Free Republic

Edna Elizabeth Townsley, Mark Jerome Gabour, Marguerite M. Lamport, Thomas Frederick Eckman, Dr. Robert Hamilton Boyer, Karen John Griffith, Thomas Ray Karr, David Hubert Gunby, Thomas Aquinas Ashgton, Paul Bolton Sonntag, Claudia Marilyn Rutt, Harry Walchuk, Officer Billy Paul Speed, Roy Dell Schmidt and the unborn son of Claire Wilson. These are the names of the people who lost their lives when a shooter turned a simple day at the University of Texas into one of the darkest days in Texas history. This Saturday, August 1, marks the 60th anniversary of the UT Tower shooting, a day when 18 people...

Friday marks 59 years since the tragic University of Texas Tower shooting. On Aug. 1, 1966, a man by the name of Charles Whitman disguised himself as a janitor and carried bags of guns to the top of the UT Tower. Whitman set up on the observation deck of the tower where he then opened fire on the people below. “At approximately 11:53 a.m. on Aug. 1, 1966 I came within 4 feet of being shot by the tower sniper,” said Austinite Forrest Preece, who was a student during the shooting. “A gentleman standing that far to my right was...

After 46 years the Texas Tower sniper killings still raises important questions. On August 1, 1966 Charles Whitman a 25 year old former Marine and college student started his day by killing his mother and wife. He then packed up a variety of guns and a large quantity of ammunition and drove to the University of Texas Austin campus took the elevator to the top floor and began to shoot people as they walked by 28 floors below. When he was finished he had murdered 17 including an unborn child and injured another 32 innocent people. For 1 hour and...