The UT Tower Shooting, 50 Years Later

texasstandard.org ^ | 7/22/2016 | Laura Rice

[Elderberry]

The Texas Standard spoke to nearly 100 survivors of the UT Tower shooting. Next week, you can hear their stories.

Dallas. Baton Rouge. Nice. Orlando. It seems like we can’t go more than a few days without a violent event somewhere in the world. While it’s true these attacks are happening for very different and very complicated reasons – they keep happening. It’s almost hard to remember a time when they didn’t.

But when a shooter took aim at the University of Texas of Austin campus from the top of the UT tower on August 1, 1966, no one had any reference point for such an attack. The Texas Standard spoke to people who were there that day as part of a documentary that will air Monday.

Summer school was in session. While the campus wasn’t as full as it would be in the fall or spring, it was still teeming with life.

Judy Brooks had come to participate in a summer orientation right before her freshman year.

Gary Gibbs worked part time at what was then Capital National Bank. “You had to carry a full load so your draft board wouldn’t come after you for the Army while you were in school,” Gibbs says. “I was able to provide enough hours a year by working part time, but I would also go to both sessions of summer school.”

Linda Adkins was working for the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health at the time, which was located on the 24th floor of the tower.

Cheryl Dickerson was walking around campus. “I struck up a conversation with the ticket agent and he asked me if I had ever seen the campus and I said ‘No,’ I had not,” she says. “He asked me if he could give me a tour of the campus the next morning and I said ‘Sure.’ And the tower was the first stop on the tour.”

Just a little before noon, a man began shooting from the tower at the campus below. Many people heard the sounds, but not many realized they were gunshots.

“All of a sudden I heard this noise that sounded like – back then we had Coke bottles – so it sounded like cases of Coke bottles being placed on top of each other,” Jeanette Lawrence says.

“I kept hearing what sounded like lumber dropping,” Bob Matjeka says. “It was like a clapping sound.”

“Just by chance, that was the day that Scholz’s Beer Garten was going to have some sort of celebration,” Sid Lawrence says. “I don’t remember what they were celebrating, but we commented – a couple of the students – to each other,’Oh, Scholz’s is starting a little early.’”

But a few people recognized the sounds of the shots, including then associate professor Michael Hall. He called 911 to report the gunfire.

“Hello, this is Michael Hall at the History Department from the university campus,” he said in the 9-1-1 recording. “There has just been a gunshot on the main plaza outside the main building and at least one person wounded.”

Hall says it was his war experience that helped put the sounds in context.

“I had been in World War II, and although that ended in 1945, I was still quite conscious of airplanes flying close by overhead, of the possibility of explosions,” he says.

Besides war experiences, few had any context for a mass shooting like this.

“That was a foreign concept back then. People didn’t shoot each other like now,” Dale Dorsey says.

“And it was just so abnormal,” Jan Klinck says.

“There’s no reference point. There’s no, ‘Oh this is like such and such,’” Sue Wiseman says. “There’s just nothing there.”

It came from out of the blue.

“Out of the Blue: 50 Years After the UT Tower Shooting” is Texas Standard’s oral history on the anniversary of the first public mass shooting of its kind. We’ll bring you these stories and many more in a special edition of our show Monday.

[22202NOVA]

I’m pretty sure no one called 911 in 1966, since the system didn’t get approved until 1968. Then again, maybe they were on hold for a really long time.

[abb]

I recall watching it on TV at age 16 in the new house that Mamma and Daddy had built. We had only moved in a couple of months before.

[Harold Shea]

I rember the made for TV movie back then...chilling.
The team that took him out..brave men.

[Aarchaeus]

News broadcasters told us that several private citizens, i.e., not law enforcement officers, stopped their cars, got their hunting rifles out and provided some of the covering fire for the police.

[Aarchaeus]

News broadcasters told us that several private citizens, i.e., not law enforcement officers, stopped their cars, got their hunting rifles out and provided some of the covering fire for the police.

[yarddog]

I took a criminology class and there was an entire chapter devoted to Whitman.

One thing I recall is Whitman left a message that he wanted to have an autopsy done to see if he had a brain tumor. They did find one and then had the audacity to say it did not contribute to his insanity, if that is what you call it.

In his insane way he used what was probably as deadly a weapon as he could have chosen for his particular job. It was a .264 Winchester Magnum.

I read an article by the Hispanic cop who most credit with taking him out. He said that Texas students got their own guns out of their pickups and began shooting back.

He stated categorically that Whitman did not kill any more as he was kept down by the students fire. The media tried to make the armed students out as stupid yahoos.

[Mears]

It was live on TV-—I had the black and white TV on and it was eerie to hear the shots.

.

[DUMBGRUNT]

IIRC more than a few armed civilians returned fire!

Forcing Whitman out of cover for each shot.

[T-Bird45]

Glad to see I wasn’t the only one catching the 911 anomaly. Guess all it proves is that I’m old...but not you, of course.

[Patriot Babe]

My thoughts the same. Being here in Northern California I believe 911 came around the late 70’s or early 80’s. I doubt anyone called 911 back then. All I remember was dialing the police station.

I wonder if this is one of those Mandela’s Effect =)

[stockpirate]

The police only had .38s and shotguns and couldn’t advance on the tpwer. A prof. at the school took his hunting rifle from his truck and returned fire making the shooter hide, this allowing the police to gain entrence to the. Building and kill him

[SomeCallMeTim]

Ping

[Elderberry]

Now the professor would be arrested for having a firearm on school grounds.

[montag813]

HARTMAN: Do any of you people know who Charles Whitman was? None of you dumbasses knows? Charles Whitman killed twelve people from a twenty-eight-storey observation tower at the University of Texas from distances up to four hundred yards. ....
Do any of you people know where these individuals learned to shoot? Private Joker?

JOKER: Sir, in the Marines, sir!

HARTMAN: In the Marines! Outstanding! Those individuals showed what one motivated marine and his rifle can do! And before you ladies leave my island, you will be able to do the same thing!

[dragnet2]

Try to imagine that today.

[al baby]

I saw it too It was Brian Williams first big story

[Farmer Dean]

Whitman used a Remington 700 in 6mm caliber.

[FoxInSocks]

I was going to say that. Accuracy in reporting? Nah . . .

[dfwgator]

From that book suppository building, sir!