of carrying railroad lanterns. Some of the kites were cut loose from ground tethers and allowed to “soar off through space in the same manner as a balloon,” the follow-up article said.

Graff’s research uncovered declassified materials that placed thousands of recent sightings in one of four categories: 1. visual anomalies, 2. natural phenomena, including ball lightning, plasma, etc., 3. unreported advanced military technologies and 4. unexplainable sightings. 

Not surprisingly, the U.S. military hid a lot of stuff over the years, including the stealth bombers’ radar-evading design and skins; there was even a saucer-shaped fighter plane called the “Flying Flapjack.” It was too slow and hard to maneuver, however, and was reportedly discarded in 1947.

There were enough items in the “unexplainable” category to pique the interest of four presidents. Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama all expressed interest in UFOs, and to varying degrees suggested they would pull back the veil of secrecy, although none did to any meaningful degree.

The 544-page book is organized on a timeline and features many recurring characters, including Carl Sagan, and popular media productions ranging from “The X-Files,” “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,” “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” “Men in Black,” and “The Andromeda Strain.”

Two characters prominent in early chapters were born in Iowa.

One was Donald Keyhoe, who was born in Ottumwa in 1897, months after the kite-balloon was sighted by railroad workers in eastern Iowa.

Keyhoe was a World War I pilot who turned to science-fiction writing after helping manage Charles Lindbergh’s 1927 coast-to-coast tour. He began writing about flying saucers in 1947. His 1950 article “Flying Saucers Are Real” was said by Edward J. Ruppelt to be one of the most widely read and discussed magazine articles ever.

Ruppelt coined the term “unidentified flying object.” He was born in Grundy Center, a decorated bombardier in World War II and a 1951 graduate of Iowa State College. A year later, Ruppelt was tapped to lead Project Blue Book, the Air Force’s formal study of UFOs. He resigned in late 1953, when his staff was cut from 10 to two.

But Ruppelt remained involved until he died from a heart attack in 1960 at age 37. Keyhoe died in 1988 at age 91. The men were occasionally paired in articles about UFO sightings during the 1950s, but they did not always see eye to eye.

Ruppelt was interested in the science and believed there was something going on that needed deeper exploration by the government.

Keyhoe’s early reporting was also fact-driven, and he became a leader of civilian efforts to explore UFO sightings. But over time, Keyhoe’s views and writing veered into what Ruppelt believed was sensationalism, and the two former Iowans parted ways.