Groom Range land withdrawal (1984)
From the UAP Encyclopedia, the open encyclopedia of UFO and UAP history · 🗓️ Event
Contents 9
| Date | 7 August 1984 |
|---|---|
| Topics | Secrecy & cover-up (topic), Government programs (topic), Congress & law (topic) |
| Testimony | Shellenberger testimony, p. 97 |
| Year | 1984 in UFO history |
| Timeline | 1984 on the UAP Timeline |
| Sources | 10 |
In 1984 the U.S. Air Force closed off the Groom Range, high ground in Nevada from which the public could see the secret test site at Groom Lake, known as Area 51. At a House hearing in August 1984 an Air Force official admitted that the closure had no legal basis, and Congress later formally withdrew the land for military use.[1][2]
Background
The base at Groom Lake was established in 1955 for the U-2 spy plane, and in June 1958 about 38,400 acres around it were withdrawn from public access and designated "Area 51", an addition to the Nevada Test Site. Restricted airspace over it was progressively expanded. The base was later used for the A-12, the F-117 and other classified aircraft.[2][3]
The seizure
In early 1984 the Air Force began restricting public access to about 89,000 acres of public land in the Groom Range, posting guards on the roads.[1]
The hearing
At a hearing of the House Interior subcommittee on public lands in August 1984, its chairman, Representative John Seiberling of Ohio, asked Air Force representative John Rittenhouse whether the Air Force had already restricted public use of the area. Rittenhouse said it had, asserting a right to control access by posting people on the roads and asking for cooperation. Asked under what legal authority, he said that as far as he knew there was none, except that decisions had been made at a much higher level than his. The exchange, including the official's reluctance to discuss details in open session, became part of Area 51's legend.[1]
Withdrawal
Congress subsequently withdrew the Groom Range land for military use, legalising the closure, and Seiberling's subcommittee held further hearings on military land withdrawals in March 1986. A later statute dealt with the Groom Mountain addition by reference to a map dated September 1984.[1][4]
Afterwards
The existence of the base was not officially acknowledged until 2013, when the CIA released a history of the U-2 program. The closure pushed public viewing to more distant peaks, which in turn were withdrawn in the 1990s.[3]
People and topics
- U.S. Air Force — The U.S. military service that ran the official UFO projects from 1947 to 1969.
- Area 51 — The secret Nevada test site where spy planes and stealth aircraft were developed.
- Central Intelligence Agency — The U.S. foreign intelligence agency, which has followed UFO reports since the 1940s.
On the Timeline
- Indian Point nuclear plant sighting (1984) (24 July 1984) — Guards at the Indian Point nuclear plant reportedly see a UAP as security systems fail.
- John Mills and the Vandenberg warhead films (1984/1985) — An Air Force technician says he saw film of UAP interacting with test warheads.
See every 1984 event on the UAP Timeline →
References
- "Area 51: 'I can't discuss it, sir'", Interesting and Curiosities (Jan 2019), quoting the 1984 hearing record · interestingandcuriosities.blogspot.com · archived copy
- "Groom Lake emergencies", Roadrunners Internationale · roadrunnersinternationale.com · archived copy
- Area 51 — Wikipedia · en.wikipedia.org · archived copy
- U.S. Statutes at Large, vol. 102, p. 619 (PDF), Congress.gov · congress.gov · archived copy
- Groom Lake history — Sacred Texts · sacred-texts.com · archived copy
- Area 51 litigation profile (PDF) · lai.org · archived copy
- Groom Lake timeline — Sacred Texts (Glenn Campbell) · sacred-texts.com · archived copy
- Hearing record: Withdraw and reserve certain public lands for military purposes (1984) — HathiTrust · catalog.hathitrust.org · archived copy
- washingtonpost.com · washingtonpost.com · archived copy
- mysteriousuniverse.org · mysteriousuniverse.org · archived copy
Further reading
- Area 51 — Wikipedia · en.wikipedia.org · archived copy
- U.S. congressional hearings on UFOs — Wikipedia · en.wikipedia.org · archived copy
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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