The Canadian government's response to UFO sightings took shape in the early 1950s with the initiation of Project Magnet and the subsequent Project Second Storey. While these projects aimed to address public concerns and assess potential security threats, the government approached the topic with skepticism, often attributing sightings to natural phenomena or misidentifications.
Wilbert Smith, a radio engineer from the Department of Transport set up a meeting with Robert Sarbacher. It is important to note that, while officially sanctioned, Project Magnet was not a government-funded project. Smith secured permission from the Deputy Minister of Transport to utilize department resources and space, conducting research in his spare time.
The Arthur Bray Fonds at the University of Ottawa now serve as a crucial resource for researchers interested in Project Magnet and Wilbert Smith's contributions to early Canadian UFO studies.
Below are some events from Project Magnet.
Smith began making enquiries about the topic of UFO at the Canadian embassy staff in Washington”. As a result, Smith was assisted by Lieutenant Colonel Bremner to set up a meeting with Robert Sarbacher.
Below is a transscript of the document:
Notes on interview through Lt/C. [Lieutenant Colonel] Bremner with Dr Robert I Sarbacher. - September 15, 1950
WBS: I am doing some work on the collapse of the earth’s magnetic field as a source of energy, and I think our work may have a bearing on the flying saucers.
RIS: What do you want to know.
WBS: I have read Scully’s book (2) on the saucers and would like to know how much of it is true.
RIS: The facts reported in the book are substantially correct.
WBS: Then the saucers do exist?
RIS: Yes they exist.
WBS: Do they operate as Scully suggests, on magnetic principles?
RIS: We have not been able to duplicate their performance
WBS: Do they come from some other planet?
RIS: All we know is, we didn’t make them, and it’s pretty certain they didn’t originate on the earth.
WBS: I understand the whole subject of saucers is classified
RIS: Yes, it is classified two points higher even than the H-bomb. In fact it is the most highly classified subject in the US Government at the present time.
WBS: May I ask the reason for the classification.
RIS: You may ask, but I can’t tell you
WBS: Is there any way in which I can get more information, particularly as it might fit in with our own work.
RIS: I suppose you could be cleared through your own Defense Department and I am pretty sure arrangements could be made to exchange information. If you have anything to contribute, we would be glad to talk it over, but i can’t give you any more at the present time.
Note: The above is written out from memory following the interview. I have tried to keep it as nearly verbatim as possible.
In December, Wilbert Smith, a senior radio engineer for Canada’s Department of Transport, sent a memo to the Department of Transport (also available at the Library and Archives) outlining his thoughts about flying saucers and citing his meeting with a prominent American scientist. It is assumed that he refers to the meeting with Robert Sarbacher.
Citing the information he received from the American, he makes the 4 explosive points below on the nature of UFOs:
"a. The matter is the most highly classified subject in the United States Government, rating higher even than the H-bomb.
b. Flying saucers exist.
c. Their modus operandi is unknown but concentrated effort is being made by a small group headed by Doctor Vannevar Bush.
d. The entire matter is considered by the United States authorities to be of
tremendous significance."
The project ultimately receives permission from the Deputy Minister of Transport to use departmental facilities and resources but operates without formal government funding.
To facilitate his research, Smith established a UFO observatory at Shirley's Bay, a restricted military site west of Ottawa. The observatory, described as a "complicated jumble of electronic gear", housed instruments for detecting radio noise, gravitational disturbances, radioactivity, and magnetic disturbances, all potential indicators of UFO activity.
In the 1952 Project Magnet Report (uOttawa copy), Smith offer detailed insights into Project Magnet's objectives, methodologies, findings, and conclusions. It outlines Smith's rationale for the project, the experimental research conducted, the construction of the Shirley's Bay UFO observatory, and the analysis of sighting reports. This report also includes an appendix summarizing 25 UFO sightings from 1952. Smith assigns each a score of probability and states that this phenomenon is likely a new form of technology:
“[I]t is difficult to reconcile this performance with the capabilities of our technologies, and unless the technology of some terrestrial nation is much more advanced than is generally known, we are forced to the conclusion that the vehicles are probably extra-terrestrial, in spite of our
prejudices to the contrary.”
Smith concludes the report with the following statement
“It appears then, that we are faced with a substantial probability of the existence of extra terrestrial vehicles, regardless of whether or not they fit into our scheme of things. Such vehicles of necessity must use a technology considerably in advance of what we have. It is therefore submitted that the next step in this investigation should be a substantial effort towards the acquisition of as much as possible of this technology, which would without doubt be of great value to us.”
UFO researcher Donald Keyhoe dedicates a chapter to Project Magnet in his book, Flying Saucers from Outer Space, significantly increasing public interest in Smith's work. Media coverage of the Shirley’s Bay observatory adds to the project's visibility, but it also brings scrutiny from the Department of Transport.
In June, the Department of Transport halts Project Magnet, citing a lack of conclusive findings and growing controversy over Smith's public statements about UFOs' extraterrestrial origins. Despite the project's official end, Smith continues studying UFO phenomena privately, focusing on his theories about geomagnetic propulsion.
Independent UFO researcher Arthur Bray works to preserve Smith’s legacy. He acquires Smith's personal papers, including official documents and research notes, from Smith’s widow. Bray recognizes their historical significance and seeks to ensure they remain accessible for future researchers.
Bray donates Smith's papers to the University of Ottawa, creating the Arthur Bray Fonds.
Arthur Bray fonds - Project Magnet. Archives of the University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON
"Memorandum to the Controller of Telecommunications at the Department of Transport." Library and Archives Canada. Ottawa, ON. Wilbert Smith, 21 November 1950.
"Magnet Report." Wilbert B. Smith. Department of Transport. Library and Archives Canada
Hayes, Matthew. "UFOs in Canada". The Canadian Encyclopedia, 20 October 2020, Historica Canada. www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/ufos-in-canada . Accessed 01 November 2024.
Department of National Defence Memo on UFOs. Library and Archives Canada. December 14, 1954. https://www.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/discover/unusual/ufo/PublishingImages/1954-12-14.jpg.
Hayes, Matthew. Search for the Unknown: Canada’s UFO Files and the Rise of Conspiracy Theory. McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2022. https://www.amazon.ca/Search-Canadas-Files-Conspiracy-Theory/dp/0228010748
Hayes, Matthew. A History of Canada's UFO Investigation, 1950-1995. Trent University, 2018.https://digitalcollections.trentu.ca/objects/etd-776