Within Space Pancakes
Did Anyone Else See the Eagle River Landing?
Nearby UFO reports added local context, but no witness independently confirmed the landing, occupants, water request or exchange of cakes.
On this page
- What Savino Borgo reported near Highway 70
- Why later regional sightings do not confirm the landing
- The missing independent evidence for Simonton's encounter
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Introduction
The short answer is no. Although several people in and around Eagle River reported unusual objects in the days surrounding Joe Simonton’s famous 18 April 1961 encounter, none independently confirmed the central elements of his story: the landing near his home, the three occupants, the request for water, or the exchange of the pancakes. Those later reports provide local context and show that unidentified aerial sightings were being discussed in the area, but they do not serve as independent corroboration of Simonton’s extraordinary claim. The distinction matters because the strength of any unusual case depends not only on the credibility of the main witness, but also on whether key events can be verified by others.
Did Anyone Else See the Eagle River Landing?
Simonton was alone throughout the alleged encounter. By his own account, no neighbours, passers-by or family members witnessed the craft while it was on or near his property. Investigators from the Air Force, Project Blue Book, J. Allen Hynek and civilian UFO organisations all had to rely on Simonton’s testimony for every crucial part of the incident.[Center for UFO Studies]cufos.orgCenter for UFO Studies Classic UFO CasesCenter for UFO StudiesClassic UFO Cases - Center for UFO Studies…
This absence of independent observation became one of the central weaknesses of the case. Even investigators who regarded Simonton as sincere distinguished between believing that he honestly reported what he thought he experienced and concluding that the event occurred exactly as described. Hynek, for example, considered Simonton a credible and consistent witness, but consistency alone could not substitute for independent confirmation.[Center for UFO Studies]cufos.org1961 04 18 US WI Eagle River CLARK IURCenter for UFO StudiesSpring 1996…
What Savino Borgo Reported Near Highway 70
The most frequently cited supporting witness was Savino Borgo, an Eagle River insurance agent and Scoutmaster.
According to contemporary newspaper reports, Borgo said he was driving on Highway 70, roughly a mile from Simonton’s farm, when he saw a metallic, saucer-shaped object rise diagonally and head west, generally parallel with the road. The sighting was reported as occurring at about the same time Simonton said his encounter took place.[Center for UFO Studies]cufos.org1961 04 18 US WI Eagle River NICAP Simonton CE IIICenter for UFO StudiesApril 25, 1961Prof. C.A. ManeyMarch 25, 2026…
At first glance, Borgo’s account appears important because:
- it came from a named local resident;
- it was reported shortly after the event rather than decades later;
- the timing broadly overlapped with Simonton’s claimed encounter.
However, the similarities end there.
Borgo did not report seeing:
- a craft on the ground;
- any occupants;
- a landing on Simonton’s property;
- anyone collecting water;
- any exchange of food;
- unusual activity around the farmhouse.
Instead, his description concerned only a distant aerial object travelling away from the area. Even if his observation is accepted as accurate, it cannot independently establish that Simonton’s much more detailed encounter actually occurred.[Center for UFO Studies]cufos.org1961 04 18 US WI Eagle River NICAP Simonton CE IIICenter for UFO StudiesApril 25, 1961Prof. C.A. ManeyMarch 25, 2026…
Why Later Regional Sightings Do Not Confirm the Landing
As publicity surrounding the “space pancake” story spread, additional reports emerged from the wider Eagle River region.
Contemporary newspapers mentioned other residents, including market owner Jack Long and state employment office manager Gibb Sanborn, who said they had recently seen flying saucers. Simonton also claimed he received letters from people elsewhere in Wisconsin who believed they had seen unusual objects but had been reluctant to report them publicly.[Center for UFO Studies]cufos.org1961 04 18 US WI Eagle River NICAP Simonton CE IIICenter for UFO StudiesApril 25, 1961Prof. C.A. ManeyMarch 25, 2026…
These reports add historical context but have significant limitations.
