Black Sunday

BLACK SUNDAY

A mysterious day when the sky became dark as night during the middle of the day.
The explanation by local officials was that a forest fire had occurred in Canada - but none were ever recorded
for this date, and there was no smoke involved in the darkened skies, as there has been in all other forest fires around the country since. Most people at the time thought that the world was coming to an end, and that it was a sign from the heavens.

ALSO READ ABOUT THE DARK DAY OF MAY 19, 1780
ALSO READ BRADFORD, PA'S ACCOUNT OF 'BLACK Sunday'
On June 17, 2000 I posted a query on the 'goerie' website asking folks to write me regarding a mysterious 'Black Sunday' that occurred in the early 50's. I had thought mid 50's, but it was earlier than I remember. I was born late 1941 and would have been only eight at the time but remember it well. This website is a collection of responses to that query. More will be added as time goes by. At one time I had written to a Forestry Service historian in Canada and asked him about the incident, but he didn't see any fires in his files that would have produced such a reaction. I have lost his letter, but have written to another Canadian agency. Will post that response when I receive it.

This is the query I posted:
"posted by: Betty Rhodes - 11:28am Jun 17, 2000 EDT
During the mid 1950's when I was a young girl living in western Pennsylvania (Wattsburg - Erie County, PA) there was a scary event that occurred. One Sunday afternoon the sky got really dark - dark enough to view the stars. The skies stayed dark for the rest of the day. We did not own a TV set at that time, and with the whole family wondering what was going on - (some thought the end of the world was at hand), my dad took us to Uncle Jakes in Corry to see what his TV set had to say about the situation. After many hours of no announcements or bulletins about the particular event, finally a reading came on the bottom of the screen that said there was a big forest fire in Canada and this was causing the darkened skies. Does anyone have any remembrance of this event? If so I would love to hear from you. This has puzzled me for decades and I would like to know the date and location of this forest fire. What was puzzling for me is seeing the stars - if a forest fire was sending smoke to darken the skies why could we see the stars? And why doesn't the sky darken on that magnitude with the forest fires today in our country? Must have been a truly big fire but can't find it in the historical almanacs. Sincerely Betty Matteson Rhodes email me @the-red-thread.net"

Read a Newspaper Article from Warren Times, Warren, PA - printed on September 25, 1950 stating that 'Black Sunday' was
a result of a forest fire in Alberta, Canada (sent to me by Gordon Mathis)

BLUE MOON EFFECT: The most literal meaning of blue moon is when the moon (not necessarily a full moon) appears to a casual observer to be unusually bluish, which is a rare event. The effect can be caused by smoke or dust particles in the atmosphere, as has happened after forest fires in Sweden and Canada in 1950 and, notably, after the eruption of Krakatoa in 1883, which caused the moon to appear blue for nearly two years.
1950 - Forest fires black out the sun over portions of Canada and New England. A Blue moon (in the astronomical sense) is seen as far away as Europe.
On September 24, 1950, with the Tigers in the middle of a tight pennant race with the Yankees, Robinson became the "goat." Heavy smoke from a Canadian forest fire forced the Tigers to turn on the lights for a Sunday afternoon game against the Indians.
{source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_24}

Responses to my query
I receive emails and letters from others from time to time.
Their recollections of this day in 1950 will be posted below.
Last updated on: October 26, 2008

IF ANYONE CAN RELATE TO THIS MESSAGE, PLEASE EMAIL ME PLEASE

From "Planet Earth and the New Geoscience" by Victor A. Schmidt, William Harbert, University of Pittsburgh University
"In addition to the few cases of World War II firestorms, there have been observations of large forest fires. The best documented one took place in Alberta, Canada in the summer of 1950. The smoke plume from this fire could be clearly traced for days, and was so dense that when it passed over Cleveland and Detroit on Sunday September 24, 1950, it darkened the sky to the point that lights were needed for afternoon baseball games. Temperatures were also several degrees below the expected levels in Washington, D.C. This same cloud was observed by a Royal Air Force pilot over England several days later at a height of 9-12 kilometers! Clearly, when meteorological conditions permit, smoke from massive fires can both get very high and last a long time in the atmosphere."

Just stumbled onto your site.

Looked on the web for years but never found a mention. Was beginning to think I was the only one still alive that remembered that day.

I remember in 1950, we were riding in a 1937 Plymouth near Mount Alton, Pa about 4 in the afternoon. The sky suddenly became dark. There were no stars, just total darkness. I remember Dad, turning on the headlights and we beat a hasty retreat back to Bradford, Pa.

We didn't have TV so we listened to the radio reports that it was a large Canadian forest fire. Some how as suddenly as it came on, it disappeared. Thinking that was strange that the smoke from a forest fire could apparently blacken the sky from Canada to at least Pittsburgh. Wondered why it would be coming from western Canada, yet no one from the Midwest noticed it.

