1918 - Bilsington

As with a number of these early reports, the circle in question was not documented anywhere until the circles phenomenon became national news, whereupon it was submitted to researchers.

In this case, a written account was sent to Terence Meaden by a member of the public, following the publication of a letter by him, in the Daily Mail in August 1988.

The account is of a "huge circle of crops, completely flattened", which appeared in a field of either oats or beans. It was witnessed by the late James Lukehurst, shortly after he left the army towards the end of World War I. Mr Lukehurst recounted what he saw to daughter Joan, who passed the details on to Dr Meaden.

Mr Lukehurst was said to be angry about the circle, presuming it to be the work of vandals, until he saw it close-up. He also called his own father to see it, and several local farmers, all of whom were similarly "amazed".

The size of the circle is not clear, but it may have been a particularly large example. According to Mrs Tookey's (nee Lukehurst) account, "It covered a wide area, enough to hold a house, my father used to tell us".

Due to its anecdotal nature, the account must be treated with a degree of caution and details such as this may not be reliable. However there is nothing in the story as a whole which is in any way suspicious - it appears to be a truthful account by a close relation to the witness.

Dr Meaden published Mrs Tookey's letter in Journal of Meteorology, in 1991. An extract is shown below, describing the circle as it appeared to Mr Lukehurst.

In the intervening period, Meaden had been in touch with Mrs Tookey by telephone, and states that she confirmed the date of the circle as 1918.

historic old crop circles - UK circles