Kent State Shootings: Oral Histories

John S. Whyde Oral History

Kent State Shootings: Oral Histories

John S. Whyde Oral History

Item Information

Transcription	Show Transcript Print Transcript Back John S. Whyde, Oral History Recorded: May 4, 1995 Interviewed by Connie Sickels Transcribed by Lisa Whalen My name is John Whyde. I've been a Kent resident since 1965. I work in Audiovisual Services in the library at Kent State University. On May 4th, 1970, I was at work as a teacher at Crestwood Schools, in Mantua. And had a small son and wife -- a pregnant wife at home, when I heard of the killings here at the University. And we of course, turned on the news and were listening to the -- the local station, and found out that the city was supposedly being sealed off. And I realized that I needed to get home to my family. So, I remember that I went to my principal, and asked him for a note which would get me into the city, if it were really sealed off. Then I came home back ways, so that I entered Kent from North River Road in Stow. And, if I remember correctly, the road was blocked at the corner of Marsh Road and North River Road. And they did inspect my car: looked in the back seat, and I did need to present my note to get back into -- into the city. I had to promise that I wouldn't go near the University. I lived in the very west corner of Kent. I actually lived the first street inside of Kent, from the road I was on. So, I promised that I would go straight home and not go anywhere else. It was scary at the time, to be -- to have to have a note to get to your own home. I remember going through -- driving through Kent on May 3rd. And being upset that the city was being occupied, and that there were tanks in the city. It -- it just seemed too militaristic to me at the time. I also remember I wasn't taking classes at the time, but for some reason I came to the library, which was then Rockwell Hall, on the evening of May 3rd. And I don't remember that I feared anything, or felt that anything really bad was going to happen, at that point. So I was totally shocked, as was everybody else, on May 4th. I remember not being able to sleep nights after that, because of the helicopters and thier lights. Helicoptors went right over our house all the time -- and the lights. It was very -- a very disturbing time. ×
Narrator	Whyde, John S.
Narrator's Role	Resident of Kent, Ohio, in 1970
Date of Interview	1995-05-04
Description	A Kent resident and a teacher in the Crestwood Schools (Mantua, Ohio) in 1970, John S. Whyde discusses his memories from the time of the May 4, 1970, shootings at Kent State University. He describes the military presence in the City of Kent, including tanks driving around town and helicopters with searchlights going over his home. He also describes his experiences driving home to Kent after work on the day of the shootings: he was stopped at a police roadblock and his car was searched.
Length of Interview	3:30 minutes
Places Discussed	Kent (Ohio)
Time Period discussed	May 3-4, 1970
Subject(s)	Armored vehicles, Military Community members--Ohio--Kent--Interviews Helicopters Kent State Shootings, Kent, Ohio, 1970 Ohio. Army National Guard Roadblocks (Police methods) Teachers--Ohio--Mantua--Interviews
Repository	Special Collections and Archives
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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