Noticed many times since when there were reports of the "largest forest fires ever in Canada" that the skies never even seemed to turn grey, yet alone total blackout. At the ripe age of 9, it was my first experience with suspecting the government of cover-ups. Bob

Hello Betty,
I was 10 years old at the time, and I remember my mom made us go out and pick all the tomatoes from our garden she thought we were going to have a big frost that night. Our local radio station said it was a fire up in Canada but I never believed that, and often wondered what the real reason was. Our local “drive-in movie” started to show movies at 4 in the afternoon that day. I live in Butler, Pa. that’s about 30 miles North on Pittsburgh, Pa. I never did hear if it got dark out in the western states that day. Jerry

Betty,

Hello. My name is Lydia and I live in Venango county PA. My grandmother was telling me about this day and what the sky looked like. She was pregnant at the time with my aunt Maxine who is mentally retarded. I am telling you this because almost every woman in our area that was pregnant at this time had a mentally retarded child. She seems to think that this had something to do with it and I do as well. It just seems strange that so many women had mentally retarded children after this occurrence. I am trying to research this and am not having much luck. I would appreciate any help you could give me. I would like to see any photos from that day as well. I can not seem to find any from that day and that seems strange to me also. I look foreword to hearing from you. Thank you, Lydia

Dear Betty,

Thanks for researching an event that has remained in my mind for 58 years.I was 8yrs. old at the time the sky darkened. I lived in Frewsburg, NY which is close to the PA border toward Warren PA. I remember the strange yellow in the sky, both going into and coming out of the darkness. The air had a strange, almost chemical smell and my parents took me down to a neighbor's house to play inside with my friends. The adults all stayed at the kitchen table while the kids played. I remember sensing some fear in the adults as they remained casual in front of the children.The time frame here is, I think, important.My Dad was a Civil Defense warden in our town. He got the alert early if there was to be an air raid drill. I can remember my mother pulling down those shades with the black-green exterior and putting out all the lights. Then the fire siren would blow and my Dad would be out on the street at his post. Fast forward five or six years, and suddenly on a sunny September day the sky goes black. The adult memories of WW II are pretty fresh and the cold war was gaining strength. Canadian forest fires were not cutting it with the adults I knew. They felt it was some government experiment we weren't supposed to ask much about. I tend to agree as I never smelled smoke but I sure remember the air having a strange smell. Sally

Thank You,
Just this past Sunday I was talking with my parents and they mentioned this event, which they believe the government was somehow responsible for. It was their first anniversary. I had never heard the story and was intrigued, so I googled it and came across your wonderful website. My parents will be thrilled to know they were not going crazy. They lived in Dunkirk at the time. Thanks again.
Dave

Hi Betty,

I remember this day very well. I was a little kid at the time driving with my parents back from Batavia to Buffalo, NY along Genesee Street. It had been a clear sunny day and then along the horizon the sky began to darken (as if a thunderstorm were approaching). The sky got darker and darker until my dad put on the headlights. My Mom was rather afraid but my Dad said we would just keep going back to Buffalo. Along Genesee Street at that point in time there were dairy farms and I can remember seeing the cows' confusion and then some started walking back to their barns. We got to Buffalo and home and the street lights were on. It was just plain nighttime and the stars were out. Neighbors were out on the street and very frightened. At about 4:00 p.m. that day the sky gradually got lighter and normal daylight occurred. Not many people had TV's in those days - we did and later it was said there was a forest fire in Alberta Canada which seemed absurd even then. There have been forest fires in the west since that day and there was never another day like this. It's the weirdest thing I've ever seen in my life. I've tried to find out more about it over the years and even asked people in my age group who lived here if they remember. I've found that they either did not remember or if they did were extremely reluctant to talk about it. Sylvia

Betty...we were just talking about the strange darkness while my daughter and family were visiting. So, I got on the 'net and found your site...I very distinctly remember that day, altho' until I read the date could not recall it exactly. I remember it being a Sun. in Sept. 1950 when after my family had returned from Mass at our local church in Sharpsville, Pa., we ate our dinner and at 2:30 p.m., my two younger teen age sisters went to the matinee at the Ritz theatre to see "Pride and Predjudice". I had a good book to finish, so I stayed home reading. Mom was napping; Dad was reading the paper and my brothers were out somewhere. I noted that the afternoon kept getting darker and as I read, I had to turn on a lamp. I thought it would storm but the sky was a bright kind of yellow. It kept getting darker and within the hour, the sky and the general outside light seemed to be a deep orange-yellow and getting darker! By the time my sisters returned and my brothers got back, about 5:30, it was like night...very dark with only a tinge of yellow...artificial lights outside (lampposts and car headlights) were unusually white-blue in this strange atmosphere and it continued into the usual time for sun down. We could not distinguish the weird stuff from night, by then. I wondered if the sun would come up the next day...but it did and all seemed normal...there was no good explanation except the "fire in Canada" one, which didn't plausible to us. We also followed the track of the phenomenon and read somewhere that it had gone east and out to sea, eventually ending up in Europe. We also wondered about nuclear experiments in the west and later wondered about the movie John Wayne made around that time. Many of the people out whereever it was made, died from cancer later. Toni

