Skinwalker Ranch — Complete Timeline (1776–2024)
From KB42
Skinwalker Ranch — Complete Timeline (1776–2024)
[edit | edit source]| Date | Event | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 1776 | Franciscan missionary Escalante documents strange fireballs in the Uintah Basin during the Dominguez-Escalante Expedition | Historical record (Escalante's journals) |
| 1300s–present | Ute oral traditions establish parts of the Uintah Basin as dangerous supernatural territory; prohibition on approaching certain lands; skinwalker presence attributed to Navajo curse following conflict with the Ute | Oral tradition; documented by ethnographers |
| 1861 | President Lincoln creates the Uintah Valley Reservation by executive order | Federal record |
| 1886 | Uintah Valley and Ouray Reservations merged into the Uintah and Ouray Reservation (~4.5 million acres) | Federal record |
| 1905 | Myers family homesteads the property at the foot of Skinwalker Ridge; establishes buildings at the northwest corner | Local historical records |
| 1934 | Kenneth Myers identified as the primary owner | Property records |
| 1948 (winter) | Kenneth Myers receives a visit from a tall dark-coated stranger claiming to be from the Sheriff's Department | Myers family account; limited sourcing |
| 1950s | UFO sightings in the Uintah Basin begin to be reported in volume; local newspapers begin coverage | Regional newspaper archives |
| 1970s | UFO reports so frequent that local law enforcement stops filing incident reports; the area designated "UFO Alley" | Documented police policy; local press |
| c. 1987 | Myers family departs; ranch sits empty for approximately seven years | Property records; local accounts |
| 1989 | George Knapp first publicly interviews Bob Lazar about alleged extraterrestrial craft reverse-engineering at a classified Nevada facility; Knapp establishes credibility covering anomalous phenomena | Documented broadcast; KLAS-TV |
| 1994 | Terry and Gwen Sherman purchase the ranch; plan to operate as a cattle ranch | Sherman family account; property records |
| 1994–1995 | First major encounter: Terry Sherman fires multiple rounds at a massive bulletproof wolf-like creature; animal unaffected; walks away without blood trail | Sherman family account |
| 1994–1996 | Escalating phenomena during Sherman tenure: cattle mutilations; disappearing cattle; blue orb destroys family's dogs; UFO sightings; poltergeist activity; disembodied voices; post-holes relocated overnight; crop circles | Sherman family account; George Knapp's documentation |
| June 1996 | Sherman family shares story with George Knapp; articles published in Deseret News and Las Vegas Mercury | Published newspaper articles; documented |
| 1995 | Robert Bigelow establishes National Institute for Discovery Science (NIDS) specifically to study UFOs and paranormal phenomena scientifically | Documented; Bigelow's account |
| 1996 (within 3 months of articles) | Robert Bigelow purchases the ranch for $200,000; non-disclosure agreement required from Shermans; Shermans hired as caretakers | Documented sale; NDA confirmed |
| 1996 | James Randi awards Bigelow a Pigasus Award for "the most useless study of a supernatural, paranormal or occult claim" | Documented award |
| 1996 | NIDS deploys investigation compound with monitoring equipment, observation posts, and on-site scientific personnel; systematic investigation begins | Documented; Kelleher's account |
| March 12, 1997 | Colm Kelleher observes a large humanoid creature in a tree ~50 yards away; fires rifle; creature flees leaving anomalous oval track 6 inches in diameter with sharp claw marks in the snow | Kelleher's published account; Hunt for the Skinwalker |
| 1997 | Phoenix Lights mass sighting event (March 13) — hundreds of miles south; national UAP awareness peaks | Documented mass sighting |
| 1996–2004 | NIDS documents numerous anomalous events including orange portal appearances; equipment destruction; aerial phenomena; cattle mutilations; cryptid encounters; but fails to obtain conclusive physical evidence | Hunt for the Skinwalker (2005) |
| 2004 | NIDS formally disbands; Bigelow maintains ranch ownership | Documented; Kelleher's account |
| 2005 | Hunt for the Skinwalker: Science Confronts the Unexplained at a Remote Ranch in Utah published by Kelleher and Knapp (Paraview Pocket Books) | Published; documented |
| c.2006–2007 | DIA official James Lacatski reads Hunt for the Skinwalker; contacts Bigelow; visits the ranch officially | Lacatski's account; Skinwalkers at the Pentagon (2021) |
| c.2007 | Lacatski personally experiences an anomalous event during his official ranch visit; begins advocacy within DIA for a formal research program | Lacatski's account |
| 2008 | DIA awards contract HHM402-08-C-0072 to BAASS for AAWSAP; approximately $22 million; Senator Harry Reid's advocacy was key | DIA contract records; documented |
| 2008–c.2012 | AAWSAP operates; Skinwalker Ranch is a key research site; program investigates UAP, paranormal phenomena, the Hitchhiker Effect, and exotic physics; generates thousands of reports, most remaining classified | Lacatski's account; Skinwalkers at the Pentagon (2021) |
| c.2012 | AAWSAP active funded phase concludes | DIA records |
| December 2017 | New York Times publishes major article revealing AATIP existence; Luis Elizondo named as former director; public UAP disclosure era begins; Knapp contributes | Published; NYT archives |
| 2016 | Bigelow sells the ranch to Adamantium Real Estate LLC for ~$4.5 million; buyer anonymous | Property records; documented sale |
| February 15, 2017 | Adamantium Real Estate LLC files U.S. Trademark application for "Skinwalker Ranch" | USPTO records |
| April 14, 2020 | USPTO approves and registers the "Skinwalker Ranch" trademark | USPTO records |
| March 2020 | Brandon Fugal publicly announces his ownership of the ranch; History Channel partnership announced | Documented public announcement |
| March 31, 2020 | The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch premieres on History Channel; Fugal and Dr. Travis Taylor lead the investigation | History Channel; documented broadcast |
| Early 2021 | Post Malone visits the ranch; featured in the History Channel series | Documented episode |
| 2021 | Kelleher, Lacatski, and Knapp publish Skinwalkers at the Pentagon; most complete public account of AAWSAP's scope and activities | Published; documented |
| June 21, 2021 | Adamantium Real Estate files expanded trademark application for merchandise | USPTO records |
| 2020–2024 | The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch continues through at least Season 5; ongoing investigation with expanding instrumentation; claimed findings of aerial phenomena, EM anomalies, underground structures, and physiological effects | History Channel; ongoing broadcast |
| 2023 | Beyond Skinwalker Ranch premieres on History Channel; investigators examine other anomalous locations including Bradshaw Ranch in Arizona | History Channel; documented broadcast |
| Present | Ranch remains active under Fugal ownership; 24/7 armed security and surveillance; History Channel series ongoing; no conclusive physical evidence has been produced; investigation continues | Current status |
