Within Rhodes Photos
How Reliable Was William Rhodes?
Rhodes's account remains central because the photographs depend heavily on one witness whose claims, skills and credibility were later disputed.
On this page
- Rhodes's Phoenix sighting account
- Amateur astronomer, inventor and public persona
- Later doubts about credibility and corroboration
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Introduction
In Arizona’s early post‑war UFO history, the Rhodes UFO photographs stand out because they were among the first claimed photographic captures of an unidentified aerial object and because they hinged so heavily on the credibility of a single witness, William A. Rhodes. His account of what he saw near Phoenix on 7 July 1947, and the trustworthiness of his testimony and background, have been debated ever since — shaping how historians and sceptics view the incident’s evidential value within the state’s broader UFO record.[Wikipedia]
Rhodes’s Phoenix sighting account
On the evening of 7 July 1947, just weeks after the flying‑disc wave triggered by pilot Kenneth Arnold, Rhodes reported that he heard a loud “whoosh” and then saw an unusual, silent object moving overhead near his home in Phoenix. Describing the craft as flat, grey and maybe 20–30 feet across, he grabbed his camera and snapped two photographs of it before it sped away. The next day The Arizona Republic published the images under the headline “Mystery ‘Whatsis’ Photographed over Phoenix”, noting the object’s shape “like the heel of a shoe, with a small hole in the centre.”[Wikipedia]
Rhodes told reporters the object made three passes over his house and left vapour trails. Soon after publication, federal investigators — including the FBI and Army Counterintelligence Corps — obtained copies of the photos and interviewed him, eventually taking the negatives for analysis. The U.S. Air Force later included the case in its emerging UFO files as Incident 40 in what would become Project Blue Book.[Wikipedia]
Amateur astronomer, inventor and public persona
Rhodes described himself as an amateur astronomer, inventor, radio operator and electronics enthusiast. Contemporary accounts and later biographical snapshots portray him as a creative, self‑taught individual with varied interests. Earlier articles noted he built a telescope, manufactured radio‑controlled model aircraft and worked with electronics long before the 1947 incident. In later years he continued to experiment with photography and optical equipment, and was mentioned in local newspapers for inventions such as a television light amplifier.[Kiddle]kids.kiddle.coRhodes UFO photographsRhodes. These photos supposedly show a disc-shaped object flying over Phoenix…Read more…
This varied background was one reason the original newspaper presentation framed Rhodes not as a casual witness but as someone with technical interests that might lend credibility to his sighting. However, beyond local press coverage, there is no authoritative record from independent professional or academic institutions verifying advanced scientific qualifications or formal credentials for Rhodes.[Wikipedia]
Later doubts about credibility and corroboration
The strength of Rhodes’s testimony has long been contested, and several aspects of his character and evidence handling have fuelled scepticism:
- Government file notes from the 1947 investigation indicate that observers were interested not just in Rhodes’s photographs but in his character and affiliations. Official records note that his character “is presently under investigation” in the context of assessing the sighting.[Wikipedia]
- Photographic analysis by Air Force consultants revealed disagreement about whether the object in the images could have been captured under the conditions Rhodes described. Some experts suggested the dark shape seen might be windblown debris such as paper — a mundane object swept up in the breeze — rather than an extraordinary aerial craft. The fact that the negative was reportedly poorly developed and streaked further clouded technical confidence.[Wikipedia]
- Some historical sceptics have argued that Rhodes exaggerated aspects of his expertise and that his mixed personal history — including varied self‑descriptions and later dubious claims about photograph suppression — undermines his reliability as a source. Online sceptical analyses allege he may have misrepresented educational credentials or professional status, although these claims are typically based on secondary commentary rather than definitive archival proof.[ufoexplorations]ufoexplorations.comUFO Explorations | The UFOs That Never Were: Classic Photos ExposedufoexplorationsUFO Explorations | The UFOs That Never Were: Classic Photos Exposed…
- Official classification as “possible hoax” appears in U.S. Air Force files on the case. While some intelligence officers privately described the Rhodes photographs as authentic, the formal Project Blue Book evaluation did not endorse the sighting as conclusive evidence of anything extraordinary.[NICAP]
The combination of uncertain photographic interpretation, lack of corroborating witnesses, and questions about Rhodes’s own standing has made his testimony a focal point of debate. Where early publicity heralded the photos as rare visual evidence, later scrutiny treated the source — Rhodes himself — as part of the problem when judging their evidential weight.
