Henry Dakin's San Francisco building

From the UAP Encyclopedia, the open encyclopedia of UFO and UAP history · 🗓️ Event

Contents 8
Henry Dakin's San Francisco building
Dr. J. Allen Hynek (left) and Dr. Jacques Vallée (right).
Dr. J. Allen Hynek (left) and Dr. Jacques Vallée (right). Photo: United States Government · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons
Date20 February 2000
TopicsPropulsion & physics (topic), Remote viewing & psi (topic)
PeopleJacques Vallée
TestimonyShellenberger testimony, p. 142
Year2000 in UFO history
Timeline2000 on the UAP Timeline
Sources10

In his published journals, Jacques Vallée describes the San Francisco offices of philanthropist Henry Dakin, who provided space for a wide range of consciousness, parapsychology and other unconventional research groups. The testimony dates the entry to February 2000, when the tenants included the International Space Sciences Organization founded by entrepreneur Joe Firmage.[1][2]

Henry Dakin

Illustration of a disc-shaped craft in the night sky
Illustration: a disc-shaped craft in the night sky. An artist's impression drawn for this site, not a photograph of the event.

Henry Saltonstall Dakin (died 2010) ran a private, nonprofit educational foundation, the Washington Research Institute, from offices on Washington Street in the Pacific Heights district, later moving to Sacramento Street. From the 1970s he supported projects in consciousness research, parapsychology, computer networking, Soviet–American exchanges and environmental work; groups that grew from his support include Internews and the Institute for Global Communications.[2][3]

Research groups

Russell Targ
Russell Targ Photo: photo was taken by subject's wife (Patricia Targ) · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons

The Consciousness Theory Group, a circle of physicists and others interested in consciousness that included Saul-Paul Sirag, met at the Washington Research Institute, where both consciousness and the Soviet Union were central concerns. Sirag also served for some years as president of the Parapsychology Research Group, in which remote-viewing researcher Russell Targ was prominent.[4]

Firmage

Jacques Vallée 2024
Jacques Vallée 2024 Photo: Cmichel67 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Joe Firmage, co-founder of the web company USWeb, stepped down from his leadership role in late 1998 after saying he had encountered an extraterrestrial being, and went on to fund science media and advanced-propulsion projects. According to Vallée's journals, his organisation was among the building's tenants around 2000. Firmage later faced lawsuits from investors.[1][5]

Significance

Illustration of an observer watching the sky
Illustration: an observer watching the sky. An artist's impression drawn for this site, not a photograph of the event.

The building is an example of the networks around Vallée that linked Silicon Valley, the counterculture and research into the paranormal and UFOs.[1][4]

People and topics

Illustration of Earth, the Moon and space
Illustration: Earth, the Moon and space. An artist's impression drawn for this site, not a photograph of the event.
  • Jacques Vallée — Computer scientist and astronomer, author of the Forbidden Science journals and a central figure in UFO research.
  • Unidentified flying object — An object in the sky that can't be identified; the older term for UAP.
  • NASA — The U.S. civilian space agency, created in 1958.

On the Timeline

Illustration of an open book about flying saucers
Illustration: an open book about flying saucers. An artist's impression drawn for this site, not a photograph of the event.

See every 2000 event on the UAP Timeline →

References

Further reading

This page was last edited on 29 October 2026. Articles are written in our own words from the sources listed under References; disputed claims are attributed to the people who made them.

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