In the process of reconstructing the memo, which we are carrying out piece by piece using various new methods, we would also like to occasionally publish a few fragments and explain our analysis of them.
This article specifically focuses on two words that are located at the following position in the memo:
Attribution for original photos: “Courtesy, Fort Worth Star-Telegram Photograph Collection, Special Collections, The University of Texas at Arlington Library, Arlington, Texas.”
What could be written here? Depending on the interpretation of various well-known Roswell researchers, each comes to a different conclusion.
We have examined it very closely, using the latest methods and logical analysis.
As a result, the outcome is 99.9% certain.
- Ramey with the Memo (original photos). Attribution to: “Courtesy, Fort Worth Star-Telegram Photograph Collection, Special Collections, The University of Texas at Arlington Library, Arlington, Texas.”
The memo itself is approximately 18.7 x 16 cm in size, which converts to about 7.375 x 6.3 inches. Perhaps slightly larger.
This rules out an A4 typewriter sheet.
It is folded twice. The photos from the press conference show that only the front side is written on. This side is visible in only one photo, and mostly in poor quality. The paper color is probably cream to yellowish or white, as was common at the time. The paper used was thin and lightweight. Our test determined that it is definitely thinner than the A4 paper commonly used today. By comparing photos, it was clearly demonstrated that the memo paper seen in the press conference photos bends much more easily, whether due to gravity or handling. Based on Ramey’s hand size, we were able to roughly calculate the size of the memo. We conducted various comparisons to achieve this. By analyzing the fold lines, we can also deduce that the upper half of the memo is bent at an angle of approximately 45 degrees to the left and about 85 degrees in the middle.
In the upper third of the memo, there seems to be a kind of letterhead. We will provide more detailed information on this in another very interesting analysis.
The folds also indicate that the memo had already been folded in all photos.
This, of course, raises another question. If Ramey himself had written the memo, why did he fold it? Did he not write it in his office, or did he have it written? Did he receive it from another base? Was it telegraphed to him already prepared? By someone in a higher position? Or was it once folded inside an envelope?
Or did the photographer James Bond Johnson actually bring it from the news editorial office, as he initially claimed? Since it was folded, that would make sense. For example, to carry it in a jacket or a bag? A jacket is unlikely since the temperatures in July were around 95-100°F (35-38°C). However, reporters still liked to wear suits.
Even if Ramey received it as a telegram, why did he fold it instead of simply leaving it in his office?
Another test we conducted with both left- and right-handed individuals showed that the memo, based on the folding sequence, could have been folded by either a left- or right-handed person. The results were evenly balanced.
However, it is not so important whether the reporter folded the memo himself. The more important question is, if it is indeed of military origin and possibly even written by Ramey himself, why would he fold it?
Moreover, in a second version, photographer Johnson reported that the memo was on Ramey’s desk, and he did not bring it from the news editorial office. He handed the memo to Ramey to help him pose better for the photos. But why would a folded memo be lying on the desk?
It certainly wasn’t lying there openly, as Ramey almost certainly wouldn’t have folded and unfolded it a minute before the photos were taken.
But would a photographer really be inclined to take a folded memo from the desk and hand it to Ramey? We cannot answer this question at the moment. At least not in this way.
- LT. GEN. ROGER M. RAMEY. The memo he held during the press conference is named after him.
WHAT WE CAN DEFINITELY SAY, HOWEVER, IS THAT RAMEY DID NOT TYPE THE MEMO HIMSELF IN HIS OFFICE. We will explain why this is the case shortly. This does not rule out the possibility that he received the memo from someone else in the chain of command and is merely passing on what he was instructed to. Nor does it rule out the possibility that it did indeed come from a news editorial office.
The focus is on two words in the memo:
HAUGHT, PUBLIC.
These two words might be enough to solve a mystery.
There is a phrase in the memo that well-known Roswell memo researchers like Barry Greenwood and David Rudiak disagree on. Each has their own interpretation with different arguments. We have examined this in detail to get closer to the mystery of this passage.
