The very first school shooting occurred in the 1700's in the United States at the Pontiac's Rebellion school massacre on July 26, 1764. October 17, 1961 Denver, Colorado Tennyson Beard, 14, got into an argument with William Hachmeister, 15, at Morey Junior High School. Three students were shot to death and five critically injured before a gunman took his own life Monday at Michigan State . Date Location Attacker (s) Casualties Description. On July 26, 1764, four Lenape American Indian warriors entered a log schoolhouse of white settlers in what is now . The first known mass shooting in the U.S. where students were shot, was on April 9, 1891, when 70 year old, James Foster fired a shotgun at a group of students in the playground of St. Mary's Parochial School, Newburgh, New York, causing minor injuries to several of the students. For the mass shooting that occurred in 2023, see. March 23, 1907 Carmi, Illinois George Nicholson shot and killed John Kurd at a schoolhouse outside of Carmi, Illinois during a school rehearsal. In 1885, the area was designated Enoch Brown Park, and a memorial was erected over the grave. On July 26, 1764, a group ofLenape American Indians entered a schoolhouse nearGreencastle, PA, and clubbed and scalped schoolmaster Enoch Brown and killed9 or 10 of his children (precise numbers vary). September 12, 1940 Uniontown, Pennsylvania, 29-year-old teacher Carolyn Dellamea is shot to death inside her third grade classroom by 35-year-old William Kuhns. Americas young history is peppered with tragedy. 242 individuals were held hostage at gunpoint. Settlers buried Enoch Brown and the schoolchildren in a common grave. School shootings have sadly occurred at steady rates over the course of the last decade. Mitchell Johnson, 13, and Andrew Golden, 11, shot at their classmates and teachers from the woods. On the morning of April 20, 1999, Eric Harris (18) and Dylan Klebold (17) entered Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado. 24 were injured. Principal Burton Wragg rushed over to the children, many of whom were paralyzed in place by fear, to guide them to safety. He died in this second explosion along with several others. Gun Violence. On July 26, 1764, four Delaware (Lenape) Native Americans entered a settlers' log schoolhouse in the Province of Pennsylvania and killed the schoolmaster, Enoch Brown, and ten students. According to newspaper accounts, he was killed by a group of men, probably Confederate raiders, who were trying to steal his enslaved people. January 10, 1912 Warrenville, Illinois Sylvester E. Adams shot and killed teacher Edith Smith after she rejected his advances. Only two children survived. On July 26 . RED LAKE HIGH SCHOOL, March 2005, 9 dead. Since 1764, the number of school shootings rose exponentially. 1994-1995 (17 Homicides and 20 Deaths resulting from school shootings in the U.S.) Then in a quiet voice, Matt Ward demanded to see Mr. Butler, one of the teachers at the high school. There was some kind of movement; some students tried to hide behind Butler. He arrived in an Uber carrying a big black bag. On Sept. 30, 1862, Ward walked out the front door of his plantation. The earliest known United States shooting to happen on school property was the Pontiac's Rebellion school massacre on July 26, 1764, where four Lenape American Indians entered the schoolhouse near present-day Greencastle, Pennsylvania, shot and killed schoolmaster Enoch Brown, and killed nine or ten children (reports vary). The massacre at Columbine High School is considered to be the event that has most shaped the modern gun debate. Its report looks at "incidents of 'targeted. Law enforcement toxicology tests showed no sign of intoxicants in either Spencers blood or urine. November 26, 1985 Spanaway, Washington A 14yr old girl shot two boys dead then kills herself with a .22-caliber rifle at the Spanaway Junior High School. In August of that year, a 25-year-old man named Charles Whitman went on a 96-minute shooting spree from an observation deck at the University of Texas-Austin, killing 17 people and wounding 31 others in an attack that sounds eerily reminiscent of the stories that you're all too used to hearing today. Crow went to Phy's office and demanded that Mr. Phy change his grade to a passing mark. Sporting trench coats, they opened fire, killing twelve students and one teacher. A little over three weeks later, new gun laws were passed in Florida. At the end of their hour-long rampage, they turned their guns on themselves. Inside were the schoolmaster, Enoch Brown, and a number of young students. Deaths, however, were down. 201 were severely wounded by gun fire. No one was hurt. Until Matt and Robert Ward walked in, the schoolhouse on Chestnut Street in Louisville on Nov. 2, 1853, was engaged in the routine morning business of words, numbers and questions. June 13, 1889 New Brunswick, New Jersey Charles Crawford upset over an argument with a school Trustee, went up to the window and fired a pistol into a crowded school room. On June 24, the Washington Post reported their calculation that school shootings increased in 2021. