May 4 Home

May 4 Collection Contents

May 4 Collection IndexThis is a link to another web site

Annotated Bibliographies

Exhibits/Chronologies

Oral History Project

History Day Help

May 4 FAQs 

  Question  Answer 
1

Why did the Ohio National Guard fire on the students? Whose fault were the shootings?

There are many possible answers to these questions. Historical analysis is interpretive in nature. Please refer to our annotated bibliography containing references to several books, articles, and Websites, many of which attempt to answer questions such as these.

Also, a paper written by Professors Jerry Lewis and Tom Hensley called "The May 4 Shootings at Kent State University: The Search for Historical Accuracy" provides answers to many common questions related to the May 4 shootings.
2

How old were the four students who were killed on May 4, 1970 and how did they die?

1) Allison Krause

Age: 19; Date of Birth: April 23, 1951; Pittsburgh, PA; Freshman, Honors College; chest wound

2) Jeffrey Glen Miller

Age: 20; Date of Birth: March 28, 1950; Plainview, Long Island (NY); Sophomore, psychology; head wound

3) Sandra Lee Scheuer


Age: 20; Date of Birth: August 11, 1949; Youngstown, OH; Junior, speech & hearing therapy; neck wound

4) William Knox Schroeder

Age: 19; Date of Birth: July 20, 1950; Lorain, OH; Sophomore, psychology; chest wound
3

Who were the nine students wounded?

1) Alan Canfora; Age: 21; Barberton, OH

2) John Cleary; Age: 19; Scotia, NY

3) Thomas Mark Grace; Age: 20; Syracuse, NY

4) Dean Kahler; Age: 20; Canton, OH

5) Joseph Lewis; Massillon, OH

6) Donald MacKenzie; Summit Station, PA

7) James Dennis Russell; Teaneck, NY

8) Robert Stamps; Age: 19; South Euclid, OH

9) Douglas Wrentmore; Age: 20; Northfield, OH

See also Kosnac, Erin and Melissa Hostetler. "Then I Was Shot." The Burr. (Spring 2000) for additional information on the injured students.
4

What was the effect of the shootings on enrollment?

These statistics reflect full time enrollment on the Kent campus only taken from Fall quarters or semesters, from 1970-1995.

1970: 21,370

1971: 20,794

1972: 19,755

1973: 18,559

1974: 18,458

1975: 20,060

1976: 20,374

1977: 19,353

1978: 18,331

1979: 17,796

1980: 18,938

1981: 19,660

1982: 19,615

1983: 19,687

1984: 20,066

1985: 20,173

1986: 20,830

1987: 21,503

1988: 22,753

1989: 22,727

1990: 24,434

1991: 24,524

1992: 24,099

1993: 22,700

1994: 21,413

1995: 20,972
5

What are the lyrics to the song "Ohio" by Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young?

We suggest that you search one of the many lyrics sites available on the Internet in order to locate the lyrics to this song.
6

Where can I find photos of the events of May 4, 1970 and Tent City?

Please refer to the Index of the May 4 Collection, under the "Photos" heading. There are links to our various photograph collections there.
7

Where can I find film footage of the events of May 4, 1970?

The May 4 Collection includes a number of documentaries on video and DVD that have been produced in relation to the Kent State shootings. Also included in our film holdings are University produced films of annual commemorations and other special events related to May 4. These items have been collected for on-site reference and research use, primarily. In most cases, Kent State University Special Collections and Archives does not own the copyright for documentaries, and is unable to make duplications of these items.

Our collection includes very little original footage. For assistance in locating such footage, please contact the Department.