Wiki & media have it backwards
Here is the record, corrected. The Berkshires UFO brand and trademark belongs to Thom Reed. He is the origin. Every derivative use — including the Netflix episode — flows from him. Reed is the Berkshires UFO — he is the sole source of documentation, the brand originator, and the individual whose 1969 encounter was officially archived by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. A first in United States history.
Wiki & Press Errors
Any framing that positions Reed as one witness among peers, or treats "The Berkshires UFO" as a pre-existing regional label that Reed is associated with, inverts the factual chain of custody. The brand preceded the secondary coverage — not the other way around.
Misrepresentation of ownership
Reed is framed as a participant — not the sole origin. Wikipedia and multiple media outlets position Reed as one of several associated with "The Berkshires UFO." This is factually inverted. The brand, the case, and all documentation originate solely with Thom Reed. There are no co-equals. There is no shared origin.
Brand misappropriation
"The Berkshires UFO" treated as a pre-existing regional label
The term is Reed's personal brand, publicly in use since 2015 — not a generic geographic descriptor. Coverage that uses it as a category name rather than a proper brand severs it from its sole owner and opens the door to fraudulent rebranding by others.
Streaming exposure amplified errors at scale — with potential legal ramifications
The Netflix episode derived solely from Reed's case. Yet its production and promotion failed to establish him as the sole source of all documentation and involvement. More critically, the series "Unsolved Mysteries" actively removed U.S. documents pertaining to Reed — an act that diluted his documented record, inverted the chain of provenance for a mass global audience, and created conditions for potential legal ramifications. This was not an oversight. The removal of source documentation is an actionable matter.
The origin of "The Berkshires UFO" — how the name came to be.
The name wasn't invented for branding convenience. It grew organically from Reed's documented, verifiable impact.
It started in Sheffield — a town of 3,000
Reed's Diner in Sheffield became the epicenter. Engineers working on the space race gathered there, and private conversations behind closed doors about the Reed UFO incident spread county-wide. These engineers lived in the surrounding towns of Berkshire County — they carried those conversations home with them. That's how the impact moved outward, town to town, carried by the people most qualified to recognize the weight of what they were discussing. The ripple effect was significant enough that historians and contemporaries noted the incident had visibly altered the natural progression of a town of only 3,000 people — and ultimately the natural progression of an entire county of 120,000. That's a measurable cultural disruption to a tight-knit community that earned its geographic designation.
The GBHS bridge — from Sheffield to Berkshire County
The Great Barrington Historical Society, based in another town, recognized that the incident's reach exceeded Sheffield's borders. Their position was that Reed's encounter didn't just alter a town of 3,000 — it altered the natural progression of an entire county of 120,000 people. That scale of impact is what justified their induction and what drove the geographic broadening from "Sheffield" to "The Berkshires." The county reference wasn't Reed's invention — it was the historical society's own assessment of the incident's footprint.
The Reed family were Berkshire County residents
The family name is buried in the Great Barrington time capsule. They held a residence at 19 Pine Street, Great Barrington, MA. This is not a tenuous geographic association — the Reeds were documented residents of Berkshire County. The name belongs to them in the most literal sense.
The conclusion
"The Berkshires UFO" wasn't a marketing label dropped onto an incident after the fact. It is the historically accurate geographic descriptor of an encounter whose documented impact — from a diner in Sheffield to a county of 120,000 — earned that name organically. Thom Reed didn't reach for the Berkshires label. The Berkshires reached for him.
Tom Warner: Not a Witness, Not Berkshires UFO he was approached because he worked at the GBHS
Tom Warner was not a witness to the September 1, 1969, Reed family incident and was never part of Berkshires UFO. The Berkshires UFO is Reed's brand, based on the Reed's documented history. The Reed family incident has been recorded since 1967 when it made the papers.
