On September 19, 1961, Barney and Betty Hill were on their way home to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, after enjoying a vacation in Canada. Traveling south from Montreal, the Hills passed through the town of Lancaster, New Hampshire, and were driving on a lonely stretch of US Route 3 through the White Mountains. The Hills were a quiet, middle-aged couple, but they had an experience that made international headlines. The debate about what really happened that night continues today.
According to the Hills, around 10:30 PM, they saw a mysterious light in the sky, moving strangely. As it got nearer, they recognized it as an "odd-shaped" craft - initially, Barney dismissed it as an airplane, but it didn't move at all like one. Eventually, the craft came so close they had to stop their car in the middle of the highway to confront it - and what happened next is chilling.
UFO sightings were nothing new in the 1960s, but the Hill abduction case remains one of the most elaborate, detailed, and compelling cases of all time.
Barney Reported That The Aliens Communicated With Him Telepathically
Initially, the Hills saw the mysterious craft, then didn't remember anything that happened until they "woke up" again almost two hours later. However, under hypnosis, Barney recalled that he and his wife had stopped their car in the middle of the highway. Then he saw a group of humanoid figures inside the craft. While the aliens scurried to open the UFO's door, one of them told him telepathically, "stay where you are and keep looking."
Barney's description of the aliens would be the first time the public ever learned of "greys": "bald-headed alien beings, about five foot tall, with greyish skin, pear shaped heads, and slanting cat-like eyes."
The Hills Claimed They Underwent A Series Of Medical Tests
The Hills said they were taken inside the craft and subjected to a series of invasive medical tests. The aliens took samples of their skin, hair, and nails, and even removed Barney's dentures. They inserted a long needle into Betty's navel to determine if she was pregnant, and took a semen sample from Barney.
After these tests, the Hills were returned to their car again unharmed.
In the opinion of the psychiatrist, the Hills were mentally sound and the story they recounted under hypnosis was true - or at least, they both believed it to be true and were not intentionally lying. Even stranger, Betty and Barney were hypnotized and interviewed separately, but both recalled almost identical events.
After Her Supposed Abduction, Betty Drew A Map Of An Undiscovered Star System
Dr. Benjamin Simon, a renowned psychiatrist, met with the Hills in 1964. While under hypnosis and without any interference, Betty drew a map of the constellation from which the aliens supposedly originated. At the time, this map was dismissed, because it didn't match any known constellations. However, in 1969, the Zeta Reticuli system, 39 light years from Earth, became known to astronomers, and this system seemed to match the map Betty had drawn eight years before.
The Night Of The Encounter, The Hills Lost Nearly Two Hours
Reports of missing time are common in UFO abduction cases. According to the Hills, there was a period of two hours they couldn't account for on the night of their unearthly encounter. As a strange craft approached their vehicle, the last thing they remembered was hearing unusual buzzing noises just before they slipped into unconsciousness. The couple woke up near Ashland, New Hampshire, more than 30 miles down the highway, and they didn't recall driving there. They arrived home in a confused state early in the morning on September 20, 1961, and the trip took longer than it should have.
Betty Suffered Strange, Recurring Nightmares After The Experience
The Hills began to notice that some things weren't quite right after they got home, even though neither of them could remember exactly what happened. Betty had recurring nightmares in which she and her husband were stopped in the middle of the night on a deserted road, then taken away by odd-looking people.
Barney, too, began to show signs of stress, including high blood pressure and ulcers, as well as developing a strange rash around his groin.
Peculiar Shiny Spots Appeared On Their Car
Photo: Youtube
The Hills found peculiar shiny spots on the trunk of their car that weren't there before they sighted the UFO. It looked as if the paint on the vehicle's exterior had been shined or buffed away. Even more puzzling was how a compass reacted when it was brought close to the concentric shapes. It didn't point in any specific direction, but spun around wildly instead. The needle slowed down when the compass was moved further away from the spots. This seemed to suggest that a powerful electromagnetic force was at work.
