1914 to 1956 - Maiden Bradley
This account was uncovered in 1990 in the wake of some high-profile media coverage of the subject. Events began when Mrs Christine Dutton decided to write to her local paper, The Bristol Evening Post, about some similar circles she had known of in her youth.
The paper printed her letter on August 7, the text of which is given right. The letter talks of circles generally, in a matter-of-fact way, and Mrs Dutton states that she and her family had seen them for generations, and that they were a normal part of life on the farm. They were apparently attributed to whirlwinds, the same as those which picked up the hay. The family concluded that when these winds manifest in crop fields, they would not be strong enough to lift the plants - hence they would leave behind a swirl in the crop. This story appealed to Terence Meaden, who at the time was promoting an atmospheric vortex explanation. Meaden had support from Paul Fuller's Crop Watcher magazine, who conducted some follow-up. In issue 2, Fuller reprinted the letter, after having spoken directly to Mrs Dutton. He stated that, "According to Mrs Dutton, crop circles regularly appeared on her husband's farm between 1914 and 1956". This gives us some tentative dates to pin down. The rest of the account is not detailed, but Mrs Dutton was clearly of the opinion that the circles she was reporting from years ago were of the same nature as those making the news in 1990. The exact location of Mr & Mrs Dutton's farm is not given, but is known to be located at Maiden Bradley, a small village in the country, south-west of Warminster in Wiltshire. |
Letter printed in Bristol Evening Post, August 7, 1990 |
historic old crop circles - UK circles