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. September 24, 1937 Toledo, Ohio 12-year-old Robert Snyder shot and wounded his principal, June Mapes, in her office at Arlington public school when she declined his request to call a classmate. In 887 incidents (43.1%), the shooter was a current student at the school. December 1, 1997 West Paducah, Kentucky Three students killed, five wounded by Michael Carneal, 14, as they participated in a prayer circle at Heath High School. In the modern era, the rarity of these events has been steadily decreasing, which may be caused by the confusion that surrounds gun laws and regulations. March 9, 1873 Salisbury, Maryland After school as Miss Shockley was walking with four small children, she was approached by a Mr. Hall and shot. His wife, who had been a teacher at the school, had filed for divorce the week before. In July 1764, 10 Pennsylvania students and their teacher died in the very first school massacre. Their demand for $300 million dollars came to an abrupt end when Doris accidentally set off a bomb, killing herself and injuring 78 students and teachers. It was later discovered that he had killed his wife and mother prior to the attack. West Nickel Mines Shooting. A later investigation found other explosives under the south wing that failed to detonate. Foster's motivations wereunclear. What emerged was a portrait of a neglectful and unhealthy home. As of June 2022, there were 153 school shootings in total in the . It wasn't until 1966, though, that the next mass shooting or, at least, the next incident that would readily be recognized as a mass shooting today occurred. November 27, 1951 New York City, New York David Brooks, a 15-year-old student, was fatally shot as fellow-pupils looked on in a grade school. The Courier-Journal reported that Matt was upset with Butler because he had beaten his other brother, William, with 5 or 6 licks with a leather strap the previous day in school after William had been caught eating chestnuts in class. Here'sa look at someterrifying school shootings that happened before Columbine. Law enforcement arrived within minutes, but sadly, Lanza managed to kill twenty childrenthe majority of whom were six or sevenand six school administrators before killing himself. April 24, 1998 Edinboro, Pennsylvania One teacher, John Gillette, killed, two students wounded at a dance at James W. Parker Middle School. The first school shooting occurred On July 26, 1764, when a Lenape Indian shot and killed nine children and the school master of the Greencastle, Pennsylvania school (Galvin): as noted in Appendix A. They often result in high death tolls and unimaginable grief for those involved. Dixon calls it the "Enoch Brown Schoolhouse Massacre" (p. 223). The first school shooting, in fact, is older than America. On the morning of Nov. 30, 2021, a 15-year-old fatally shot four students and injured seven others at his high school in Oakland County, Michigan. In 2012, twenty childrenthe majority of whom were six or sevenwere killed during the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Now considered the deadliest school shooting, the Virginia Tech attack was once the deadliest mass shooting in the US in general but now ranks third. February 24, 1903 Inman, South Carolina Edward Foster, a 17-year-old student at Inman High school, was shot and fatally wounded by his teacher Reuben Pitts after he had jerked a rod from Pitts' hands to resist punishment. January 29, 1979 Grover Cleveland Elementary School Shootings, California, where a 16yr old girl opened fire with the rifle, a gift from her father, killing 2 and wounding 9. [4] [3], A child survivor recounted "Two old Indians and a young Indian rushed up to the door soon after the opening of the morning session. July 14, 1952 New York City, New York Bayard Peakes walked in to the offices of the American Physical Society at Columbia University and shot and killed secretary Eileen Fahey with a .22 caliber pistol. Boy. On July 26, 1764, four Delaware (Lenape) American Indian warriors entered a settlers' log schoolhouse in the Province of Pennsylvania in what is now Franklin County, near present Greencastle. November 13, 1949 Columbus, Ohio, Ohio State University freshman James Heer grabbed a .45 caliber handgun from the room of a Delta Tau Delta fraternity brother and shot and killed his fraternity brother Jack McKeown, 21, an Ohio State senior. The Wards scattered. The federal Safe School Initiative was formed after the 1999 Columbine High School massacre to help determine how to prevent future attacks. The majority of attacks during this time period