I was 5+ at the time of "Black Sunday" and lived in a suburb of Cleveland. I remember the event well and the official explanation of a fire in Canada, which seemed strange even to a 5 year old. My best friend was 3 at the time and thought it was night when her mother put her down for her afternoon nap. It was very dark - like the darkest of nights - and there was a yellow glow to the blackness. I don't remember anyone mentioning stars.

We never heard too much more about it, but I've always been curious. My mother who is now 98 recalls being intrigued but not too concerned at the time. I remain skeptical to this day.

I was born in 1945 and I remember a Sunday when I was 5 or 6 when it got very dark in the middle of the afternoon. It must have been in September of early October because we were picking tomatoes and all migrant workers quit because they thought it was a sign that they shouldn't be working on Sunday. This was in Fairview, PA. I don't remember seeing any stars or smelling smoke.

Somewhere I read or heard that it was attributed to a large forest fire in Canada. That never made sense to me. A large forest fire would burn for days, if not weeks. How could it result in an event that only lasted a couple of hours? Even if the wind direction changed it would have directed the cloud over some other area and there would have been reports from those areas.

Good Luck with your investigation. Does anybody knows how to use the "Public Information Act" to try and get information about this from the government?

Larry

As a kid (feb of 1943) I lived in Corry PA. and around noon it was getting dark on a rather sunny day.My folks packed us kids into the car and headed to titusville pa. to be with family members..Sure was a scar'y day for most of us..My parents did not say to much on the drive down,but sure was some wonderful colors in the sky..I being the oldest of five children was most concerned about it..Later in the day we were playing in the yard on 515 s. franklin st. titusville when it started to get light again ,say abot 4;30....Turned out to be a nice sunny day in a very short time.. I have asked just lately at church (seventh-Day Adventist church in Lowville Pa.)if anyone remembered that dark day..So I punched it into google.com. And found your site..did not smell any smoke or fallout from this day.Cows went to the barn and no birds..Not much traffic..Heard later everyone saying that the papers had a little write up that it was a fire in canada...yea Right!! Often wondered about this. Thanks for the info. and May God Bless!!! jerry
ps. We were studying prophesy in the bible about end time issues and another dark day in history,so I renewed my interest.. Thanks for getting back to me....

Great site. Thanks for doing this..Any updates? Jerry

Hi,

As i remember Sept. 24,1950 started out as a nice clear day. After we came back from burying grandpap the sky started to get pitch black and stayed that way for about 30 min. No rain or stars or clouds just pitch black as if someone covered the blue sky with a black blanket. I also remember someone saying about the chickens going to roost. Several people thought the world was comming to the end. Later I heard it came from a fire up in Canada. Some people thought it was a experiment from the government.Guess we will never know for sure. Take care . talk to you later. Shirley

Hi my name is Gene Palmer. I remember that day very well, I was at a aunt of mine ,outside of Plumville Pa. Which is between Indian and Kittaning Pa. She had a farm, and all of the chickens headed for the hen house, and the cows headed for the barn. I grew up in the hills of central pa, were the were no city lights. I never saw any nights as dark as that Sunday afternoon.
Gene Palmer

Hi
I was 7 at the time of the Black Sunday. We lived near Smicksburg, PA, which is north east of Pittsburgh, east of Indiana, PA and south of Punxsutawney, PA. I remember that the chickens went to roost and that we could see the stars. I often think of that day and how strange it was. The grown ups were frightened but we kids thought it was neat.
I remember the explanation being that it was a large forest fire in Canada.
Great to see the answer on the web.
Kay Good

Hi Betty,
My name is Jo Ann Boller and I live in northwestern Pennsylvania. I remember that day very well. It was the Sept. after I had graduated from high school. I was visiting my aunt and uncle who lived up the street from me and around 3 pm it got as dark as night. My aunt thought it was the end of the world. I remember running home as my Mother was alone because my Dad was at work. We heard rumors of forest fires in Canada and also some gov't testing of some sort but never did hear anything for sure. It's has been interesting reading the letters from other people that remember that weird happening. Thanks . Jo Ann Boller, Port Allegany, Pa.