Barry Greenwood believes the following sentence can be read: “WARREN HAUGHT, PUBLIC RELATIONS OFFICER AT ROSWELL, SAID“
David Rudiak, after his memo reconstruction, concludes: “B29-ST OR C47. WRIGHT AF ASSESS(ASSIST) AIRFOIL(FLY-OUT) AT ROSWELL. ASSURE(ABOUT)“
*Parentheses indicate alternative word interpretations by Rudiak.
For us, the two words “HAUGHT,” and “PUBLIC” from Greenwood’s interpretation are key. Rudiak’s interpretation with “OR C47.” and “WRIGHT” at the same positions is also crucial.
In this sense, the words look completely different. So, what is really visible on the memo? Let’s take a closer look using the latest methods:
Copyright 2024 Richard Burian
It is clearly evident that the word appears to indeed be HAUGHT, followed by a comma and the word ‘PUBLIC.’
Another interpretation is difficult to imagine based on this analysis.
But now comes the most important part: Why is a letter missing here? Or rather, why isn’t the letter fully printed?
More precisely, why is the letter U missing?
It is only partially visible. What could be the reason for this?
This analytical finding is of particular significance because it seems to apply to the entire memo.
Of course, there are Roswell researchers who believe that these gaps, or at least one of them, are intentional and that other letters, instead of those in HAUGHT, are in their positions.
But considering logic and probability, and based on the visible letters, there is only one possible conclusion. It’s also important to consider that the paper was not completely flat and the printing was not perfect.
For PUBLIC, the clear pattern of P**LI* can be seen. That is, P, L, and I. An analysis allows for only one possible word: PUBLIC. Even though the B is not fully printed or visible.
The same applies to HAUGHT. Even if the pattern analysis leaves only ‘H**GHT,’ theoretically, HEIGHT, HAIGHT, and HAUGHT could be considered. HEIGHT can be ruled out, as can be seen in the image. HAIGHT is still possible, but based on the logic regarding ‘pUblic‘, where the U is missing, and also in ‘haUght‘ there is a gap, it suggests that the U was not properly printed throughout the memo, leaving HAUGHT as the only remaining option.
This also leads to the conclusion that Ramey did not type the memo on his typewriter. Why? It’s simple. Everyone remembers how it used to be. Sometimes, if the ribbon wasn’t new, or if you didn’t fully press a key on a mechanical typewriter, you’d get a blank space or a lightly printed letter. You’d have to backspace and press the key again, sometimes multiple times. If Ramey had typed the memo on his own typewriter, he would have surely corrected the letters rather than leaving them blank. One could argue that his typewriter had this flaw in general. However, another document he wrote on April 15, 1947, does not match this described typeface:
Attribution: TCU Library for the original document. >OPEN original document<
You can see on this document that the typewriter produced a clear and clean typeface. There is no indication that this would have changed anytime soon. Just under three months later, on July 8, 1947, the press conference regarding the Roswell crash took place. The mentioned U is also clearly visible in the document he wrote on April 15, 1947. Here, in the signature:
It would, of course, look very different if the document came from a teletypewriter that prints out messages from AP or other sources. Such teleprinters were indeed used by the Army.
The print quality of teletype machines was generally coarser than that of high-quality typewriters because teletype machines were designed for speed and durability, not for fine typography.
While many teletype machines and typewriters used the same character set, teletype machines could typically display fewer special characters, as they were optimized for message transmission and had a more limited selection of characters.
Teletype machines and typewriters usually used similar, often even identical fonts. The most commonly used font was the so-called monospaced font, where each character has the same width.
Teletype machines had mechanical parts responsible for printing individual characters. If the mechanism that was supposed to print a particular character (like the “U”) was worn, bent, or jammed, it could result in that character not being printed correctly. Teletype machines, therefore, also required maintenance.
