The Pascagoula River Abduction (1973)

On the evening of October 11, 1973, shipyard workers Charles Hickson (42) and Calvin Parker (19) were fishing on the Pascagoula River when an oval-shaped craft descended nearby. Three humanoid beings with grey, wrinkled skin and claw-like hands emerged, floated the paralyzed men aboard the craft, and subjected them to examination. The sheriff, skeptical of their story, secretly recorded the two men alone - their terrified conversation convinced him they were telling the truth. Hickson passed polygraph tests, and Parker would reveal decades later that he hadn’t fainted as originally reported, but was conscious and paralyzed throughout. The case triggered the massive 1973 UFO wave.

The Witnesses

Charles Hickson

Background:

• 42 years old
• Foreman at Walker Shipyard
• Married father
• Korean War veteran
• Supervisor to Parker
• No history of mental illness

Calvin Parker

Background:

• 19 years old
• First day working at shipyard
• Hickson’s co-worker
• Young, impressionable
• Deeply traumatized by event
• Never sought publicity

The Setting

The Location

Where it happened:

• Pascagoula River
• West bank pier
• Jackson County, Mississippi
• Industrial waterfront area
• Evening, approximately 9:00 PM

The Activity

What they were doing:

• Night fishing from pier
• After work relaxation
• Quiet evening
• Clear weather
• Dark riverfront

The Encounter

Initial Observation

How it began:

• Heard whirring/whizzing sound
• Observed flashing blue lights
• Object descended from sky
• Approached their location
• Hovered near pier

The Craft

Object description:

• Oval-shaped
• Approximately 30-40 feet across
• 8-10 feet high
• Glowing
• Door opened with bright white light streaming out

The Beings

What emerged:

• Three entities
• Approximately 5 feet tall
• Floated rather than walked
• Moved toward the two men
• Terrifying appearance

Being Description

Physical details (per Hickson):

• Pale/grey wrinkled skin
• No visible neck
• Head connected directly to shoulders
• Cone-like protrusions where ears/nose would be
• Slit-like mouth
• Claw or mitten-like hands
• Legs remained together
• Feet resembled elephant’s feet
• Witnesses believed beings were robotic

The Abduction

Paralysis

What happened:

• Both men unable to move
• Not physically restrained
• Some force held them
• Parker appeared to faint (later revealed he was conscious but paralyzed)
• Hickson remained aware throughout

Being Contact

The approach:

• Beings grabbed both men
• Claw-like appendages gripped them
• Men floated/levitated
• Taken toward craft
• Carried inside

Aboard the Craft

Hickson’s experience:

• Floated in bright room
• Subjected to examination
• “Football-like” eye device scanned him
• Device moved around his body
• No communication from beings
• Experience lasted approximately 20 minutes

Parker’s Later Revelation

2018 admission:

• Had not actually fainted
• Was conscious entire time
• Paralyzed but aware
• Too traumatized to discuss initially
• Concealed this for 46 years

Return

How it ended:

• Men returned to riverbank
• Floated back to original position
• Craft departed with whizzing sound
• Beings did not communicate
• Left men on pier

Immediate Aftermath

The Decision

What they did first:

• Initially decided not to report
• Feared ridicule
• But felt obligation
• Went to Mississippi Press office
• No reporters available

Sheriff’s Office

Reporting the incident:

• Proceeded to Jackson County Sheriff’s Office
• Reported to Captain Glenn Ryder
• Deputies initially skeptical
• But noted men were genuinely terrified
• Took statement

The Secret Recording

The crucial evidence:

• Sheriff Fred Diamond suspected hoax
• Secretly left tape recorder running
• Left Hickson and Parker alone in room
• Recorded their private conversation
• Men did not know they were being recorded

What the Recording Revealed

Their private words:

• Genuine terror evident
• Parker broke down crying
• Stories remained completely consistent
• No collaboration on fabrication
• Authentic traumatic reaction

Sheriff’s Conclusion

After hearing tape:

• Convinced men were telling truth
• Not lying
• Something happened
• Changed his skeptical position
• Supported their credibility

Investigation

Dr. J. Allen Hynek

CUFOS founder’s involvement:

• Arrived within 36 hours
• Interviewed both men
• Conducted hypnosis sessions (with Dr. Harder)
• Concluded: “These men have had a very real, frightening experience”
• Called them “absolutely honest”

