From November 1896 to May 1897, hundreds of newspapers across North America published similar accounts of strange objects in the night skies. Citizens from California to as far east as Michigan reported seeing mysterious "airships" moving high above the earth. Were these puzzling craft driven by visitors from another planet? By hostile foreigners? By American inventors subsidized by private investors, the government, or the military? Solving the 1897 Airship Mystery represents six years of research and draws on more than 1,200 newspaper stories and other contemporary accounts. Author Michael Busby, himself an engineer with experience in avionics, space surveillance, and flight-test engineering, examines the evidence and weighs the various theories. The result is a compelling argument favoring the existence of a secret aviation program that predates the Wright brothers' famous flight in 1903.