The Kelly-Hopkinsville 'Goblins' Encounter

On the night of August 21, 1955, two Kentucky families claimed to have fought unknown beings. In a rural area of Kentucky, near Hopkinsville and Kelly, two families contend they battled extraterrestrial creatures. The event happened around the Sutton farmhouse, where the Suttons and the Taylors gathered for dinner. At some point during the evening, Billy Ray Taylor went outside to draw water from the well.

Taylor witnessed a huge, bright object land in the woods about a quarter of a mile from the house. He started towards the house with the water when he saw a strange creature approaching. Billy Ray dropped the bucket and ran into the house. Both he and Lucky Sutton picked up firearms and ran back outside. Taylor fired his .22 caliber rifle and Lucky fired his shotgun but neither weapon had any effect on the creature.

Sutton and Taylor described the aliens as three feet tall, with pointed ears, thin limbs, long arms and claw-like hands. They said the creatures looked like gremlins, hence they became known as the Hopkinsville Goblins. The beings were either silvery in color or were wearing something metallic. The strangest aspect of these creature was their movements.

The aliens movements seemed to defy gravity as they floated above ground and walked with a swaying motion like they were walking through water.

The two men returned to the house. However, another creature appeared at the window...the two families realized they were up against something extraordinary. They ran from the house, got in their cars and headed to Hopkinsville. There they sought help from police who followed them to the farmhouse and searched the area.

Although they found no evidence of the creatures, they did find that the farmhouse had been shot up by the humans during the battle. The police left shortly after, but the aliens returned and the battle resumed. The defenders' guns continued to have no effect. The Air Force investigated the event but could not find solid evidence.

Three of the witnesses to the incident. In the middle is Elmer "Lucky" Sutton discussing how the craft landed. (credit: UFOs Northwest)

At first, the public reaction was that the incident was a hoax. However, the Suttons and the Taylors never profited from the encounter and there were dozens of eyewitnesses to the event. In addition to the families at the farmhouse, there were law enforcement officers who saw strange lights in the sky.

In 1957, Air Force Major John E. Albert concluded that the case resulted from the witnesses observing a monkey painted with silver that had escaped from a circus. French UFO researcher Renaud Leclet opined that a pair of Great Horned Owls may have been misidentified as aliens. However, Dr. J. Allen Hynek believed the incident was real. UFO researcher Allan Hendry wrote "...this case is distinguished by its duration and also by the number of witnesses involved." Jerome Clark writes that "...investigations by police, Air Force officers from nearby Fort Campbell, and civilian ufologists found no evidence of a hoax". Although they never formally investigated the case, Blue Book confessed to being stumped. So was Isabel Davis, one of the most skeptical of UFO investigators.

Many of famed film director Steven Spielberg's projects, like Night Skies, E.T. and Gremlins, were directly inspired by the Kelly-Hopkinsville events.

Illustrations by Pfc. Gary F. Hodson of the 101st Airborne Division stationed at nearby Fort Campbell, who was sent to interview the witnesses of the Hopkinsville incidents