by students on other students or teacher, usually involved stabbing with knives, or hitting with stones. As a result, national gun debates are being waged fiercely, an issue which deeply divides the American people. April 20, 1999 Littleton, Colorado 14 students (including shooters) and one teacher killed, 27 others wounded at Columbine High School in the nation's deadliest school shooting. . The two most notable U.S. school shootings in the early 1970s were the Jackson State killings in May 1970, where police opened fire on the campus of Jackson State University and the Kent State shootings also in May 1970 where the National Guard opened fire on the campus of Kent State University. Using this definition, the history of mass school shootings in the United States dates back to even before the U.S. officially became a country. September 14, 1934 Gill, Massachusetts. On April 20,1999, teenagers Eric Harris and Dylan Kleboldgunned downtheir classmates and teachers at Columbine High School in Littleton, CO, killing 15people and wounding 24. Dixon calls it the "Enoch Brown Schoolhouse Massacre" (p. 223). Even more startling was news that the week before the shooting, Spencer told classmates she was about to do something big to get on TV.. Still, as infamous as it was, Columbine wasn't the first, or the deadliest, school shooting in America. Immediately following the attack, the surviving students launched a push for stricter gun control. The shooting claimed the lives of Madisyn Baldwin, 17; Tate Myre, 16; Hana St. Juliana, 14; and Justin Shilling, 17, authorities said. Whether youre a lifelong resident of D.C. or you just moved here, weve got you covered. 2007-2008 (3 Deaths resulting from school shootings in the U.S.) May 6, 1940 South Pasadena, California. Police arrested Smith after the massacre. He then fled the school grounds and shot and wounded himself. More than a century earlier, on July 26, 1764, a teacher and 10 students were shot dead by four Lenape American Indians in Greencastle, Penn., in what is considered the earliest known U.S. mass. January 17, 1989 Cleveland School massacre of Stockton, California where 5 school children were killed and 29 wounded by a single gunman firing over 100 rounds into a schoolyard from an AK-47. Testimony also showed that Brenda and her father slept on the same mattress on the floor. A 15-year-old has killed four fellow students and injured seven others, including a teacher, in a high school shooting in the US state of Michigan. The history of mass shootings in America since Aug. 1, 1966, is a saga of armed men having to step over . Welcome to the History Forum! A day earlier, the warriors had encountered a pregnant woman, identified as Susan King Cunningham, on the road. As they approached the female academy, the girls fled the schoolyard into the school where the gang followed swearing and shooting, firing several rounds into the front door. Inside were the schoolmaster, Enoch Brown, and a number of young students. On December 14, 2012, Adam Lanza (20) rocked the nation when, after killing his mother, he drove to Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. The first school shooting occurred On July 26, 1764, when a Lenape Indian shot and killed nine children and the school master of the Greencastle, Pennsylvania school (Galvin): as noted in Appendix A. The Sandy Hook shooting was, at the time, the second-deadliest mass shooting in the United States after the 2007 shooting at . According to the U.S. Department of Education, in the 1998-1999 School Year, 3,523 Students (57% High School, 33% Junior High, 10% Elementary) were expelled for bringing a firearm to school. While the country struggles with how to prevent future shootings and bombings, it is important to never forget the ones that came before. February 12, 1909 San Francisco, California 10-year-old Dorothy Malakanoff was shot and killed by 49-year-old Demetri Tereaschinko as she arrived at her school in San Francisco. The ugly reason The Star-Spangled Banner didnt become our national anthem for a century, A century ago, Mississippis Senate voted to send all the states Black people to Africa, After World War II, tens of thousands of U.S. soldiers mutinied and won, Kyle Kuzma, Wizards start fast and dont look back in win over Raptors, Nationals relievers see benefit in tinkering with new pitches, Roger Goodell, Muriel Bowser discussed future of RFK site in December call. By subscribing to this BDG newsletter, you agree to our. He left behind a wife and infant daughter. Variations on the name in sources include the "Enoch Brown massacre" and the "Enoch Brown Indian massacre". Colt Todd, 14, was hiding in the woods when he shot the students as they stood in the parking lot, March 24, 1998 Jonesboro, Arkansas Four students and one teacher killed, ten others wounded outside as Westside Middle School emptied during a false fire alarm. That night, students started a bonfire. The previous "record holder" was the University of Texas massacre by Charles Whitman. What started out as an ordinary day at a south Florida high school ended in gunfire and death in Parkland, Florida - about 20 miles northwest of Fort Lauderd. All maps, graphics, flags, photos and original descriptions 2023 worldatlas.com, The Deadliest School Massacres In American History, The Deadliest Massacres In Canadian History. 