DISCLOSURE / FILE

Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message

CIA-UAP-004, CASE 17708 (CLOSED) and DR. Leon Davidson

A 9 January 1958 CIA Contact Division memorandum recording a phone call with Dr. Leon Davidson about a 'space message and its transmitter' whose records the originating agency had destroyed.

Brief

The memo, filed CHI-58-17 from the Chicago Office to the Support Branch, reports that the CIA told Dr. Leon Davidson it could not resolve his inquiry about a 'space message' and its transmitter because the records had been destroyed by the originating agency. The author notes that the 'noncommittal and evasive' answer given to Davidson was the only one possible to avoid contradicting prior statements by the CIA and other agencies, while conceding the answer was 'hardly fair' to Davidson and unlikely to be fully accepted by him. The memo states that, in earlier contacts, an effort had been made to conceal the identity of CIA personnel from Davidson, and that Davidson appeared to know he was dealing with the agency. The author predicts more will be heard from Davidson on the matter.

Metadata

Agency: CIA
Release: 6/12/26
Incident: 1958
Type: PDF • .pdf
Length: 1 pages
Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
Tags: 1958, space message, Case 17708, Dr. Leon Davidson, Contact Division

Key points

The memo is dated 9 January 1958, filed as CHI-58-17 from the Chicago Office to the Support Branch, Contact Division.p.1
CIA contacted Dr. Davidson by telephone to advise that it could not resolve his problem concerning the 'space message' and its transmitter because records on the transmitter had been destroyed by the originating agency.p.1
Davidson said he had been told this before and mentioned he had a second article ready for publication concerning Air Force handling of space sightings.p.1
The author acknowledges the noncommittal and evasive answer was given to avoid contradicting previous statements by the CIA and other involved agencies.p.1
The author concedes the answer was 'hardly fair' to Davidson and unlikely to be fully accepted by him.p.1
An effort had been made to conceal the identity of CIA personnel from Davidson in earlier contacts, though the author believes Davidson knew with whom he was dealing.p.1
The memo closes by predicting more will be heard from Davidson on this matter.p.1

Verbatim

the ~ nonea:mt:I.ttal. am evasive 8.l:l.SVe2
p.1
But the tUJsWc:r ~ bard1y tai.r to na:v1.d.scm, and cm~ not J 1kelJ to be f'ully acc-epted I by h.iJ:a
p.1
Tile ant s:a:re xaore 'V:ill. be hes.xd :f'rcm. l:!aT:1.d.so:n.
p.1

Most interesting

The document is internally consistent with prior public release: the description notes a redacted version of this memorandum has long been available on the CIA's public website.
The memo frames the CIA's evasiveness as a coordination problem across agencies rather than a denial of underlying facts, writing that the answer was the only one possible 'to avoid crossing up previous statements.'
The memo records that the CIA tried to conceal the identity of its own personnel from Davidson during in-person and telephone contacts.

Cited in

FINDINGCIA destroyed the records, then called fairness awkward.War.gov June 12, 2026

Common questions

What is Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message?: A 9 January 1958 CIA Contact Division memorandum recording a phone call with Dr. Leon Davidson about a 'space message and its transmitter' whose records the originating agency had destroyed.
What does Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message reveal?: The memo is dated 9 January 1958, filed as CHI-58-17 from the Chicago Office to the Support Branch, Contact Division. CIA contacted Dr. Davidson by telephone to advise that it could not resolve his problem concerning the 'space message' and its transmitter because records on the transmitter had been destroyed by the originating agency. Davidson said he had…
Which agency produced Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message?: Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message is a primary-source record from CIA. Its original classification was UNCLASSIFIED.
When is Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message dated?: Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message is dated 1958-01-09. It was declassified 2026-06-12.
What programs and topics appear in Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message?: Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message references space message, Case 17708, Dr. Leon Davidson and Contact Division.
What does Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message say, in its own words?: "the ~ nonea:mt:I.ttal. am evasive 8.l:l.SVe2" (source p. 1).

