75th Anniversary of Mariana UFO Incident

When it comes to unique and creative team names, there’s no sport on earth that compares to minor league baseball. Some team names draw inspiration from the name of the town they play in, like the Winston-Salem Dash who are named for the dash between Winston and Salem. Other team names are pop culture references, like the Rocket City Trash Pandas whose name comes from a line from Guardians of the Galaxy 2. But the best names are the ones that are both unique and tie in with the community they play in. Like the Idaho Falls Chukars, or the Gwinnett Stripers, or the Great Falls Voyagers. 

The Voyagers were originally called the Electrics, paying homage to the city’s nickname (The Electric City), which was inspired by the power generated by the dams built on the Missouri River in and around the city. Later on the Voyagers would adopt the name of their various parent organizations. Playing as the Great Falls Giants from 1969-1983, the Great Falls Dodgers from 1984-2002, and the Great Falls White Sox from 2003-2007. 

Prior to the 2008 season, the then Great Falls White Sox announced that they’d be undergoing a branding change, and have been known as the Great Falls Voyagers ever since. The color scheme is pretty sharp, the alien theme is cool, and it’s a very unique name. Great Falls is one of two professional sports teams on earth that are called the Voyagers (the other is the Pasay Voyagers, a pro basketball team based in the Philippines that plays in the Maharalika Pilipinas Basketball League), but why the Voyagers?

The origins of the team’s identity goes back to August 15, 1950, when the general manager of the then Great Falls Electrics, Nick Mariana spotted two silver UFO’s flying in formation over Voyagers Stadium (then called Legion Park). Mariana grabbed his 16mm movie camera and filmed the objects for 16 seconds. He sent the footage to nearby Malmstrom Air Force Base. The Air Force launched an investigation, and the official explanation was that the objects were F-94 fighter jets from the base. However, Mariana and many others disagreed with the official story. 

Were they fighter jets? Visitors from another galaxy? Or something else entirely? We may never know. But, as we  approach the 75th anniversary of the Mariana UFO incident, keep an eye on the sky. Just in case some extraterrestrial baseball fans stop by to catch a few innings.