2002-2003 (14 Deaths resulting from school shootings in the U.S.) Kentucky man seeking parole says he still hears voices that led to school shooting. "We thought there was . 2003-2004 (29 Deaths resulting from school shootings in the U.S.) The following few years would provide an abundance of conflicting reports. Ultimately, it seems that virtually no conversation about gun violence in the U.S. would be complete without mentioning the mass casualties that have occurred at the hands of mentally troubled and otherwise disturbed young people on school grounds. When cornered by police, he shot himself in a suicide attempt but survived and served 30 years in prison. A database of mass shootings compiled by Mother Jones going back to 1982 counts 123 such incidents in which at least three people were killed, not including the gunman. June 4, 1936 Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Wesley Crow shot and killed his Lehigh University English instructor, C. Wesley Phy. Regardless, an event such as this was unprecedented for the time and ultimately sparked the creation of various SWAT teams across the country. He asked a few short questions to confirm that the young girl was indeed the culprit. The early 1980s saw only a few multi-victim school shootings including; January 20, 1983 St. Louis County, Missouri the Parkway South Middle School, eighth grader brought a blue duffel bag containing two pistols, and a murder/suicide note that outlined his intention to kill the next person heard speaking ill of his older brother Ken. The bullet shattered the glass door and struck the left forearm of the secretary and the glass injured the Principal. The stabbing was reportedly sparked over a dispute about a basketball game. Four Lenape warriors. The first victim, was fatally shot in the stomach, and the second victim received a non-fatal gunshot wound to the abdomen. Not finding the teacher at the school, they continued to his house, where a gun battle rang out, leaving three dead. Oct. 1, 1997: A 16-year-old in Pearl, Miss., fatally shoots two students to death and wounds seven others after stabbing his mother to death. A security guard spotted the young man and did nothing. January 11, 1955 Swarthmore, Pennsylvania After some of his dorm mates urinated on his mattress Bob Bechtel, a 20-year-old student at Swarthmore College, returned to his dorm with a shotgun and used it to shoot and kill fellow student Holmes Strozier. Nicholas then injured Sam Marino. At his homestead following the attacks, a note was found saying: criminals are made, not born. The ruins of the school were quickly demolished. His .22 caliber rifle shot a 14-year-old boy in the head. [1], Historian Richard Middleton described the massacre[2] as "one of the most notorious incidents" of Pontiac's War. 1998-1999 (25 Homicides from school shootings in the U.S.) September 24, 1959: New York City, New York Twenty-seven men and boys and an arsenal were seized in the Bronx last night as the police headed off a gang war resulting from the fatal shooting of a teenager Monday at Morris High School. The newspapers reported that Allen was also Matt Wards best friend. He killed 32 people27 of which were studentsbefore shooting himself. All in all, they killed 12 students, one teacher, and themselves, and they wounded 21 others. June 12, 1976 California State University, Fullerton massacre, where the school's custodian opened fire with a semi-automatic rifle in the library on the California State University, Fullerton campus killing 7, and wounding 2. This tragedy sent shock waves through the nation as communities struggled to understand what could cause students to carry out such violence at school. Brown and nine children were killed. Published by Statista Research Department , Jan 4, 2023. The prosecution portrayed Butler as a kind man who had devoted his life to education. Subscribe for free weekly updates from this History site. November 19, 1969 Tomah, Wisconsin Principal Martin Mogensen is shot to death in his office by a 14-year-old boy armed with a 20 gauge shotgun. February 2, 1996 Moses Lake, Washington Two students and one teacher killed, one other wounded when 14-year-old Barry Loukaitis opened fire on his algebra class. 