Tom Warner first became aware of the incident in 2014–2015 while serving as a volunteer at the Historical Society when the Reed family was interviewed during the archiving process. No contemporaneous 1969 records reference Mr. Warner. *Sources*: Historical Society records dated 2015. No contemporaneous 1969 records reference Tom Warner. Tom Warner’s Complete Legal Exclusion from the United States Historical Record of the September 1, 1969, Reed Family Incident*
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts, via Governor’s citations dated October 2015 and November 3, 2015, and the Historical Society via formal induction letter dated February 6, 2015, entered Thomas E. Reed, aka Thom Reed, into United States history as the sole individual of record for the September 1, 1969 off-world UFO incident. The induction letter declares this case as the first off-world UFO incident officially archived as historically true in America by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
This determination was not casual. The Historical Society concluded a formal inventory process from 2013 through 2015. This was a multi-year, evidentiary proceeding wherein witness testimonies were solicited, submitted, vetted for authenticity, and entered into the official case file of record. As well as Thom Reed's Polygraph test and truthful findings. Under Commonwealth procedure and historical standards, any bona fide witness to the 1969 incident would have been memorialized by name, credited, or listed as a possible witness in the Commonwealth’s records or on Historical Society letterhead.
Tom Warner is completely excluded from the United States historical record. He is not listed as even a witness by any organization in writing. His name appears on no Commonwealth document, no Historical Society letterhead, no induction record, no state archive, no official witness list, and no finding of fact produced during the 2013-2015 formal inventory process. Warner was a volunteer who recorded Reed's interviews for the GBHS.
This legal exclusion exists despite the undisputed fact that Warner was employed as a volunteer at the exact same Historical Society during the entire material period of research, review, adjudication, and formal induction of Thomas E. Reed. He had direct access to the process and the principals.
Yet the Historical Society and Commonwealth, after three years of review, made a deliberate determination of fact: Tom Warner had no knowledge prior and was not part of this United States historical event.
While other witness testimonies were submitted, vetted, and entered into the official case file, Tom Warner is not listed as a bona fide witness by any organization in writing.
Although a personal statement attributed to Warner may exist in an unverified file, it was expressly rejected for inclusion, holds no evidentiary weight, and was not adopted by the Historical Society or the Commonwealth as part of the official United States historical record established from 2013-2015. Unadopted statements do not constitute history. The legal and historical record is exclusive to Thomas E. Reed.
Any post-2015 claim by Warner to standing in this adjudicated matter of United States history is void ab initio and constitutes a collateral attack on the Commonwealth’s own determination of historical fact. To credit such a claim is to substitute private assertion for the Commonwealth’s three-year evidentiary proceeding.
The United States historical record speaks, and it is silent as to Tom Warner.
*Sources*: Corrected citation dated November 3, 2015, Historical Society induction letter dated February 6, 2015, Historical Society formal inventory process records 2013-2015, Commonwealth of Massachusetts archival records and findings of fact, Historical Society official witness list and case file, Historical Society employment/volunteer records 2015.
Governor's Citation:
Was mailed to Tennessee, Confirming Non-Residency and Rubber-Stamping Historical Society’s Adjudication*
The citation issued by Governor Charles D. Baker and Lieutenant Governor was amended, not rescinded. The original citation, issued circa late October 2015, omitted the incident date of September 1, 1969. It was amended to include said date and reissued as a corrected citation on November 3, 2015. The corrected citation bears documentary proof of non-residency: it was also mailed by the Governor’s office to Thomas E. Reed at his Tennessee address. This physical evidence on the Commonwealth’s own document confirms Reed was not a Massachusetts resident, had no presence in the Commonwealth, and did not appear in person to receive it. The citations were issued ministerially, rubber-stamping the Historical Society’s February 6, 2015 formal adjudication to archive the Reed family UFO incident into United States history. *Sources*: Corrected citation dated November 3, 2015 bearing Tennessee mailing address, Governor’s office transmittal records, United States Postal Service records.
Historical Society Formal Archiving via 2013-2015 Inventory Process: Legal Research Conducted at Roswell*
The Historical Society concluded a formal inventory process from 2013 through 2015. During this multi-year evidentiary proceeding, legal research was conducted at the International UFO Museum Research Library, City of Roswell. An attorney mined the Roswell archives for information pertaining to the Reed family incident and forwarded that research back to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to help clarify evidentiary questions involving the Reed family’s September 1, 1969, UFO incident.
