So-called aliens didn’t arrive in Roswell until 1947, at least according to some accounts, but the first American pioneers actually arrived in the 1860s. The first settlement had been about 15 miles from what is modern Roswell, but it was abandoned due to lack of water. Despite this first setback the settlement became a permanent part of the frontier, and grew quickly in size. Aaron Wilburn was among the earliest pioneers, and he established the first general store, and in 1873 became the town’s first postmaster. Roswell was named in honor of his father.

While there was almost always a military presence near Roswell, the town saw very little violent activity. During World War II a POW camp was built outside of Roswell, and German prisoners of war actually helped to pave the banks of the North Spring River, one part of which was known as Iron Cross Park thanks to the design motifs of the German builders. The park today displays a piece of the Berlin Wall, which was given to the city by the German Air Force at the end of the Cold War.

Of course it is July 1947 that truly put Roswell on the map. This is when the Roswell Army Air Field first announced that it had recovered a “flying disk.” The US Army Air Force later said it was a weather balloon. Through the years there have been numerous theories about what really happened, but regardless people know Roswell as the town where the UFO crashed!