Hi Betty
Thank for posting my Memories [see below].
The funeral director (Charles Scoff). Would tell me every time we met. That he would never forget the day he buried my grandfather. (Even after 40 years) Must have made a lasting impression him also.
Sincerely ... Charlie Tyler

Hi Betty,
My Name is Charlie Tyler I was born in 1941 so I was about 9 years old, at that time. I remember that day, very well.
It is the day we buried my grandfather. After the serimonties at the gravesite, we arrive at his home. I remember his chickens going to roost.
I knew something was strange at that time. I wasn't very concerned, until i noticed the older people.They were TERRIFIED, some were praying, When you are 9 years old and see 15 to 20 older people, terrified.You don't forget that. To the best of my memory.It was a clear bright day, no clouds, and no rainstorms. It was if night was coming on, but a faster pace. It took about 15 minutes, until it was as dark as midnight. This dark time lasted about one half hour, then in 15 minutes it was back to a normal Sunday bright afternoon. The sky did NOT turn to any color.
Please direct me to other information sites. If you have any.
Sincerely ... Charlie Tyler

Dear Betty,
I just happened upon your inquiry of Black Sunday, 1950 (I've heard it referred to as that). I too have never heard any explanation as to that phenomenon. I can't tell you a whole lot about it. However, I can tell you that it was September 24, 1950. The reason that I know of it is because that was the day that I was born. When I was about 16, an aunt of mine felt a need to let me know about it. Like it was because of me. Jean Irwin

BETTY
CAN'T BE OF MUCH HELP WITH DETAILS, BUT I WAS JUST A LITTLE GIRL AND REMEMBER THAT DAY VERY WELL. WE WERE ALL VERY FRIGHTENED AND ALSO THOUGHT IT WAS THEN END OF THE WORLD.
SUE

Hi Betty,
I wasn't yet born when this happened, but my parents told us about it several times. They too mentioned the explanation of a big fire in Canada, but also other explanations, like the CIA, and so forth. I don't recall the part about being able to see the stars while this was going on. I now live in California, and recently lived through a spooky fire that darkened the sky a few Sunday afternoons ago. There was no way you could see stars, and only a fraction of the sky was darkened.
The only way (I think) you could see stars was if the hour was near sunset, and the smoke from the fire obscured the sunset, but left the remainder of the sky clear. This doesn't jive with what you and my parents give as the time of the event.
If you find anything out, please let me know.
Kirk Evans

Betty
This won't be much help I am afraid, but as I read your remarks about the dark sky I remembered a Sunday afternoon car ride when I was a kid.
The sky became as dark as night. My father later talked to an uncle who was an air force pilot. My uncle said that the event was the result of a government experiment using powdered silver nitrate to seed clouds as a cover for our bombers on future missions, and that the cloud floated across the country from the desert in New Mexico. I remember it well.
I am now 57. It was about fifty years ago, but I still remember the excitement! I lived in Erie, where I was born, when this incident ocurred. The "chemical" (and other "defense-related") experiments were initially conducted in California, Nevada, and New Mexico between 1945 and 1955, commencing even before WWII ended. Interestingly, I have heard from several sources that they believed that an early version of a nuclear bomb was accidently detonated resulting not only in the darkening cloud, but in many military and civilian deaths. Unfortunately, we (the US government) are +all too capable of orchestrating cover-ups so well that truth becomes a non-sequitur. (I KNOW that this scenario was a possibility!)
Anyway, this is an interesting subject. You have no idea how much you have been deceived by those that you trust! I had to bite my tongue so many times I am surprised that I didn't bite it off!!!
Take care!
Bill
CommissionerWm.L. Miller
Col. USAF (Ret.)

Dear Betty,
I lived on Powell Avenue in Erie from 1945 to 1953. My father was then transferred to Louisville, KY with GE. I very distinctly remember the day it was pitch black. I thought it was on a weekday as I remember my mother calling my father at GE to find out what was going on. He called us back to tell us the news that it was a forest fire in Canada. I've told that story to my husband and children and they think I've invented the story as they find it hard to believe that smoke from across the lake could make it that dark. I don't remember any stars though. I was recently in Erie working on genealogy and should have looked up the old newspapers. It occurred before Oct. 1953, when we moved to KY.
My cousin who is still in Erie doesn't remember it, but she's younger than I am. I'm planning to call another Erie cousin today who now lives in Colorado. She's a few years older so may have a clearer memory of the event.
I'll let you know if I find out anything from my cousin.
Heather Scarlett Hurley

