Ann Hodges

Ann Elizabeth Hodges (born 1920 - died 1972 in Sylacauga) was the only human being ever to have been struck by a meteorite.

On November 30, 1954 Hodges was at home, sleeping on the living room sofa while ill. That afternoon an 8 1/2 pound meteorite crashed through the roof, glanced off a console radio and struck her in the left hand and hip, leaving a large bruise.

She died of kidney failure in 1972 at a Sylacauga nursing home and was buried at Charity Baptist Church Cemetery in Hazel Green in Madison County.

The "Hodges meteorite", was at the center of a bitter battle between the government, the Hodges', and their landlady, Birdie Guy. It was eventually donated to the Alabama Museum of Natural History on the campus of the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, where it remains on display.

References

• Ellington, M. J. (November 30, 2006) "A star fell on Sylacauga." Decatur Daily.
• "A Big Bruiser from the Sky." (December 13, 1954) Life magazine.