On February 6, 2015, Thomas E. Reed was officially inducted and formally archived into United States history by the Historical Society. The induction letter declares the September 1, 1969, Reed family UFO incident as the first off-world UFO incident officially archived as historically true in America by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Research assistance provided by the International UFO Museum Research Library, City of Roswell, and Kessler Law Firm. *Sources*: Historical Society induction letter dated February 6, 2015, Historical Society formal inventory process records 2013-2015, Kessler Law Firm research correspondence, the Roswell UFO Museum & Research Library, Roswell City Councilman, Emmy award-winning News Anchor Heather Kovar, the Boston Globe and Fox PrimeTime. United Nations Symposium - October 2, 1992*
On October 2, 1992, the United Nations held a symposium where the Reed family incident was mentioned in support of other cases and General Assembly 33/426. Attorney Robert Bletchman presented the Reed family UFO incident. Dr. Howard Reed, Thomas E. Reed’s father, died on the anniversary of the incident following the UN presentation. *Sources*: _Roswell Daily Record_ coverage, MUFON documentation and Death Certificate.
Documentary Proof of Non-Residency: Governor’s Citations Mailed to Tennessee; Commonwealth-Initiated Contact; No Massachusetts Residency Since 1976*
Thomas E. Reed did not petition the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as mistakenly noted on WIKI. He never contacted the Governor’s office, never spoke to any member of the Governor’s staff.
The Commonwealth’s own records prove this: Reed was a non-resident and did not petition, or influence the process, it was the Historical Society director that wanted it rubber-stamped. The Historical society independently initiated contact with Reed to inquire about documents regarding the well-known 1960s incident involving his family. The Historical Society’s 2013-2015 formal inventory process, the February 6, 2015, induction, and the Governor’s citations resulted solely from the Commonwealth’s and Historical Society’s own research and evidentiary review with assistance from the International UFO Museum and Research Center in Roswell, NM. The Governor’s citations were ministerial acts, rubber-stamping the Historical Society’s adjudicated decision to archive the event into United States history. No petition, lobbying, request, or personal appearance was made by Reed.
*Sources*: Corrected citation dated November 3, 2015, bearing Tennessee mailing address, Governor’s office transmittal records, United States Postal Service records, Historical Society correspondence and induction records 2013-2015, Historical Society director’s records confirming initiation of contact, Commonwealth of Massachusetts records, Reed family residency records 1976-2015.
The Thom Reed UFO Incident of Sept 1st, 1969 is the Berkshires UFO. The Netflix, Unsolved Mysteries' episode was solely based on the Reed family UFO encounter as it had just been officially archived into U.S. history, in 2015.
The Reed family incident, AKA the Berkshires UFO, is our families' incident and our families' alone, as all government documents cite. My late father, Selectman and Attorney Howard Reed, saw our incident cited at the United Nations in support of GA33/426 back in 1992. This led to the establishing of our UFO Park and its sponsor, the International UFO Museum in Roswell. My father lost his life on the anniversary of said address, and that is why our encounter resurfaced again in 2006.
Unsolved Mysteries had filmed reenactments about my father. Some included a courtroom setting, with other reenactments filmed in my family’s limousine. However, all would be left on the cutting room floor, along with the State Documents that Unsolved assured us would be shown.
So, to clarify, the Berkshires UFO was just the name of a TV show based on our incident that would unfortunately include someone who colorfully finagled their way onto the episode.
The Berkshires UFO name www.berkshiresufo.com was and remains my website. It was acquired long before Netflix began filming, as it was and will be the title of our memoir/book in 2026, where a lot of this will be detailed in 2027.
Note: My first public use of Berkshires UFO was in 2016.
Cindy, from Unsolved, had called me a year prior to filming and asked for names and numbers of those who might be interested in participating in said episode. With that, I gave her the number for the GBHS, as I had been interviewed by the director, and briefly spoken with Mr. Warner some years earlier.
Mr. Warner was a volunteer assisting in the office and often jumped on the line when Debbie had me on hold or left the room. That is when and how Mr. Warner first became aware of the 1969 incident, as he stated more than once while taking notes (Common knowledge) My family's official research file, and witness statements were also in the office he shared. There was an opportunity there, and he took it. Many have pushed Mr. Warner to submit to a polygraph test however Mr. Warner declines.