Dear Ms. Rhodes:
     I do indeed remember the event you describe in your posting under "Erie Legends" at GoErie.com. I was five or six years old at the time and it made a life-long impression. To check my information, I talked to my father and he confirms what little I'm able to tell you.
     At the time of this event, my family was living on West 7th Street in Erie. That's important because we moved from West 7th in the summer of 1951, which would put the event a little earlier than the mid-fifties.
    My dad confirms that it happened on a Sunday afternoon but we both agree that the atmosphere had cleared before nightfall. I have a very distinct image of the sky to the north of us still laced with traces of semi-transparent, smokey-looking clouds.
   My dad didn't recall the Canadian forest fire explanation but did say that many people thought it signaled the end of the world. He also said that he never heard what seemed like a credible explanation.
     On the other hand, I did remember the forest fire explanation but also recall talk of a possible Department of Defense experiment. Most of the adults around me, including my father who was in London during the Blitz, would immediately understand the value of a man-made blackout.
Certainly, if that were the explanation, we'd be given the cover story and that would be it.
    I'm not saying that it's a credible explanation, only that people who survived a World War, and then found themselves at the edge of a nuclear abyss, were sometimes asked to do and believe things that would seem quite ludicrous today. (Not that my choosing to live fifty miles downwind from two aging nuclear power plants isn't also.)
    For instance, not long after the event we're talking about, I remember taking part in a countywide practice evacuation. It was scheduled for a weekend and we were literally on the road for hours following the directions of Civil Defense personnel in white coveralls and yellow or white helmets. Weird sort of Sunday drive, right?
    Although I've not been much help, I'd be very interested in your findings. And I will keep your e-mail address in case anything of interest turns up.
Sincerely,
Larry Knickerbocker
PS I can't let my kids know that I've spoken to anyone about this because I always ridicule their interest in the X-Files and it's one of the few pleasures I have in life. (LOL.)

To: Betmatrho
I have a vague recollection of that period when the skies darkened. I remember that night came in the afternoon and was told that it was a total eclipse of the sun.
Mary Jane

Betty,
Hi! Yes, I too remember that dark day when it was as dark as midnight and the Cleveland Indians had to turn on the stadium lights. I have always been curious about it and skeptical about "forest fires" being the cause. I remember that because I had always been a nervous kid in a family of stoics and they took no interest in the phemomenon, so I woke my oldest sister who was a RN, sleeping because she was on the night shift, she yelled at me for waking her and, because she was religious, told me my fear was caused by a "guilty conscience"! I didn't bother anymore about it, but have always been curious. As you said how could smoke cause that and one still see the stars. I did see a mention of it in an old copy of Life Magazine. I would be interested in learning more and will let you know if I see anything.
Especially interested because as a kid had nothing on my conscience! Name withheld

Good Morning Betty,
Sorry for the delay but I had my Black Sunday file disappear in the move I did this past year.
Do you still need the dates and information on when the sky turned black in the 1950s?
The Official Black Sunday occured several years before I was born. My family talked about it on occassion and it was simular to 3 other days which happened as I was very young. I am hoping to get more information or to locate the newspaper articles on them but so far I have no dates to go on or reference points to narrow the search beyond a 10 year time area.
There was a Black-out in the 1870s that I hope to be able to research within the next few months but the one most people refer to occured September 24, 1950 making the newspaper headlines around the world Monday September 25, 1950 and for several days following. New York Times, Jamestown Dispatch, and Warren Times I have seen articles to .......I have a copy of the Warren paper which I can photo copy and mail to you if you would like this for your files.
Basically the sky turned different colors then black around 3 pm over the Northeast Seaboard. Some thought it was judgement day - end of the world while many thought the government was doing an experiment. The story came out of severe forest fires in Canada and the smoke drifted across the US and eventially was rained clean over Europe.
gordon mathis (to read the article from the Warren Times Newspaper - click here)

Betty,
I will need an address to send the article to......
I went over to the Warren Library today and I looked up the file on micrfilm from Warren Times Mirror and Observer to be certain of the date and facts. You should be able to access your newspapers and find simular articles that were published nation wide. It sounds like an interesting project and I will be interested to see other perspecitives and especially other dates that simular things happened.
I am hoping to get more information on the 1870 and track down the same type articles. I do regular research and am the author or the Trivia Game of Warren County, PA (1985)
Gordon

Hi Betty,
It took a little longer to get there but our mail around here seems slow. I am on the board of directors representing stamp clubs for the local post office and will let them know at the next meeting.
There have been forest fires, inclduing bad ones, since then and none have ever turned the skies black. I think the explanation is lame. I have seen volcanoes blow and not turn the sky black although I did see one turn a rich grey. (when I lived in AK). I remember the sky turning black at least once and a dark red in the middle of Sunday afternoons when I was young and I was born well after the forest fire Black Sunday. I just think that maybe there is more to it and it will be interesting to hear other people talk about their experiences and perhaps some more dates will come up.
If I ever trip over additional information I will let you know. Good luck with the project!!!!!
gordon

To: Betmatrho
Subject: Re: dark Sunday in the 50's
I was only 6 then, but now that you mention it I do remember. I seem to recall also that it was reported as a huge forest fire somewhere or a junkyard tire fire, but was too young at the time to question it. I am copying my Mom on this - maybe she or my Dad remembers something.
Bill Klauk

