Kent in Portage County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
The May 4, 1970, Kent State Shootings Site
Photographed by Ian Lefkowitz, May 23, 2025
1. The May 4, 1970, Kent State Shootings Site Marker
The May 4, 1970, Kent State Shootings Site Has Been Designated a National Historic Landmark
The May 4, 1970, Kent State University Shootings Site possesses national significance as a place to understand the student protest movement against the Vietnam War. A volley fired by Ohio National Guard during a protest on the campus took the lives of Allison Krause, Jeffrey Miller, Sandra Scheuer and William Schroeder, with nine other Kent State students sustaining gunshot wounds. Twenty years later in May 1990 the Governor of Ohio lamented how a distant war in the name of democracy had invaded so close to home as to threaten democracy. The deaths of four Kent State students are testament to the importance of democratic dialogue over armed conflict.
2016
National Park Service
United States Department of the Interior
Erected 2016 by United States Department of the Interior.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Notable Events • Peace • War, Vietnam. In addition, it is included in the National Historic Landmarks series list. A significant historical date for this entry is May 4, 1970.
Location. 41° 9.008′ N,
this page online
Regionally, this marker is in Greater Cleveland and in the Western Reserve. It is also in the American Midwest. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, and the Northwest Territory.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Site of the Shooting of Kent State Students May 4, 1970 (here, next to this marker); Further Tragedy Averted (within shouting distance of this marker); Solar Totem #1 (within shouting distance of this marker); The Day the War Came Home (within shouting distance of this marker); May 4 National Historic Landmark Site (within shouting distance of this marker); Practice Field: End of the Advance / Thirteen Seconds (within shouting distance
Photographed by Ian Lefkowitz, May 23, 2025
2. National Historic Landmark
The National Historic Landmark marker is located on Taylor Hall, just beneath the National Register of Historic Places marker. It was added subsequent to the older marker, in 2016, as the area was named a National Historic Site.
Also see . . . National Historic Landmark Site Tour.
This outdoor trail is self-guided and available any time the campus grounds are open. It includes seven exhibit panels that take visitors through the events of May 4, 1970. Along the trail that goes around The Commons and Taylor Hall, you will see campus landmarks like the Victory Bell, May 4 Memorial, Solar Totem #1 sculpture, the Pagoda, wounded student markers, and fallen student spaces.(Submitted on June 10, 2025, by Ian Lefkowitz of New York, New York.)
Photographed by Ian Lefkowitz, May 23, 2025
3. Taylor Hall
Taylor Hall sits at the top of the Commons, part of the National Historic Landmark site.
Photographed by Ian Lefkowitz, May 23, 2025
4. Kent State Shootings Memorial
This peace memorial is part of the National Historic Landmark site.
Photographed by Ian Lefkowitz, May 23, 2025
5. Solar Totem #1
The Solar Totem sculpture designed by Akron artist Don Drumm is one of the structures located within the National Historic Landmark site.
Photographed by Craig Doda, May 10, 2026
6. The May 4, 1970, Kent State Shootings Site Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on May 20, 2026. It was originally submitted on June 10, 2025, by Ian Lefkowitz of New York, New York. This page has been viewed 211 times since then and 62 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on June 10, 2025, by Ian Lefkowitz of New York, New York. 6. submitted on May 15, 2026, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.