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Extracted text · Page 1

Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message

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. App roved f or Re l ease 2026 • Chief, Contact Divi.sicn 9 J'anuar,- 1958 : SupportBranc.h . · C!iI-58-l.7 Chid'., Chicago Office . _$.- ~ j?S-~7. Case l. TT08 { CJ cseil) ·and Dr. teol2 Darld.ao:a '"'=' •IF • . e, · •• ... I • ;p;.adio: · EEY l WA 26643, arid r.ooneJJ., Lobz:;s-nn, ~~ Tclecan o~ 8 Jan. 58 . ,.. .. 1. ~1e bm, c~ted Dr. Dav.td.son by ielepboce advising hi:a that ve cannot. reaolve bis problem cocc-e:rrdng the spic-e message and .i.ta t:ransmittcr beca:ose reco:rds en the t::e.~..er l::ave been. destroyed by tho ~ti.:lg agency. Parldson accepted. thia sta.temait vitb the cc=.1eI1t tba-t he b!4 been told thi.a bei'ore, tbat he Il01' had a seca:id art:Lcl..e ~c,r pnbllcatiOll cOJJ.Ce:rn:1ng .Aj.r Force banditng or S];:BCS sight-. 1.ng3 1.n the l;anc'J:1 ~ the Penta.gr:m secorl:t;y revie-;, peopl~ (wich be thought w.a mild e?lOtlgh to J;aSS them}. and he ll1nted that be lidglit lid.sh to take ,::g, asz,1n at a la:ter date the ma.tte:r or this i:a-,rt1cul.ar cessage. 2. tle a~ec!a~ that there have been rraey cQOks :1n • "the ki.~ • on tbis dish and that, as e. result, the ~ nonea:mt:I.ttal. am evasive 8.l:l.SVe2" ve were inst.meted to give Davidsen w..s ~:pe .-;lle only Cllle pos:ibl.e tt lie 'li'e::r'C to a-void czossillg up previous sta:te:,ent• ; I ~ oar O'WJl, and other UlV'Ol.ved agellC:leS, to this man. :But the tUJsWc:r ~ bard1y tai.r to na:v1.d.scm, and cm~ not J 1kelJ to be f'ully acc-epted I by h.iJ:a... • ! I I 3 .. Be:texeDCed. te:l.epbone ~ disclosed t=t the:ra 1a . . ! I nothing ill tm :record to sbo;i- that Drnideon lmev he was ch.mBng vi.th l the ~ 1.n ?wJ contacta nth twalker aoo. Smk1.ch, that in fact., mi ettort bad becsi ::sde to caiceru tbe.!r CL\ 1dem;:1ty- :Crcm·him. Ve- an, . r~ su:re tbat wen ~ +ruJtea to us in the court of' ippeaJ.s I . I Building confc:xeace .rocu, h9 kru!,v ver.,-vell. v.lth. Yball he l.a.s deaUJ?g; : J run in the Davidsan-I.alfountaiu tel.eyhone eoxrrersati~ Davidson speett,· . f j _i'f calJJ l?leX1t:1.oned • )"O'l:U'" a~ rs-,- which he p;ns:11::sh.1.J" mem1t en. ·. .- . I. 4-. Tile ant s:a:re xaore 'V:ill. be hes.xd :f'rcm. l:!aT:1.d.so:n. r . , ! i I .. ·- - I ·! ·R.:P.13. LOmlAD Fl:LaYcuntain: r.J . . .. ......... -~.. ::..-- - =--=-:-"·_· .":···--._;..-:.:- •.. ···- ..... ..... .- - ---- ....

Full transcript1 pages · 407 words›

Concatenated page-by-page transcript. Born-digital pages came through pdf.js; scanned pages were transcribed by Claude vision OCR. Pages marked unreadable failed multiple OCR retries (heavy redaction, microfilm artifacts, or blank separators) and are kept in place for audit.