To: Betmatrho
I'm 53 and have a strong recollection of the day your refer to. I remember being told of the Canadian fire. I notice your posting was made a while ago. Have you received any interesting feedback?
Bill Lillis

Re: Dark Skies
I remember the day well! It got darker and darker like before a storm but there was no storm in the air. It was only frightening if you thought it was the end of the world...for those of us who were "believers" there had to be another explanation..the forest fires in Canada were the only explanation we ever got unless I've forgotten something. We must have been having a gathering here that day as I vaguely remember someone else was here..Maybe Uncle Louis (Schibetta) who often visited us on Sundays.
Helen Klauk

HI BETTY RHODES..OF WATTSBURG!
MY NAME IS CLIFF SHILLING...I REMEMBER THAT DAY IN THE EARLY 50'S....I WAS A RADIO AND TV ANNOUNCER IN ERIE...AND THAT SUNDAY I WAS IN MY PIPER CUB AIRPLANE FLY SOUTH TO BROOKVILLE, PENNA...MY HOME TOWN...AND WHEN I TOOK OFF FROM THE AIRPORT AT KEARSARGE...I LOOKED NORTH TOWARD CANADA AND SAW THE BIG DARK AREA....I WOULD TURN MY PLANE AROUND IN A CIRCLE OCCASIONALLY TO WATCH AND SEE WHAT IT MIGHT BE.

I NOTICED AS I FLEW ON SOUTH...THAT IT WAS CLOSING IN ON ME.....IT TOOK ME AN HOUR TO GET TO BROOKVILLE...AND JUST AS I WAS LANDING I COULD SMELL WOOD BURNING LIKE SMOKE...AND I WASN'T ON THE GROUND MORE THAN 15 MINUTES BEFORE IT WAS PITCH DARK...IT LASTED FOR ABOUT I WOULD SAY, TRYING TO REMEMBER BACK THAT FAR IN TIME...ABOUT 1/2 HOUR TO AND HOUR....I DIDN'T KEEP TRACK OF THE TIME...BUT IT GOT BACK TO DAYLIGHT AGAIN...AND LATER I TOOK OFF AND FLEW BACK TO ERIE... I CHECKED IN THE THE FLIGHT SERVICE PEOPLE AT ERIE AIRPORT AND THEY TOLD ME THAT IT WAS A FOREST FIRE IN CANADA THAT CAUSED THAT BLACKOUT...IT WAS SMOKE!

AS I HAD SUSPECTED WHEN ON THE GROUND IN BROOKVILLE....SO I HOPE THAT THIS CLEARS UP THE MYSTERY FOR YOU, JUST IN CASE YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY HEARD FROM SOMEONE ELSE...I LIVE IN BEVERLY HILLS, FLORIDA SINCE RETIRING FROM RADIO AND TELEVISION...I WORKED AT CHANNEL 12, WICU IN ERIE AND CHANNEL 35...I WAS THE HOST OF DANCE PARTY" EVERY SATURDAY FOR 9 YEARS...A BANDSTAND TYPE SHOW FOR TEENAGERS...AND I WAS A DISC JOCKEY ON WIKK...WERC...WJET AND WLEU...I WORKED ON THEM ALL...NOT AT THE SAME TIME OF COURSE...

I LEFT ERIE IN 1964 AND WENT TO A NEW YORK RADIO STATION TO WORK.. AND RETIRED IN 1994 IN FLORIDA...I HAVE A LOT OF MEMORIES ABOUT YOUR AREA...I HOPE THIS HAS BEEN HELPFUL TO YOU... GOD BLESS YOU ..I WOULD LIKE TO HEAR BACK FROM YOU IF YOU COULD PLEASE.
SINCERELY, CLIFF SHILLING

My mother's recollections:
I remember that day pretty good. We were planning to go to North East, (PA) after apples so it was sometime in the fall. We changed our plans and didn't go after apples, but instead went to Corry to visit 'Uncle' Jake. The TV reported a forest fire across the bottom of the screen but it seemed like a strange forest fire. Everyone had to use their headlights when driving because it got quite dark early in the afternoon. It was in the early 50's.
Mom (Ethel Matteson)

Hello Betty, I remember that day,we(my family and I) were at my sisters house in Erie(I am Helen Klauks sister & Bill Klauks aunt) We spent a lot of time that day looking at the sky but I don't remember any stars, only the explanation from news reports that there forest fires in Canada and the wind blew the smoke in our direction. Laura Price

