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The History Channel is premiering a new series, The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch, on Tuesday, March 31. The show features a team of scientists and experts conducting a thorough search of the over-500-acre property in Utah’s Uinta Basin that has long been regarded as a hotspot for paranormal and UFO-related activities.
The show’s website teases, “Utilizing the latest in cutting edge technology from lasers and ground-penetrating radars to drone thermography, rockets and more, the team will apply hard science and make shocking discoveries while going further and risking more than anyone has done on the ranch before.”
No one has ever had this kind of access to Skinwalker Ranch before, which is largely due to its mysterious ownership history. Here’s what you need to know about Skinwalker Ranch’s previous and current owners ahead of the TV premiere.
Skinwalker Ranch’s History
According to the show’s website, billionaire Robert Bigelow purchased Skinwalker Ranch in 1996 and used it for two decades to conduct his own investigations into the paranormal happenings on the ranch. But three years ago, an anonymous buyer behind the shell corporation Adamantium Holdings purchased the property and immediately closed all roads leading into it and surrounded the perimeter with security cameras and barbed wire. The purchaser’s identity was a secret—until now.
With the premiere of HISTORY’s new docuseries The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch on the horizon, real estate mogul Brandon Fugal outed himself as the owner after being anonymous for nearly four years. He told VICE in a recent interview that part of the reason he wanted his identity to remain a secret is that Skinwalker Ranch was a controversial real estate purchase.
“Skinwalker Ranch, as a project, is so unconventional and so outside of my normal course of business and really, frankly, anyone’s normal course of business, that it presents a whole new problem set,” he said. “I’ve lost some sleep over it. I worry about what some of my clients and colleagues will think. It’s controversial. That is why I’ve waited so long and stayed out of the spotlight.”
But Fugal Is Ready to Embrace This New Project
After being a mysterious owner for so many years, Fugal is featured on the new HISTORY series because he is organizing a new investigation on the ranch.
“This is the most unique science project of its kind because we verified and documented that some of the most disturbing, unexplained events in the past decades, if not hundreds of years, have occurred on this property,” Fugal says in the premiere episode.
When asked by VICE if he believes in aliens, Fugal says it’s not about that. It’s about science.
“I do believe this project has significant scientific value … Science and discovery are what drive me. It’s not money. It’s not that I’m obsessed with UFOs or little green men or cattle mutilations or shape-shifting demonic entities. I have no idea if aliens exist. You’d have to ask them,” he says, adding that he also isn’t building some kind of paranormal tourist destination either.
“There is zero intention to monetize it in any way, although we do have traditional ranching activities such as raising cattle,” said Fugal, adding, “I have yet to personally take a penny related to my involvement with the show. The show is primarily a vehicle to inform the public regarding the reality of what we are monitoring and recording on the ranch. I believe it is the greatest science project of our time. I want to be clear. The ranch has been hidden from the public for a long time. The TV show presents an opportunity to allow the public some access and view of what is truly occurring there. I can’t just open the gates. That would be irresponsible.”
The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on HISTORY.
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