Page 1born-digital extraction

. App roved f or Re l ease 2026 • Chief, Contact Divi.sicn 9 J'anuar,- 1958 : SupportBranc.h . · C!iI-58-l.7 Chid'., Chicago Office . _$.- ~ j?S-~7. Case l. TT08 { CJ cseil) ·and Dr. teol2 Darld.ao:a '"'=' •IF • . e, · •• ... I • ;p;.adio: · EEY l WA 26643, arid r.ooneJJ., Lobz:;s-nn, ~~ Tclecan o~ 8 Jan. 58 . ,.. .. 1. ~1e bm, c~ted Dr. Dav.td.son by ielepboce advising hi:a that ve cannot. reaolve bis problem cocc-e:rrdng the spic-e message and .i.ta t:ransmittcr beca:ose reco:rds en the t::e.~..er l::ave been. destroyed by tho ~ti.:lg agency. Parldson accepted. thia sta.temait vitb the cc=.1eI1t tba-t he b!4 been told thi.a bei'ore, tbat he Il01' had a seca:id art:Lcl..e ~c,r pnbllcatiOll cOJJ.Ce:rn:1ng .Aj.r Force banditng or S];:BCS sight-. 1.ng3 1.n the l;anc'J:1 ~ the Penta.gr:m secorl:t;y revie-;, peopl~ (wich be thought w.a mild e?lOtlgh to J;aSS them}. and he ll1nted that be lidglit lid.sh to take ,::g, asz,1n at a la:ter date the ma.tte:r or this i:a-,rt1cul.ar cessage. 2. tle a~ec!a~ that there have been rraey cQOks :1n • "the ki.~ • on tbis dish and that, as e. result, the ~ nonea:mt:I.ttal. am evasive 8.l:l.SVe2" ve were inst.meted to give Davidsen w..s ~:pe .-;lle only Cllle pos:ibl.e tt lie 'li'e::r'C to a-void czossillg up previous sta:te:,ent• ; I ~ oar O'WJl, and other UlV'Ol.ved agellC:leS, to this man. :But the tUJsWc:r ~ bard1y tai.r to na:v1.d.scm, and cm~ not J 1kelJ to be f'ully acc-epted I by h.iJ:a... • ! I I 3 .. Be:texeDCed. te:l.epbone ~ disclosed t=t the:ra 1a . . ! I nothing ill tm :record to sbo;i- that Drnideon lmev he was ch.mBng vi.th l the ~ 1.n ?wJ contacta nth twalker aoo. Smk1.ch, that in fact., mi ettort bad becsi ::sde to caiceru tbe.!r CL\ 1dem;:1ty- :Crcm·him. Ve- an, . r~ su:re tbat wen ~ +ruJtea to us in the court of' ippeaJ.s I . I Building confc:xeace .rocu, h9 kru!,v ver.,-vell. v.lth. Yball he l.a.s deaUJ?g; : J run in the Davidsan-I.alfountaiu tel.eyhone eoxrrersati~ Davidson speett,· . f j _i'f calJJ l?leX1t:1.oned • )"O'l:U'" a~ rs-,- which he p;ns:11::sh.1.J" mem1t en. ·. .- . I. 4-. Tile ant s:a:re xaore 'V:ill. be hes.xd :f'rcm. l:!aT:1.d.so:n. r . , ! i I .. ·- - I ·! ·R.:P.13. LOmlAD Fl:LaYcuntain: r.J . . .. ......... -~.. ::..-- - =--=-:-"·_· .":···--._;..-:.:- •.. ···- ..... ..... .- - ---- ....

DISCLOSURE / FILE

Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message

A 9 January 1958 CIA Contact Division memorandum recording a phone call with Dr. Leon Davidson about a 'space message and its transmitter' whose records the originating agency had destroyed.

Brief

Key points

The memo is dated 9 January 1958, filed as CHI-58-17 from the Chicago Office to the Support Branch, Contact Division.p.1

CIA contacted Dr. Davidson by telephone to advise that it could not resolve his problem concerning the 'space message' and its transmitter because records on the transmitter had been destroyed by the originating agency.p.1

Davidson said he had been told this before and mentioned he had a second article ready for publication concerning Air Force handling of space sightings.p.1

The author acknowledges the noncommittal and evasive answer was given to avoid contradicting previous statements by the CIA and other involved agencies.p.1

The author concedes the answer was 'hardly fair' to Davidson and unlikely to be fully accepted by him.p.1

An effort had been made to conceal the identity of CIA personnel from Davidson in earlier contacts, though the author believes Davidson knew with whom he was dealing.p.1

The memo closes by predicting more will be heard from Davidson on this matter.p.1

Most interesting

The document is internally consistent with prior public release: the description notes a redacted version of this memorandum has long been available on the CIA's public website.

The memo frames the CIA's evasiveness as a coordination problem across agencies rather than a denial of underlying facts, writing that the answer was the only one possible 'to avoid crossing up previous statements.'

The memo records that the CIA tried to conceal the identity of its own personnel from Davidson during in-person and telephone contacts.

Common questions

What is Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message?

A 9 January 1958 CIA Contact Division memorandum recording a phone call with Dr. Leon Davidson about a 'space message and its transmitter' whose records the originating agency had destroyed.

