AFU Newsletter - No 47 - 2004

Magazine Overview

Title: AFU NEWSLETTER
Issue: 47
Volume: 2004
Date: February 2004
Publisher: Archives for UFO Research Foundation (AFU), Norrköping, Sweden
ISSN: 0283-6378

This issue of the AFU Newsletter focuses on the significant expansion of the Archives for UFO Research (AFU) library through major donations and highlights the ongoing efforts in cataloguing and preserving UFO-related materials. It also touches upon the continuation of the influential 'Flying Saucer Review' magazine.

Donations from Hilary Evans and the Gordon Creighton Archives

In October, Clas Svahn, chairman of UFO-Sweden, and Håkan Ekstrand, editor of UFO-Aktuellt, traveled to England to collect a substantial donation of books and periodicals for the AFU. They met with Philip Creighton, son of the late editor of 'Flying Saucer Review' (FSR), and Hilary Evans. Evans had previously offered his extensive library, known to be one of the world's greatest collections on the unknown. The trip involved extensive travel across England, including a visit to the historic Hadrian's Wall.

During their visit, they spent a day with Philip Creighton, establishing a cooperative agreement between UFO-Sweden and FSR. They also returned scanned images from the FSR archive. The donation from Gordon Creighton's house, where he had lived until his passing on July 16, 2003, was immense. The house was filled with books, magazines, and papers related to his years of UFO interest and editing FSR. After an eight-hour search, they had only scratched the surface of the collection, which included materials from his study, a glazed-in porch, a shed, a crammed room, and an attic. They were able to take approximately one hundred duplicate books back to Sweden.

The following day, they met Hilary Evans at his home in Lewisham, London. Evans is known for his books on UFOs and apparitions. His home contained a vast library, from which approximately 300 books and over a thousand magazines were selected for donation. The Mary Evans Picture Library, run by Evans' wife, was also visited. In total, the AFU received about 400 books and a couple of thousand magazines and booklets in various languages from this trip.

FSR Will Continue Publication

Philip Creighton, a key figure behind 'Flying Saucer Review', will continue the publication with Paul Whitehead and others, following his father Gordon Creighton's death. While the exact future of FSR is uncertain, its continuation is confirmed.

Mary Evans Picture Library

Clas Svahn and Håkan Ekstrand also visited the Mary Evans Picture Library, a fascinating place filled with historical images, engravings, paintings, and prints. They contributed bound volumes of Swedish illustrated weekly publications from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The library is described as a treasure trove for those with a fortean interest.

A Packed Car

The Toyota Camry Touring used for the trip was filled to capacity with the collected materials, resulting in over 500 books and thousands of magazines and booklets for the AFU.

Information about the new collection can be found on the AFU's webpage: http://www.afu.info.

Book Cataloguing Mania – or, My Life as a “UFO Librarian"

This section, written by Anders Liljegren, details the significant growth of the AFU reference library. Acquisitions have surged from 78 titles in 1999 to a record 776 in 2003. The Hilary Evans donation was the largest single contribution, adding 354 new titles and 60-70 additional copies. The AFU aims to maintain three copies of each title, selling excess copies to fund further acquisitions.

The cataloguing process involves a wide range of subjects, including parapsychology, occultism, religion, Fortean phenomena, ghosts, occultism, esoteric aspects, and UFO-related cults. The library also collects literature on design, propulsion, ancient cultures, archaeology, and myths.

The AFU's collection policy has broadened to include literature on all aspects of UFO and UFO-related folklore, not just those deemed 'serious' or 'scientific'. This includes books connecting theosophy with UFO cults. The library actively seeks UFO-related books and those on the 'outskirts' of the subject.

In 2003, the AFU began actively purchasing new and used books using a 'media budget', funded by donations from UFO-Sweden and the sale of Stefan Isaksson's dissertation. Donations from crime novel author Liza Marklund also significantly boosted the collection. The library also holds funds from a donation for the French SOS-OVNI archives, awaiting a suitable acquisition opportunity.

The Evans collection has shifted the catalogue's balance from Anglo-American-Scandinavian to a more diverse representation. As of the cataloguing described, out of 4,883 titles, 16% are from Sweden, 7% from other Scandinavian countries, 41% from the US, and 18% from the UK, totaling 82% from English-speaking regions.

Ufocode Statistics

Statistics from 2002-2004 reveal that out of 1,564 new books and booklets, 264 were classified as 'O' subjects (official policies and investigations). 'C' subjects (contacts and communication with aliens, including contactee and abductee lore) accounted for 230 titles, with subcategories like Psychic contacts (92), Abductions (49), and Contactee cases (47). 'N' subjects (natural sciences and explanations) totaled 155, 'S' (science, scientists, philosophy) had 88, and 'B' (behavioral and social sciences) had 29. Literature on Astronomy ('NA') was 62, debunking ('SD') was 13, and hypnosis ('BPH') was 15.

Other classifications include 'G' (General aspects of UFOs, 150 titles), 'H' (Historical sightings, 17 titles), and 'T' (Theories on origin and intent, 68 titles). The 'U' classification (Ufology, research methodology) had 64 works. Books on Crashes & retrievals ('GC') numbered 15, with eight focusing on Roswell. Submarine objects ('GU') had 13 books, primarily involving Swedish literature on submarine violations.

Within 'T' books, religious/demonological theories ('TR') and folkloric theories ('TF') each had 20 titles. Time travellers ('TT') had 8, and Nazi secret weapons ('TSN') had 4. Regional analyses ('UAG') numbered 16.