First, many lacked precise times, locations or descriptions that would allow investigators to connect them directly with Simonton’s experience.
Second, some reports surfaced only after newspaper coverage had made the Eagle River incident widely known. Once a dramatic story receives national attention, later witnesses may naturally compare ordinary observations with the published description, making independent assessment more difficult.
Third, none of these sightings described the distinctive sequence that makes the Simonton case famous. Seeing an unexplained object in the sky is not the same as witnessing a landed craft and interaction with its occupants.
For these reasons, researchers generally treat the regional sightings as evidence that unusual aerial reports existed around Eagle River, not as confirmation of Simonton’s encounter itself.[Center for UFO Studies]cufos.org1961 04 18 US WI Eagle River CLARK IURCenter for UFO StudiesSpring 1996…
The Missing Independent Evidence
The lack of corroboration becomes clearer when examining the specific claims that would most benefit from independent witnesses.
No one besides Simonton reported observing:
- the silvery craft hovering beside his home;
- three human-like occupants;
- the request for water using gestures;
- the interior of the craft;
- cooking inside the vehicle;
- the pancakes being handed over;
- the craft’s departure from the property.
Nor were these observations supported by photographs, verified landing traces, or contemporaneous measurements made by independent investigators. The pancakes themselves were genuine physical objects, but laboratory examination found ordinary terrestrial ingredients rather than anything that could establish an extraterrestrial origin.[Center for UFO Studies]cufos.orgCenter for UFO Studies Classic UFO CasesCenter for UFO StudiesClassic UFO Cases - Center for UFO Studies…
This creates an important evidential distinction. The existence of the pancakes confirms only that pancakes existed. It does not independently verify where they came from.
How Investigators Weighed the Witnesses
Researchers have generally separated two different questions:
- Was Simonton an honest witness?
- Was his account independently corroborated?
Many people who knew Simonton—including local officials and later investigators—described him as truthful, modest and apparently uninterested in publicity. Hynek likewise found him straightforward and resistant to embellishment.[Center for UFO Studies]cufos.org1961 04 18 US WI Eagle River CLARK IURCenter for UFO StudiesSpring 1996…
Yet those favourable character assessments were never treated as substitutes for corroboration. Project Blue Book, civilian researchers and later historians all recognised that sincerity does not eliminate the possibility of misperception, mistaken memory, an unusual psychological experience or another explanation that leaves no external evidence.
Consequently, Borgo’s sighting and the broader cluster of regional reports slightly strengthened the case’s local context by suggesting that unidentified aerial observations were not unique to Simonton. They did not, however, bridge the central evidential gap.
Why the Corroboration Question Still Matters
The Eagle River case remains one of Wisconsin’s best-known UFO stories because it combines an apparently sincere witness with physical objects that investigators could examine. Yet when the question is narrowed to whether other witnesses confirmed Simonton’s account, the answer remains limited.
Nearby sightings indicate that some people reported unusual aerial objects around the same period. They do not independently establish that a craft landed on Simonton’s property or that an exchange with its occupants took place. That absence of direct corroboration remains one of the principal reasons the Eagle River “space pancake” encounter continues to be regarded as intriguing but unproven within Wisconsin’s UFO history.
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Endnotes
1.
Source: cufos.org
Title: Center for UFO Studies Classic UFO Cases
Link:https://cufos.org/resources/classic-ufo-cases/
Source snippet
Center for UFO StudiesClassic UFO Cases - Center for UFO Studies...
2.
Source: cufos.org
Title: 1961 04 18 US WI Eagle River CLARK IUR
Link:https://cufos.org/PDFs/cases/1961_04_18_US_WI_Eagle-River_CLARK_IUR.pdf
Source snippet
Center for UFO StudiesSpring 1996...
3.
Source: cufos.org
Title: 1961 04 18 US WI Eagle River NICAP Simonton CE III
Link:https://cufos.org/PDFs/cases/1961_04_18_US_WI_Eagle-River_NICAP_Simonton-CE-III.pdf
Source snippet
Center for UFO StudiesApril 25, 1961Prof. C.A. ManeyMarch 25, 2026...