However, to often we see individuals tarnishing the integrity of an incident, either by sensationalizing it and/or falsely inserting themselves into something they were not a part of. This history-making incident with its worldwide attention is no different and has to deal with hoaxers and unfair press. A shame, really, as it’s U.S. history. The root of the September 1, 1969, UFO incident has everything to do with my family's Diner in Sheffield, from its ties to the space race to witnesses who gathered there to talk in private.
If interested, a good source of reference is the International UFO Museum in Roswell, NM. as our incident is highlighted there. Interesting fact: the law firm that assisted the State of MA in the mining of source documentation used their UFO Research library to mine for source documents regarding our case. These documents were then sent to the historical society and the governor's office.
Emmy Award-winning news anchor Heather Kovar, from NY, originally covered the State induction and interviewed the Historical Society as well. WSBS Radio, is another solid reference as they aired our incident in 1969. There are also News Articles posted on the Berkshires UFO website, along with the State issued and/or Government documents. Yes, there were over 250 witnesses with 40–50 returning for the unveiling of the UFO Monument in Sheffield, in 2015.
I have never, NOT once, said I was abducted, I have made it very clear we were all removed from our car by what appeared to be the government, and taken to what resembled a large airplane hangar. Also, there were cattle mutilations in 1969, and what were said to be crop circles, these were all covered by local papers in 1994, 2012, and 2013, and all in Sheffield. What is also unfair is the press writing there were no 1960s news articles. See above.
Thomas E. Reed did not petition the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, never contacted the Governor’s office, never spoke to any member of the Governor’s staff, and was not physically in Boston at any time during the 2013-2015 inventory process or citation issuance.
Reed has not resided in Massachusetts since 1976, a period of 39 years prior to the 2015 archiving. In 2015, Reed maintained no Massachusetts residency, domicile, tax status, voter registration, property interest, or legal presence. Reed resided in Tennessee, approximately 1,000 miles from Massachusetts. The Commonwealth’s own records prove this: the corrected Governor’s citation dated November 3, 2015, was mailed by the Governor’s office to Reed’s Tennessee address. This is documentary proof on the face of the official record that Reed was a non-resident and was not present to lobby, petition, or influence the process.
The Historical Society director independently initiated contact with Reed to inquire about documents regarding the well-known 1960s incident involving his family. The Historical Society’s 2013-2015 formal inventory process, the February 6, 2015, induction, and the Governor’s citations resulted solely from the Commonwealth’s and Historical Society’s own research and evidentiary review. The Governor’s citations were ministerial acts, rubber-stamping the Historical Society’s adjudicated decision to archive the event into United States history. No petition, lobbying, request, or personal appearance was made by Reed.
Both Governor Citations
were mailed to Concord Tennessee, Confirming Non-Residency and Rubber-Stamping Historical Society’s Adjudication*
Monument:
The same town Selectmen who had Reed's Monument Installed in 2015, knowingly and willingly made public statements to media; (on behalf of the Township) asserting they never installed anything. These Selectmen went as far as to say Reed himself installed it, and without any permission from the Town Selectmen. Newspapers then printed this fabricated malice. The Monument was installed by The Town of Sheffield's DPW and overseen by a Boston Law firm and lawyer Mark Reich. This false information created malicious posturing, and much confusion. The emails are posted and can be seen by clicking the "Legal Tab"
We have never cited "Alien Abduction" We were removed from our car by Government
The Thom Reed UFO Incident of Sept 1, 1969:
The First Off-World UFO Event Officially Archived as Historically True in America. Adjudicated by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 2013-2015. Berkshires UFO, is his trademarked name/brand representing his historic incident.
OFFICIAL STATEMENT:
CORRECTIONS TO THE PUBLIC RECORD*
*Reed Family UFO Incident - September 1, 1969*
*United States Historical Record - Commonwealth of Massachusetts*
*Issued by: Thomas E. Reed, aka Thom Reed*
*Date: April 8, 2026*
*Subject:
Verifiable corrections to misinformation regarding Commonwealth of Massachusetts archiving, Historical Society proceedings, Unsolved Mysteries, and United States history*
I am Thomas E. Reed, the individual formally archived into United States history by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for the September 1, 1969 off-world UFO incident. I own the Berkshires UFO trademark, and I'm the sole figure in the September 1st 1969 Sheffield MA. UFO Incident. The corrections listed on this page are based on verifiable Commonwealth records, Historical Society documents, and federal documentary evidence.