"On the evening of May 11, 1950, Paul and Evelyn Trent were wrapping up their day on their small farm just outside McMinnville, Oregon, when they claimed to witness something extraordinary in the sky.
According to the Trents, a metallic, disc-shaped object silently floated over their property. Paul rushed inside, grabbed his Kodak camera, and managed to snap two black-and-white photographs before the object disappeared into the clouds.
What happened next would cement their story as one of the most iconic and debated UFO sightings in American history.
The Trents didn’t immediately share the photos. But once they did, their local newspaper, the McMinnville Telephone-Register, published them on June 8, 1950. The images quickly captured national attention.
Soon after, Life magazine, one of the most widely read publications in America at the time, reprinted the photos. The images exploded across newspapers and magazines throughout the country, igniting public curiosity about what many believed might be proof of extraterrestrial life.
In the decades that followed, investigators, scientists, and skeptics all took turns analyzing the Trent photos.
🔍 Supporters argue:
The Trents never sought fame or financial gain. The shadows and lighting in the photos support the claim that a real object was in the sky. No physical tampering or photo manipulation was ever definitively proven.
The object resembles a side-view mirror or small hubcap, possibly suspended by string. The quality of the photos, and the lack of follow-up evidence, suggests a hoax. In later interviews, small inconsistencies in the Trents’ story raised suspicion.
Despite these debates, the Trents always stood by their account—and never tried to cash in on the fame their photos brought.
Today, McMinnville, Oregon celebrates the mystery with an annual UFO Festival, complete with parades, panels, and speakers from the worlds of science, skepticism, and the paranormal. It has become the second-largest UFO festival in the U.S., behind only Roswell.
Whether you believe the Trents captured a genuine flying saucer or pulled off one of the greatest pranks in UFO lore, one thing is certain: the McMinnville UFO photos continue to inspire curiosity, debate, and wonder more than 70 years later.
Were the McMinnville UFO photos a clever hoax—or did Paul Trent truly capture something otherworldly?"
Smithsonian Magazine – “The McMinnville UFO Photographs”
