Kent State Shootings: Oral Histories

Eldon Fender Oral History

Kent State Shootings: Oral Histories

Eldon Fender Oral History

Transcription Show Transcript
Narrator Fender, Eldon
Narrator's Role Student at Kent State University in 1970
Date of Interview 2007-11-28
Description An undergraduate student majoring in education at Kent State University in 1970, Eldon Fender relates his memories of the days surrounding the shootings on campus. He describes the military presence in the city of Kent and on campus on Sunday, May 3 and also describes what he saw of the protest that took place on Route 59 that same day. He relates his eyewitness account of the shootings on Monday, May 4, particularly his observations of Jeffrey Miller, who he happened to be watching when Miller was shot. He also discusses completing his course work after the campus had been closed and what it was like to return to Kent State the following fall. The interview concludes on-site near Taylor Hall; Fender discusses his memories of where Jeffrey Miller was standing and where he fell.
Length of Interview 28:22 minutes
Places Discussed Kent (Ohio)
Time Period discussed 1970-1971
Subject(s) Armored vehicles, Military
College students--Ohio--Kent--Interviews
Crowds--Ohio--Kent
Demonstrations--Ohio--Kent
Draft registration
Helicopters
Kent State Shootings, Kent, Ohio, 1970
Miller, Jeffrey, d. 1970
Searchlights
Students--Ohio--Kent--Interviews
Tear gas munitions
Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Protest movements
Violence--Ohio--Kent
Repository Special Collections and Archives
Access Rights This digital object is owned by Kent State University and may be protected by U.S. Copyright law (Title 17, USC). Please include proper citation and credit for use of this item. Use in publications or productions is prohibited without written permission from Kent State University. Please contact the Department of Special Collections and Archives for more information.
Duplication Policy http://www.library.kent.edu/special-collections-and-archives/duplication-policy
Institution Kent State University
DPLA Rights Statement http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Disclaimer The content of oral history interviews, written narratives and commentaries is personal and interpretive in nature, relying on memories, experiences, perceptions, and opinions of individuals. They do not represent the policy, views or official history of Kent State University and the University makes no assertions about the veracity of statements made by individuals participating in the project. Users are urged to independently corroborate and further research the factual elements of these narratives especially in works of scholarship and journalism based in whole or in part upon the narratives shared in the May 4 Collection and the Kent State Shootings Oral History Project.
Provenance/Collection May 4 Collection