What does Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message reveal?

The memo is dated 9 January 1958, filed as CHI-58-17 from the Chicago Office to the Support Branch, Contact Division. CIA contacted Dr. Davidson by telephone to advise that it could not resolve his problem concerning the 'space message' and its transmitter because records on the transmitter had been destroyed by the originating agency. Davidson said he had…

Which agency produced Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message?

Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message is a primary-source record from CIA. Its original classification was UNCLASSIFIED.

When is Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message dated?

Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message is dated 1958-01-09. It was declassified 2026-06-12.

What programs and topics appear in Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message?

Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message references space message, Case 17708, Dr. Leon Davidson and Contact Division.

What does Chicago Office Stonewalls Dr. Davidson on Space Message say, in its own words?

"the ~ nonea:mt:I.ttal. am evasive 8.l:l.SVe2" (source p. 1).

. App roved f or Re l ease 2026 • Chief, Contact Divi.sicn 9 J'anuar,- 1958 : SupportBranc.h . · C!iI-58-l.7 Chid'., Chicago Office . _$.- ~ j?S-~7. Case l. TT08 { CJ cseil) ·and Dr. teol2 Darld.ao:a '"'=' •IF • . e, · •• ... I • ;p;.adio: · EEY l WA 26643, arid r.ooneJJ., Lobz:;s-nn, ~~ Tclecan o~ 8 Jan. 58 . ,.. .. 1. ~1e bm, c~ted Dr. Dav.td.son by ielepboce advising hi:a that ve cannot. reaolve bis problem cocc-e:rrdng the spic-e message and .i.ta t:ransmittcr beca:ose reco:rds en the t::e.~..er l::ave been. destroyed by tho ~ti.:lg agency. Parldson accepted. thia sta.temait vitb the cc=.1eI1t tba-t he b!4 been told thi.a bei'ore, tbat he Il01' had a seca:id art:Lcl..e ~c,r pnbllcatiOll cOJJ.Ce:rn:1ng .Aj.r Force banditng or S];:BCS sight-. 1.ng3 1.n the l;anc'J:1 ~ the Penta.gr:m secorl:t;y revie-;, peopl~ (wich be thought w.a mild e?lOtlgh to J;aSS them}. and he ll1nted that be lidglit lid.sh to take ,::g, asz,1n at a la:ter date the ma.tte:r or this i:a-,rt1cul.ar cessage. 2. tle a~ec!a~ that there have been rraey cQOks :1n • "the ki.~ • on tbis dish and that, as e. result, the ~ nonea:mt:I.ttal. am evasive 8.l:l.SVe2" ve were inst.meted to give Davidsen w..s ~:pe .-;lle only Cllle pos:ibl.e tt lie 'li'e::r'C to a-void czossillg up previous sta:te:,ent• ; I ~ oar O'WJl, and other UlV'Ol.ved agellC:leS, to this man. :But the tUJsWc:r ~ bard1y tai.r to na:v1.d.scm, and cm~ not J 1kelJ to be f'ully acc-epted I by h.iJ:a... • ! I I 3 .. Be:texeDCed. te:l.epbone ~ disclosed t=t the:ra 1a . . ! I nothing ill tm :record to sbo;i- that Drnideon lmev he was ch.mBng vi.th l the ~ 1.n ?wJ contacta nth twalker aoo. Smk1.ch, that in fact., mi ettort bad becsi ::sde to caiceru tbe.!r CL\ 1dem;:1ty- :Crcm·him. Ve- an, . r~ su:re tbat wen ~ +ruJtea to us in the court of' ippeaJ.s I . I Building confc:xeace .rocu, h9 kru!,v ver.,-vell. v.lth. Yball he l.a.s deaUJ?g; : J run in the Davidsan-I.alfountaiu tel.eyhone eoxrrersati~ Davidson speett,· . f j _i'f calJJ l?leX1t:1.oned • )"O'l:U'" a~ rs-,- which he p;ns:11::sh.1.J" mem1t en. ·. .- . I. 4-. Tile ant s:a:re xaore 'V:ill. be hes.xd :f'rcm. l:!aT:1.d.so:n. r . , ! i I .. ·- - I ·! ·R.:P.13. LOmlAD Fl:LaYcuntain: r.J . . .. ......... -~.. ::..-- - =--=-:-"·_· .":···--._;..-:.:- •.. ···- ..... ..... .- - ---- ....