Collection on May 6, 1970 ROTC Building fire,
Abstract
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- Collection on May 6, 1970 ROTC Building fire,
- Date
- May 1970 (inclusive)
- Extent
- 0.18 cubic feet (1 box)
- Subjects
- Demonstrations -- Kentucky -- Lexington.
- Vietnam War, 1961-1975 -- Protest movements.
- United States. Army. Reserve Officers' Training Corps.
- University of Kentucky.
- University of Kentucky -- Buildings -- Fire.
- Arrangement
- This collection is arranged at the item level according to slide number.
- Repository
- University of Kentucky
Collection Overview
- Biography / History
- UK Public Relations is responsible for gathering and disseminating information about the University of Kentucky and the faculty, staff and students. As part of its responsibilities, the PR staff identifies and develops news and feature stories about these activities. They also distribute news releases and other formal communications.
- In short, UK Public Relations supports the teaching, research and public service functions and administrative needs of the institution by preparing and distributing news releases and assisting media representatives in their news-gathering efforts.
- Source: UK Public Relations Department website http://w2.uky.edu/UKPR/
- The fire that destroyed the ROTC annex building on May 6, 1970 took place after two days of tension and protest following the killings of four Kent State University students by National Guardsmen on May 4 of that same year, and President Nixon's announcement of the decision to invade Cambodia. Earlier in the day on May 6, students had formed a procession to protest the Kent State killings and congregated around Buell Armory, where ROTC was headquartered. Police were already stationed at the armory, and the riot squad was called in around 10 PM as 40-45 state troopers also joined the scene.
- After some confrontation, the scene moved to the old Air Force ROTC building which stood on the corner of Euclid and what is now South Martin Luther King Boulevard. Nearly 100 state troopers, the city riot squad, city police, and campus police were guarding the building when a group numbering an estimated 500 or more students gathered in front. The fire began suddenly and unexpectedly in the back of the building and was believed to have been started by a Molotov cocktail. The fire destroyed the ROTC building and damaged at least three rooms on the third floor of Blazer Hall.
- Although several arrests were made, and student Sue Ann Salmon was charged with arson, no one was ever convicted of starting the fire and the charges on Salmon were dropped due to insufficient evidence.
- Scope and Content
- The Collection on May 6, 1970 ROTC Building fireconsists of 15 color transparencies created by the University of Kentucky Public Relations Department in the days following the fire.
- The images show the damage to the ROTC building from several different perspectives, as well as the resulting damage to the Blazer Hall dormitory across the street.
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Questions? Contact SCRC via our Contact Form.
Table of Contents
You may come across language in UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center collections and online resources that you find harmful or offensive. SCRC collects materials from different cultures and time periods to preserve and make available the historical record. These materials document the time period when they were created and the view of their creator. As a result, some may demonstrate racist and offensive views that do not reflect the values of UK Libraries.
If you find description with problematic language that you think SCRC should review, please contact us at SCRC@uky.edu.
UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center is open Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 4:00pm. Appointments are encouraged but not required. Schedule an appointment here.
Researchers must have an SCRC Researcher Account to request materials. View account set-up and use instructions here.
Questions? Contact SCRC via our Contact Form.
Requests
No items have been requested.
You may come across language in UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center collections and online resources that you find harmful or offensive. SCRC collects materials from different cultures and time periods to preserve and make available the historical record. These materials document the time period when they were created and the view of their creator. As a result, some may demonstrate racist and offensive views that do not reflect the values of UK Libraries.
If you find description with problematic language that you think SCRC should review, please contact us at SCRC@uky.edu.
