Spruce Pine Business Owner Recounts Multiple UFO Sightings
By: Lauren Ramsey, Ashley Reep – Wise News Network
Spruce Pine, NC (WNN)—Five years ago, Mabel Benjamin, owner and founder of Rocks and Things, a local store in Downtown Spruce Pine, witnessed something out of the ordinary. She and her husband, Robert, saw multiple UFOs hovering over the town.
Mysterious Disappearance
Benjamin, a dedicated “rock hound” for 71 years of her life, described the unfolding mystery. The couple went on their usual evening walk when they saw what they believed was a helicopter coming from the mine area. “We walked and headed down to the park. Through the trees, we thought we saw a helicopter come out of the mine area and stop over the Spruce Pine Inn on the other end of town,” Benjamin said.
Eventually, a loud train came through town, but the ‘helicopter’ just stayed still. After the train left, Benjamin noted an eerie silence. “It was totally quiet, no noise, no flashing lights. There was a red and white light on the helicopter, but no noise, no flashing lights. And then all of a sudden, it went straight up in the air and disappeared into a clear, starlit night.”
Repeated Sightings and Community Confirmation
The couple continued their walk to the park. Eventually, another similar object appeared from the mine, hovering over the Spruce Pine Inn before rapidly leaving and vanishing. Benjamin, amazed, recalled calling out for it to return.
A third sighting occurred as Benjamin was on the phone with a friend. Much like the others, this third object emerged, hovered, and slowly disappeared. Benjamin pinpointed the time of these sightings between 9:50 p.m. and 10:10 p.m. on a Thursday night, just before the annual Gem Show.
The following morning, as Benjamin went to make food bank deliveries, she was approached by the manager of Spruce Pine Inn. He was excited to share his own account of what he had seen from the previous night. ” He said it looked like that classic, shape of a saucer. And the top was a red dome, and there were white lights and then it just slowly went up out of sight”. Benjamin recounted the manager’s description noting his sighting happened around 11 p.m. and was verified by motel guests.
“So there were either four sightings that 2 to 20 people saw, and there could have been a fifth sighting at a different time,” Benjamin concluded.
A Passion for Rocks
Beyond her unique encounter, Benjamin spoke about her passion for rocks and her long-standing business, Rocks and Things, located at 114 Oak Ave, Spruce Pine, NC 28777. She has owned the building for 23 years, which houses her store, home, and storage. Benjamin had been coming to the Spruce Pine area from Florida for about 40 years, always feeling “at home” in the area. About 25 years ago, she decided to make the move permanent, looking for a place to establish her business.
Benjamin, a former long-distance truck driver, collected rocks from 47 states and six Canadian provinces. “I would pick up rocks. I had all these books that told me, oh, there’s this here, and my truck would be broke down on the side of the road, and I would be out there with a five-gallon bucket looking for rocks”. She explained.
While she appreciates all types of rocks, Benjamin particularly loves fluorescent minerals and emeralds, especially the Crabtree Emerald found locally. “I like emeralds. We actually do have an emerald here called the Crabtree Emerald, which is their little tiny ones, and they’re in a matrix of feldspar, smoky quartz, tourmaline, and stuff in it.” She pointed out the rock formations in the Spruce Pine area. They produce really pure quartz and feldspar, which many industries around the world rely on.
There have been many strange sightings around the Spruce Pine, NC area. Some have linked the sightings to the highly pure quartz content of the area.
For more WNN video news stories, visit YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@wisenewsnetwork
For further WNN articles and news stories, visit: https://wisenewsnetwork.com
Contact WNN at newsdesk@wisenewsnetwork.com
© Copyright 2025 Wise News Network. All rights reserved.