What the debate means for Arizona’s UFO history
In the context of Arizona’s UFO records, Rhodes’s case illustrates a core lesson of the 1947 flying‑disc era: that early reports often blended genuine curiosity with social contagion, media amplification and uneven witness reliability. Unlike large clusters of sightings with multiple independent observers, the Phoenix incident rests mainly on one individual and two grainy photographs. The ongoing contestation about Rhodes’s credibility highlights how witness character and documentation quality can tilt a case from “notable photographic evidence” toward “ambiguous anomaly” in historical analysis.[Wikipedia]
By focusing on Rhodes as both the source of the images and the subject of credibility debates, this episode underscores the interpretive challenges of early UFO reporting in Arizona — where excitement, expectation and limited technology combined to leave a legacy that remains unresolved rather than conclusively explained.[Kiddle]kids.kiddle.coRhodes UFO photographsRhodes. These photos supposedly show a disc-shaped object flying over Phoenix…Read more…
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Further Reading
Books and field guides related to How Reliable Was William Rhodes?. Use these as the next step if you want deeper reading beyond the article.
The UFO Experience
Addresses witness reliability, evidence quality, and case assessment.
The Report on Unidentified Flying Objects
Shows how investigators judged witness credibility.
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Endnotes
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Source: Wikipedia
Title: Rhodes UFO photographs
Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhodes_UFO_photographs -
Source: kids.kiddle.co
Title: Rhodes UFO photographs
Link: https://kids.kiddle.co/Rhodes_UFO_photographsSource snippet
Rhodes. These photos supposedly show a disc-shaped object flying over Phoenix...Read more...
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Source: Wikipedia
Title: William Albert Rhodes
Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Albert_Rhodes -
Source: ufoexplorations.com
Title: UFO Explorations | The UFOs That Never Were: Classic Photos Exposed
Link: https://www.ufoexplorations.com/ufos-that-never-were-classic-photosSource snippet
ufoexplorationsUFO Explorations | The UFOs That Never Were: Classic Photos Exposed...
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Source: nicap.org
Title: ReportUFOWave1947 SectionIV
Link: https://nicap.org/waves/Wave47Rpt/ReportUFOWave1947_SectionIV.htmSource snippet
NICAPReport on UFO Wave of 1947 Section IV...
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Source: vault.fbi.gov
Link: https://vault.fbi.gov/Project%20Blue%20Book%20%28UFO%29%20/Project%20Blue%20Book%20%28UFO%29%20Part%2001%20%28Final%29/at_download/fileSource snippet
Blue Book (UFO) part 1 of 1UFOs by the Air. Force iswarranted. In view of the consider- able Air. Force... UFOreported sightings. The ne...
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Source: nicap.org
Link: https://www.nicap.org/1947.htmSource snippet
July 4, 1947; over Emmet, Idaho. 8:17 p.m. PDT. Witnesses: United Air Lines Capt. E.J. Smith, First Officer Ralph Stevens, Stewardess Mar...
Published: July 4, 1947
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Source: ufoac.com
Title: Incident 40
Link: https://ufoac.com/incident-40-ufo.htmlSource snippet
William A. Rhodes, a professional musician and amateur photographer, radio operator and electronics enthusia...
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Source: en.wikipedia-on-ipfs.org
Title: UFO conspiracy theory
Link: https://en.wikipedia-on-ipfs.org/wiki/UFO_conspiracy_theorySource snippet
Some conspiracy theories also claim that some governments might have removed an...