2008-2009 (10 Deaths resulting from school shootings in the U.S.) [4] Settlers could collect $134 for the scalp of an enemy American Indian male above the age of ten; the bounty for women was set at $50. He then ran out of the school building, grabbed a shotgun from one of the farmers and shot himself, before running away and leaping into a well where he finally drowned. There have been 71 mass shootings in the US this year - in just 6 weeks. Then he said, "no one will ever call my brother a pussy again" then committed suicide. List of battleships of the United States Navy. School shootings seemed like a new phenomenon, but they occurred for the majority of American history. On April 9, 1891,elderly James Foster fired his shotgun at a group of children playing in front of St. Mary's Parochial School in Newburgh, NY. BBC News, Uvalde Nineteen young children and two adults have died in a shooting at a primary school in south Texas. The U.S. ended 2021 with 693 mass shootings, per the Gun Violence Archive.The year before saw 611. February 8, 1968 Orangeburg, South Carolina In the days leading up to February 8, 1968, about 200 mostly student protesters gathered on the campus of South Carolina State University, located in the city of Orangeburg, to protest the segregation of the All Star Bowling Lane. Smith escaped and committed suicide in a barn near his home two hours later. Data on the mass shootings that have occurred so far this year can be found here.. He had a history of racist comments and supposedly had ties to white supremacists, often voicing his desire to shoot police and anti-fascist protestors. It was fun to watch the children that had red and blue ski jackets on, as they made perfect targets, she later said to a police investigator. March 11, 1908 Boston, Massachusetts Elizabeth Bailey Hardee was shot to death by Sarah Chamberlain Weed at the Laurens School, a finishing school in Boston. Following his death, an autopsy revealed a tumor in his brain. Contributing writer, Timeline (@Timeline_Now); reader and excavator of generally good things. The earliest known school shooting in the United States took place in 1764 and was known as the Pontiac Rebellion School Massacre; out of 13 children enrolled in the . In terms of motive, one theory suggests that Harris and Klebold were bullied and had committed the attack as an act of revenge; however, others speculate that they merely wanted to create a nightmare that would shock the country. On the other end was a reporter from the San Diego Tribune. And in 1764, during Pontiac's War in the colonial era, four Native Americans killed a schoolmaster and around 10 students in. The Post also told the story of a despondent Minneapolis . The massacre at Virginia Tech remains the worst school shooting in the United States. On July 26, 1764, four Delaware (Lenape) Native Americans entered a settlers' log schoolhouse in the Province of Pennsylvania and killed the schoolmaster, Enoch Brown, and ten students. The earliest known United States shooting to happen on school property was the Pontiac's Rebellion school massacre on July 26, 1764, where four Lenape American Indian entered the schoolhouse near present-day Greencastle, Pennsylvania, shot and killed schoolmaster Enoch Brown, and killed nine or ten children (reports vary). According to the teacher, Foster struck the pistol Pitts had drawn to defend himself, thus causing its discharge. An 18-year-old gunman got out of his car and opened fire at the school. Wards lawyers said he had acted in self-defense after Butler had struck him. After being removed as principal of South Pasadena Junior High School, Verlin Spencer shot six school officials, killing five, before attempting to commit suicide by shooting himself in the stomach. The Schoolmaster ran out, but she was dead instantly. The Enoch Brown School Massacre is one of the first documented school shootings in U.S. history. Whitman also murdered his wife and mother earlier that day before continuing on to the university not unlike Adam Lanza, who shot and killed his mother before opening fire at Sandy Hook Elementary in 2012. In 1,259 incidents, there was one shooter . Kuhns then shot himself in the chest in a failed suicide attempt. Cruz was charged with seventeen counts of premeditated murder. The shooter killed seven people at the school, including students, a teacher and a security guard, and injured five others. September 26, 1988 Greenwood, South Carolina In the cafeteria of the Oakland Elementary School 19 year-old James William Wilson Jr., shot and killed Shequilla Bradley, 8 and wounded eight other children with a 9-round .22 caliber pistol. Spencer continued to shoot at the students. In 2014, the school was demolished and replaced by a new one with a series of surveillance cameras. The defense told a different story: that Butler was a power-mad educator who subscribed to tenets of rigid order and abuse. Uvalde school shooting Essay: America's first modern mass shooting never really ended.