In conclusion, we would, of course, like to explain the significance of HAUGHT and PUBLIC. In the Roswell researcher community, there are discrepancies regarding this. It’s not just the well-known Roswell researchers Barry Greenwood and David Rudiak who have different interpretations.
While Rudiak cannot recognize either of these words, Greenwood identifies HAUGHT and PUBLIC, among other things.
Our analysis has come to the clear conclusion that it is indeed HAUGHT and PUBLIC with a probability of well over 99 percent.
What’s interesting is the connection, which presents another mystery. Because WALTER HAUT —yes, you read that correctly— was the Public Information Officer for the 509th Bomb Group stationed in Roswell, New Mexico, in 1947. Haut is known for issuing the initial press release about the ‘flying disc‘ during the Roswell incident.
- WALTER HAUT (correct name), Warren Haught (incorrect name) – Public Information Officer
So why would the name of a military employee be misspelled? Instead of HAUT, HAUGHT would be read in the memo. But that’s not all — Barry Greenwood even sees the full name … WARREN HAUGHT, PUBLIC RELATIONS OFFICER … in the sentence on the memo.
And in reality, his name is WALTER HAUT. In the military, someone responsible for the press is called a PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER, not a PUBLIC RELATIONS OFFICER.
So how could this actually have happened? The most likely explanation is indeed a careless mistake—one that could only happen to someone who typically doesn’t have much interaction with the military or perhaps someone from a different military institution who isn’t exactly familiar with the name. So, does the memo actually come from the news editorial office and was brought by James Bond Johnson, the photographer? It’s hard to imagine how often names are misspelled in newspapers, even for celebrities. This could be something that was reported over the phone and then noted down. Like in a game of telephone, the name may have simply been misunderstood. Instead of HAUT, HAUGHT was written. At least Greenwood and Rudiak seem to agree on one thing (End of that sentence): ‘AT ROSWELL.’
It’s also possible that the misinformation came from United Press. In the July 9, 1947 edition of the Lowell Sun in Massachusetts, the following is reported. However, it should be noted that the newspaper published this article on July 9, a day after the press conference:
Reports on Flying Disks Fall Off Sharply Today. People Who Thought They Had Found Flying Saucers Find They Have Nothing. By United Press. Reports on flying saucers whiz-zing through the sky fall off sharply today as the Army and Navy began a concentrated cam-paign to stop the rumors. PRO in Trouble. The exctiement ran through this cycle: 1. Lieut. WARREN HAUGHT, PUBLIC RELATIONS OFFICER AT ROSWELL base released a statement in the name of Col. William Blanchard, base commander. …
But even a day earlier, in the July 8, 1947 article in the San Mateo CA Times, there was:
Missile Found By Rancher in New Mexico” WARREN HAUGHT, PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER AT ROSWELL
It is interesting to note that while PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER is correct, the name WALTER HAUT is also misspelled here.
Barry Greenwood did a good job with these newspaper researches and identified these passages in newspaper articles. Others criticize that the timeline of the terms appearing in the press and newspapers does not match the initial reports from the news editorial office. The complex explanations can be read in this article, particularly in the comments, on Kevin Randle’s blog. David Rudiak also weighs in here:
>>>Sequence with discrepancies<<<
By the way, we have thoroughly searched several hundred articles, all of which are very similar or even identical, from various U.S. newspapers of that time. The timeframe for all these articles spans two weeks, from before to after the incident, and we can absolutely confirm that in almost all of the articles, Walter Haut’s name was misspelled as ‘Warren Haught.’
Since September 8, 2024, we have advanced our analysis of the Ramey Memo to the point where we can say with certainty what kind of origin the memo has. More on this will be coming soon.
- Ramey with the Memo (original photos). Attribution to: “Courtesy, Fort Worth Star-Telegram Photograph Collection, Special Collections, The University of Texas at Arlington Library, Arlington, Texas.”
>Ramey Memo High Resolution Microfiche Scans<