Other categories include 'P' (Parapsychology, occultism, esoterism, 169 books), 'R' (Religion, 26 books), and 'F' (Fortean phenomena, 49 titles). Sub-categories include ghosts & apparitions ('PG', 16 books) and occultism & esoteric aspects ('PO', 39 books). Books on UFO-related cults ('RC') numbered 15.

Literature & library ('L') had 166 titles, with bibliographies ('LB', 12) and science fiction with UFO motif ('LFS', 70). Design & propulsion ('D') had 53 titles, and Ancient cultures ('A') had 59.

Recent and Upcoming Books

This section lists numerous recent and upcoming books relevant to UFO research and related topics, including works on:

• SUFOIs historie 1975-2000 by Per Andersen (history of the Danish UFO organization).
• Gravitatsija i NLO by Leonid Anistratenko (explaining gravitation and UFOs).
• UFO's no Pantanal by Lúcio Valerio Barbosa (real experiences with UFOs in Brazil).
• A culture of conspiracy by Michael Barkun (apocalyptic visions and contemporary America).
• Hoaxes, myths and manias by Robert Bartholomew & Benjamin Radford (critical thinking).
• The Phoenix lights by Lynne D. Kitei (skeptic's discovery about the event).
• The challenge of contact by Phillip H. Krapf (interplanetary diplomacy).
• Listening to extraterrestrials by Lisette Larkins (telepathic coaching).
• Presencia extraterrestre by Antonio Las Heras (extraterrestrial presence and cattle mutilations).
• The encyclopedic sourcebook of UFO religions edited by James R. Lewis.
• What happened at Fatima? by Leo Madigan.
• Investigating UFOs by Paul Mason (forensic files for young readers).
• Katydids or UFO's by Ed W. Matthews (UFO experiences and photographs in Oregon).
• MUFON 2003 international UFO symposium proceedings.
• The mystery chronicles by Joe Nickell (real-life X-files).
• NSO kasdienybė by Kazys Paulauskas (events, reports, hypotheses in Lithuania).
• La antiprofecía by Sixto Paz Wells (revelations from extraterrestrial guides).
• Battle of Los Angeles by Terenz Sword (silent invasion).
• Les Ovnis laboratoire du futur by Michel Picard.
• The UFO Magazine UFO encyclopedia by William J. Birnes.
• UFO directory international by David Blevins.
• Onko ufoilmiössä logiikkaa? by Björn Borg (logic behind the UFO mystery).
• Konspirationsteorier by Lars Bugge (conspiracies).
• UFOs and the murder of Marilyn Monroe by Donald R. Burleson.
• Solving the great 1897 airship mystery by Michael Busby.
• OVNIs y ciencias humanas by Ignacio Cabria Garcia (50 years of bibliography).
• Witness to Roswell by Tom Carey & Don Schmitt.
• Fátima nos bastidores do segredo by Fina d'Armada & Joaquim Fernandes.
• Thirty-five minutes to Mars by Rosemary Decker.
• Humanoides, los otros seres by Juan Diaz Montes.
• The Roswell dig diaries by SCI-FI Network.
• Earth history and lost civilizations explained by Robert Shapiro.
• Ultimate UFO series: Andromeda by Robert Shapiro, Wendelle C. Stevens, etc.
• The Skeptic encyclopedia of pseudoscience edited by Michael Shermer.
• The Earth chronicles expeditions by Zecharia Sitchin.
• Mystiska fenomen by Johan Söderberg & Lotta Lindström.
• UFOs and the Soviet Union by Christian Sommerer & Werner Walter.
• We are the Nibiruans by Jelaila Starr.
• Ultimatum alla terra by Giuseppe Stilo.
• The fifth horseman of the apocalypse by Loren E. Gross.
• Ufo tapaus eli arvoitus nimeltä Antero by Taina Haahti.
• Unlocking alien closets by Leah A. Haley.
• Widerstreit ist zwecklos by Ulf Harendarski.
• Connecting the dots by Paola Leopizzi Harris.
• Aliens and Ufos by Judith Herbst (for young readers).
• Pseudoscience and the paranormal by Terence Hines.
• Sokujici pravda o UFO by Robert Homir.
• The alien chronicles by Matthew Hurley.
• Extraterrestrial intervention / the enigma by Joseph Intelisano.
• Encuentros by Iker Jiménez Elizari.
• Machtwechsel auf der Erde by Armin Risi.

The AFU Newsletter and Archives

The AFU Newsletter is published quarterly by AFU, established in 1973, with the newsletter starting in 1975. Copyright is not claimed, but reproduction requires referencing AFU as the source. The Archives for UFO Research is a non-profit foundation dedicated to building a Swedish-International UFO library and research archive, supporting serious research, and fostering critical discussion on UFO phenomena.

Membership in Sweden can be achieved through an annual donation of 150 SEK. International exchanges with publishers of newsletters, journals, and other media are welcomed. The newsletter is not available via subscription outside Sweden. All submitted materials are catalogued and preserved.

Sponsorship is also welcome from individuals worldwide. Minimum annual donations for sponsors are 600 SEK, with larger monetary donations and depositions of records and materials (books, newsletters, magazines, reports, clippings, photos, audio/video recordings, microfilms, etc.) also accepted.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The recurring themes in this issue revolve around the growth and organization of UFO research archives, the importance of preserving UFO literature, and the continuation of key publications in the field. The editorial stance, as represented by the AFU, is one of serious, critical, and comprehensive research into UFO phenomena, aiming to build a global repository of knowledge and foster informed discussion. The emphasis on cataloguing, broad subject inclusion, and international cooperation underscores a commitment to thoroughness and accessibility in UFO research.