Dear Betty;
My name is Ron Joy, born in Dunkirk, NY, 40 miles east of Erie, PA. I remember the day in question and did some research in the mid 80's. My goal was to disprove the forest fire theory! I set this research aside for a number of years and during a recent visit to Erie, I asked a person my age if they remembered the incident. They did not, but it stirred my interest again. With the power of the internet I thought I might have better luck. Low and behold I found your inquiry.
If this truely was a forest fire cloud, we should be able to track it back to it's source. Edmonton. Have you continued your research since 2000 and if so what can you share.
I was born also i n 1941, and many of my classmates (1959) and later 60,61 etc contracted MS. I always wondered if there wasn't a conection between the two.
Here is what I found out about the cloud formation per the newspapers.
The "smoke cloud" drifted down from Canadian Forest fires, Edmonton, Alberta. According to newspaper accounts, the cloud in question, was sighted over the Eastern portion of the US and was traveling in an easterly direction toward the Atlantic Ocean. Sightings were reported as far north as toronto and south to Knoxville, TN. Astronomers observing the eclipse of the moon the night of Sept 24-25 reported obscuration of the moon. Estimates of the cloud formation was 1700 miles long and 200 miles wide. Airline pilots reported the cloud was as high as 25000 ft. Others flying at lower levels also encountered the cloud, indicating it was approx. 3 miles thick. It was last reported over the Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Maryland and heading out to sea.
I tried to link a "dirty" nuclear explosion for this event. If so the government covered it up pretty well. I could not find any information of a test on or around Sept 1950. Many verterans of the nuclear test era have websites and are still fighting the government for some kind of answer.
I hope you will enjoy the info. If you are still interested in researching this subject let me know.
Thanks Ron

Hi Betty,
Re: the Black Sunday....I was young also...however, out here in Calif. we did have a long term eclipse of the sun one day. I recall that it was our most pronounced we had ever seen. Now, I don't know the exact year, etc....and we are a bit more West than you all in PA, but suppose it happened on the same day as the fire?
Don't know, but that's just an idea.
Barb Byington-Rosner

Hi:
I was in the Academy stadium that Sunday that went completely black, however, I do not have any idea of what happened either. It certainly was a scary day. If you find any info on this day, I would appreciate hearing back from you. I presently live in Fla., but lived in Erie until 1967.
Ruth

Hello from Canada:
I have just been reading about the Black Sunday incident, on Sunday Sept 24 1950, you have posted. For years I have tried to pinpoint, and verify, that incident. I knew it happened, but I seemed to be the only one that remembered.
I think people were beginning to think I was crazy. I was in my teens, but of course my parents are long since passed away, as have my siblings. I no longer, and haven't lived in that area for over 45 years People of my own age group around here don't recall it. My wife, can't remember it , or her siblings.
I remember it well as on Sundays we often used to hitch hike, just to go some place. I remembered it was in September, and I thought it was 1950 or 1951. We always calculated how far we should go so we would get a ride back before dark. We lived in a small town in Ontario, about 30 miles from Toronto. That day a friend and I hiked west, and made it to Stratford about 80 miles away. We walked around for awhile and not having watches didn't know the time. We realized it was starting to get dark and went looking for the time It was , as I recall about 4 in the afternoon. It got darker, we barely had the bus fare back home between us, but we had to take the bus. It was as dark as any night, I don't remember the stars being out, or any moon. Before we got home, which was about two hours, it was like having a sunrise as the sky lightened, but then because of the time it got dark again. We didn't know if the same thing had happened at home with the darkness, but it had. It affected most of Eastern Canada
The forest fires were given as the cause and I always accepted that. After all ,volcanic eruptions do that and when the Indonesian volcano Krakatoa exploded in 1883, they say its dust turned sunsets green and the moon blue all around the world for the best part of two years.
I am glad I found your page, really enjoyed it.
Don Cofell

Betty -- Thank you for starting this investigation.
September 24, 1950 has always been a mystery to me that I occasionally think about, and wonder. I remember that Sunday in Titusville quite well, although I didn't remember the date. I was almost 13 and, as our family and other churchgoers went outside after the morning service (about noon), we remarked about how odd the sky looked: an eerie dark yellow. As I recall, it was the same color in every direction. The afternoon proceeded normally for me. I went home with a church friend for dinner with her family.

I can't recall anyone acting worried or afraid. Maybe that was because, as Bible-familiar Christians, we didn't expect the world to end that way. By about 2 p.m., it was as black as any dark night, but because it was mid-day, after all, we went for a walk around the town. I don't remember any stars, but I don't remember looking at the sky during the dark period, either. My memory says it stayed dark until late afternoon, but by the time we returned to church for our evening service (6:30, I think) the light was back to normal. I can't remember that anyone in the church that evening seemed upset or that there was anything unusual about the service. Nor do I remember any discussion about it the next day at school.