Published: March 25, 2026
4.
Source: ufoinsight.com
Title: The Eagle River Incident
Link:https://www.ufoinsight.com/aliens/encounters/eagle-river-incident
Source snippet
UFO InsightJuly 14, 2019 — THE EAGLE RIVER INCIDENT By Marcus Lowth Image: Published Date July 14, 2019 Image: Last Updated September 4...
Published: July 14, 2019
Additional References
5.
Source: oddwoo.com
Title: The Eagle River Enigma: Joe Simonton’s Alien Pancakes
Link:https://oddwoo.com/eagle-river-enigma.php
Source snippet
The Project Blue Book report, dated April 1961, labeled the event a hallucination, misspelling Simonton as “Symington.” Hynek noted...
Published: April 1961
6.
Source: es.scribd.com
Title: John Keel Why Ufos Operation Trojan Horse 1970
Link:https://es.scribd.com/document/81473801/John-Keel-Why-Ufos-Operation-Trojan-Horse-1970
Source snippet
Keel - Why Ufos - Operation Trojan Horse 1970 | PDF | Unidentified Flying Object | RadarAt about that same time, an insurance agent named...
7.
Source: ufosunset.wordpress.com
Title: ufos 4 lampshading saucers and the joe simonton case april 28 2024
Link:https://ufosunset.wordpress.com/2024/04/28/ufos-4-lampshading-saucers-and-the-joe-simonton-case-april-28-2024/
Source snippet
58 year old plumber Joe Simonton is eating lunch on his farm four miles from Eagle River, Wisconsin...
8.
Source: thinkaboutitdocs.com
Title: 1961 eagle river close encounter
Link:https://www.thinkaboutitdocs.com/1961-eagle-river-close-encounter/
Source snippet
1961 Eagle River Wisconsin CE-III | Joe Simonton Alien Pancake Encounter — Project Blue Book UnexplainedJune 24, 2013 — 1961: EAGLE RIVER...
Published: June 24, 2013
9.
Source: stillnessinthestorm.com
Title: It was late morning when Simont
Link:https://stillnessinthestorm.com/a-northwoods-case-for-the-x-files/
Source snippet
A Northwoods Case for the X-Files - Stillness in the StormAugust 6, 2019 — On a Tuesday April 18, 1961, Joe Simonton, a sixty-year-old pl...
Published: August 6, 2019
10.
Source: uapwoo.com
Title: Savino Borgo, an insurance ag
Link:https://uapwoo.com/joe-simonton.php
Source snippet
Joe Simonton's Pancakes - UAPWOO.COMCORROBORATING WITNESSES While Simonton was the primary witness, others in the Eagle River area report...
11.
Source: nicap.org
Title: UF O Report
Link:https://www.nicap.org/reports/670324belt_report2.htm
Source snippet
UFO ReportNovember 3, 2012 — Date: Sat, 3 Nov 2012 09:56:29 (GMT) From: Richard Vitello Subject: March 24 (26?), 1967; Belt, Montana (BBU...
Published: November 3, 2012
12.
Source: youtube.com
Title: Mindless Banter 139: Joe Simonton & the Alien Pancakes
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7MmWf8f_wc
Source snippet
UFO Encounter in Eagle River WI - The Joe Simonton Story...
13.
Source: podscripts.co
Link:https://podscripts.co/podcasts/area52-debriefed-with-chris-ramsay/physical-evidence-of-an-alien-encounter-joe-simonton-debriefed-ep-50
Source snippet
50 Transcript and DiscussionAugust 15, 2025 — So immediately we're looking at things that seem to corroborate future sightings, or at lea...
Published: August 15, 2025
14.
Source: uapwoo.com
Title: UAPWO O
Link:https://uapwoo.com/
Source snippet
UFO, UAP & Paranormal InsightsQUICK OVERVIEW On April 18, 1961, in the quiet rural outskirts of Eagle River, Wisconsin, 60-year...
Published: April 18, 1961