Dr. James Harder

APRO investigation:

• Conducted regressive hypnosis
• Details consistent under hypnosis
• Trauma clearly genuine
• Supported authenticity
• Published findings

Polygraph Examination

Lie detection:

• Hickson passed polygraph test
• Conducted by experienced examiner
• Results: telling truth as he knew it
• Parker passed test years later
• Both cleared

Keesler Air Force Base

Medical examination:

• Both men examined at Keesler AFB
• Checked for radiation exposure
• Cleared of contamination
• Physical effects documented
• Military involvement noted

Media Coverage

National Attention

The publicity:

• Story picked up by AP and UPI wire services
• October 12, 1973
• Worldwide media attention
• Hickson appeared on Dick Cavett Show
• Generated massive interest

The 1973 Wave

Triggering effect:

• Case launched wave of UFO reports
• Gulf Coast region especially
• Hundreds of subsequent sightings
• National UFO hysteria followed
• Peak of activity October 1973

Later Developments

Published Accounts

Documentation:

• “UFO Contact at Pascagoula” (1983) - Hickson
• “Pascagoula: The Closest Encounter” (2018) - Parker
• Numerous documentary appearances
• Case studied extensively

Historical Marker

Recognition:

• Unveiled at site June 22, 2019
• Official acknowledgment
• Annual Pascagoula UFO festival
• Cultural significance recognized
• Site preserved

Deaths

The witnesses:

• Charles Hickson died September 2011, age 80
• Maintained account to the end
• Never recanted
• Parker remains active in UFO community

Skeptical Analysis

Philip Klass

Skeptic’s position:

• Noted “discrepancies” in story
• Claimed Hickson refused experienced polygraph examiner
• Suggested fabrication
• Did not explain secret recording

Other Explanations

Proposed alternatives:

• Joe Nickell: hypnagogic “waking dream state”
• Parker suggestibility
• Shared hallucination
• None explain polygraph or secret recording

Significance

Evidence Quality

Why this case matters:

• Two adult male witnesses
• Immediate report to authorities
• Secret recording proved consistency
• Polygraph tests passed
• Physical/psychological trauma documented
• Medical examination conducted

The Secret Recording

The key evidence:

• Unaware they were being recorded
• Private conversation authentic
• No fabrication detected
• Terror genuine
• Turned skeptical sheriff into believer

Template Case

Its influence:

• Established pattern for abduction investigation
• Showed importance of early documentation
• Demonstrated polygraph utility
• Influenced future research methods
• Remained reference case

The Question

October 11, 1973. The Pascagoula River. Mississippi.

Charlie Hickson and Calvin Parker are fishing. After work. Normal night. Cast the line, wait for a bite.

Then the sound.

Whirring. Whizzing. Blue lights above the water.

An oval craft. Thirty feet across. Glowing. Descending. Stopping right there. Right in front of them.

A door opens. Light streams out.

And they come.

Three of them. Grey. Wrinkled skin. No necks. Claw hands. Floating, not walking.

Hickson can’t move. Parker - he’ll say he fainted, but 46 years later he’ll admit the truth. He was awake. Paralyzed. Watching.

The claws grab them. They float. Into the light. Into the craft.

Inside, something examines Hickson. A floating eye. Moving around his body. Scanning. Recording. He doesn’t know.

Twenty minutes? Longer? Time means nothing.

Then they’re back on the pier. The craft rises. The sound fades. They’re alone.

They go to the sheriff. They’re terrified. The deputies can see it. But they’re skeptical. Of course they’re skeptical.

So the sheriff does something clever. Something crucial.

He leaves them alone. With a hidden tape recorder.

And what that tape captures changes everything.

They don’t know they’re being recorded. They talk. Parker breaks down. Sobs. They don’t adjust their story. They don’t collaborate. They just… try to process what happened to them.

The terror is real.

The sheriff knows. These men aren’t lying.

Dr. Hynek comes. “Absolutely honest.”

Hickson takes a polygraph. Passes.

The world believes. Or doesn’t. But the evidence is there.

The tape recording. The polygraphs. The consistent story across 46 years.

Charles Hickson died never changing his account.

Calvin Parker still tells it the same way.

October 11, 1973.

The Pascagoula River.

Something took them.

The secret tape proved they weren’t lying.

What it was?

Still unexplained.

Still waiting for an answer.