All I ever heard as an explanation was the story about the forest fire in Canada, but that never has made good sense to me. It remains one of life's mysteries. I have never been able to understand, either, why there wasn't a big hullabaloo about it. Or maybe there was, and I wasn't aware of it because I didn't read the newspaper and we didn't have television. I enjoyed reading the memories of others on your website. Thanks again for sharing.
Janet -- Delaware

Dear Betty,
Thanks so much for doing all this work! How wonderful to finally get an explanation after all those years of wondering. It's hard to believe that a forest fire all the way out in Alberta could cause so much smoke in Erie but it made it all the way to England & Holland! Makes Erie sound pretty close. Thanks again so much for your great web site and all your work.
Heather Hurley
Henryville, IN (formerly Erie)

The following 3 accounts are from the following website on the subject of Blue Moon

http://www.spaceweather.com/glossary/bluemoonstories.html

from Carroll Rudy of Wisconsin: "It happened on a Sunday in the September of 1950 --September 24 to be exact. I was a 13-year-old living in rural Northwestern Pennsylvania near Corry, PA, on my parents' small farm."
"It was a cloudy day. Early in the afternoon, the sun disappeared and it became as dark as midnight. Lamps were lit and lanterns brought out. I went outside to walk around and check the livestock, and found that the chickens had all gone to roost, all the wild birds had gone to sleep, and the farm animals had gone into their normal nightime sleeping places in barns and coops. We could see that the streetlights had come on in the nearby town. We had no Television at the time, but heard over the radio that there was a forest fire in Canada producing so much smoke that it had blacked out the sun."
"People were very frightened, and some thought the world was coming to an end. Others thought the Russians had done 'something' as the Cold War was in full flower then. Some thought the dreaded nuclear holocaust had come, but most people I knew thought it was a secret government smoke-screen experiment related to Cold War defense. The true believers in conspiracy never would accept the forest fire 'cover-up' story as they called it. Some of my classmates to this day still stick to the 'government cover-up' tale. Whatever one's thoughts at the time, it was a very frightening day. As the day waned, the smoke thinned a bit and the sun could be seen through the blackness as a faint blue orb, but it never did get light outside. After nightfall the moon which was full that night, was blue. I read later that blue moons were seen as far away as Europe on Sept. 26, 1950."
"There was a pervasive smoky smell in the air that didn't smell like wood smoke, but like peat smoke, a smell similar to smoldering wet hay. I remember being ill for several days afterward with a cold-like respiratory disorder including runny nose, stuffy head and irritated eyes."
"Most people who lived in Western Pennsylvania at the time remember that day vividly if they had any reason to be out-of-doors. We always called it 'Black Sunday' afterward. Sometimes you read references from people said they saw stars because it was so dark, but that is not true. Obviously no stars were visible because the smoke was so thick we could not even see the sun. I remember a sky that was totally black, smelled like smoke and was truly frightening."

from Tom Whiting of Erie Pennsylvania: "I was just a young boy 5 or 6 years old, living in New Castle PA in the summer of 1946 or 1947 when smoke from forest fires (in Canada?) drifted down over the Western Pennsylvania area. It got really dark in the daytime;I remember the street lights came on in the early afternoon, like 1 or 2 pm, and you could smell the slight odor of smoke. Anyway, for a night or two, we had this bluish-tinged near-full moon. I don't remember the exact year or month. I just remember we kids were all scared, and thought maybe the world was coming to an end. (Not because of the moon, but rather the daytime darkness). My one and only Real Blue Moon!"

from Samuel L. Sievers of Vincennes, Indiana: "I am 64 years old. I recall riding with my father in his large semi-trailor, returning to southern Indiana from Chicago's South Watermarket. This was a bouncy 6-hour trip. We were hauling watermelons, so it had to be in late July or more likely August, somewhere between 1954-1957. I wondered what sort of evil the bluish moon meant, and dad wisely said it was probably dust or smoke."

46	Alexander v. United States	352 U.S. 892	234 F. 2d 861	11/5/56	This suit was brought by Stewart M. Alexander, Jr., against the United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act, 28 U.S.C. § § 1346(b), 2671 et seq., to recover damages for injuries received while he was riding as a passenger in a United States Air Force aircraft, which crashed in attempting to land at the municipal airport at Evansville, Indiana on September 24, 1950. The Government denied liability on the grounds (1) that the flight, which was undertaken for Alexander's convenience, was unauthorized; and (2) that the evidence failed to show either that the aircraft was negligently maintained or that it was negligently operated. The district judge, however, found for the plaintiff and assessed the damages at $ 75,000.00.	1200	Cert Denied

FYI
Truman ordered development of hydrogen bomb (Jan. 31, 1950)

Red Haze Report- Hamilton residents flock to church, fearing doomsday or a nuclear attack, as day turns to night on the afternoon of September 24, 1950, but the real culprit is drifting smoke from Alberta forest fires. http://www.weatheruntamed.tv/series1.htm

Read an official report from
a Canadian Research Scientist
click here

For an account from:
Legends of Lawrence County, PA Volume II
click here

You may contact me at:
Betty Rhodes and put 'Black Sunday' in the subject line please.

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