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Source: thenightskyii.org
Link: https://thenightskyii.org/rhodes1.htmlSource snippet
Rhodes PhotographsJuly 7, 1947 — WILLIAM A. RHODES PHOTOGRAPHS Image: William A. Rhodes Photographs DATE: JULY 7, 1947 LOCATION: PHOENIX...
Published: July 7, 1947
Additional References
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Source: picryl.com
Link: https://picryl.com/topics/ufo%2Bsightings%2Bin%2Bthe%2Bunited%2BstatesSource snippet
2 Ufo sightings in the united states ImagesRhodes UFO photos. Photos that were reportedly taken on July 7, 1947 by William A. Rhodes in P...
Published: July 7, 1947
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Source: justapedia.org
Link: https://justapedia.org/wiki/Rhodes_UFO_photographsSource snippet
Rhodes UFO photographsThe Rhodes photographs have been described as among the "first" and "best" purported UFO photographs, and the sight...
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Source: theufochronicles.com
Link: https://www.theufochronicles.com/2010/06/counter-intelligence-report-photographs.htmlSource snippet
June 15, 2010 — COUNTER INTELLIGENCE REPORT & PHOTOGRAPHS OF UFO CAPTURED ON FILM OVER PHOENIX, ARIZONA JULY 7, 1947 - click on image(s)...
Published: June 15, 2010
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Source: facebook.com
Title: it shows the vulnerability of the us defense systemharvard physicist avi loeb ex
Link: https://www.facebook.com/alarabiya.english/posts/it-shows-the-vulnerability-of-the-us-defense-systemharvard-physicist-avi-loeb-ex/1430488779116138/?locale=es_LASource snippet
“It shows the VULNERABILITY of the US defense system.”...In the 1960s and '70s, repeated UFO sightings emerged at Malmstrom Air Force Ba...
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Source: alienconspiracy.tripod.com
Title: The man who took the pictures was William A. Rhodes who described
Link: https://alienconspiracy.tripod.com/photos/rhodes.htmSource snippet
PhotosJuly 7, 1947 — JULY 7, 1947 >> PHOENIX, ARIZONA The [Rhodes photos]({{ 'rhodes-photos/' | relative_url }}) were some of the first reported to show a UFO in flight taken in...
Published: July 7, 1947
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Source: archives.gov
Title: The Central Intelligence Agency and Overhead
Link: https://www.archives.gov/files/declassification/iscap/pdf/2014-004-doc01.pdfSource snippet
Air Force's Operation BLUE BOOK. Based at Wright-Patterson, the operation collected all reports of UFO sightings. Air Force investiga tor...
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Source: ciphermysteries.com
Title: the roswell capsule was it tex settles flying coffin
Link: https://ciphermysteries.com/2026/01/15/the-roswell-capsule-was-it-tex-settles-flying-coffinSource snippet
The Roswell capsule: was it Tex Settle's Flying Coffin?15 Jan 2026 — “At the center of the idea that Marilyn knew about the UFOs is a mys...
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Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/razasamo8/posts/the-ufo-debate-just-got-even-stranger-and-this-time-the-claims-are-coming-from-n/1510176677142180/Source snippet
overed four alien species from cra*shed UFOs through secret...Read more...
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Source: reddit.com
Title: were newspaper dailies pulled in 1947 to stop
Link: https://www.reddit.com/r/UFOs/comments/1aya3ds/were_newspaper_dailies_pulled_in_1947_to_stop/Source snippet
this UFO...The Rhodes UFO photos aka shoe-heel UFO photos, were captured on July 7, 1947, by amateur astronomer William Albert Rhodes, s...
Published: July 7, 1947
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Source: latest-ufo-sightings.net
Title: He was able to find one witness who claime
Link: https://www.latest-ufo-sightings.net/2016/02/the-dreamy-draw-dam-ufo-crash-incident.htmlSource snippet
The Dreamy Draw Dam UFO Crash Incident • Latest UFO SightingsFebruary 8, 2016 — Open Minds Radio host, Alejandro Rojas, said that he trie...
Published: February 8, 2016
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