Bath, Michigan
Encyclopedia
Bath is an unincorporated community in Bath Township
, Clinton County
in the U.S. state
of Michigan
. It is situated just north of exit 92 off Interstate 69
, about 5 miles (8 km) north of East Lansing
.
The community itself has no elected officials nor any separate governmental functions from the township and only serves to generally describe the central business district
of Bath Township centered at Webster and Clark roads. Bath is also the home of the 2007 Class C Boys Basketball State Champions, and, between 1982 and 2002, was the home of the sportsman TV series, Fred Trost's Practical Sportsman.
On May 18, 1927, in what became known as the Bath School disaster
, Andrew Kehoe
, a cash-strapped farmer and local school board member killed his wife, bombed every building on his farm before explosives he had secretly hidden under the school building located in the central business district went off. He later drove to the school
in a truck rigged with more explosives which he detonated next to the school superintendent. In all, Kehoe killed 44 people and himself, in the worst school violence in U.S. history. Only half of the 1000 pounds (453.6 kg) of explosives set under the school went off, probably greatly lowering the death toll. Thirty-eight out of the 314 students, three teachers, the superintendent, the postmaster and a local farmer assisting at the scene were killed. Most of the dead were students from second to sixth grade. Fifty-eight others were injured.
Bath Township, Michigan
Bath Charter Township is a charter township of Clinton County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the township population was 11,598, an increase from 7,541 in 2000...
, Clinton County
Clinton County, Michigan
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 64,753 people, 23,653 households, and 17,976 families residing in the county. The population density was 113 people per square mile . There were 24,630 housing units at an average density of 43 per square mile...
in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
. It is situated just north of exit 92 off Interstate 69
Interstate 69
Interstate 69 is an Interstate Highway in the United States. It exists in two parts: a completed highway from Indianapolis, Indiana, northeast to the Canadian border in Port Huron, Michigan, and a mostly proposed extension southwest to the Mexican border in Texas...
, about 5 miles (8 km) north of East Lansing
East Lansing, Michigan
East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located directly east of Lansing, Michigan, the state's capital. Most of the city is within Ingham County, though a small portion lies in Clinton County. The population was 48,579 at the time of the 2010 census, an increase from...
.
The community itself has no elected officials nor any separate governmental functions from the township and only serves to generally describe the central business district
Central business district
A central business district is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city. In North America this part of a city is commonly referred to as "downtown" or "city center"...
of Bath Township centered at Webster and Clark roads. Bath is also the home of the 2007 Class C Boys Basketball State Champions, and, between 1982 and 2002, was the home of the sportsman TV series, Fred Trost's Practical Sportsman.
On May 18, 1927, in what became known as the Bath School disaster
Bath School disaster
The Bath School disaster is the name given to three bombings in Bath Township, Michigan, on May 18, 1927, which killed 38 elementary school children, two teachers, four other adults and the bomber himself; at least 58 people were injured. Most of the victims were children in the second to sixth...
, Andrew Kehoe
Andrew Kehoe
Andrew Philip Kehoe was an American suicide bomber and murderer who perpetrated the Bath School Disaster on May 18, 1927.- Early life :...
, a cash-strapped farmer and local school board member killed his wife, bombed every building on his farm before explosives he had secretly hidden under the school building located in the central business district went off. He later drove to the school
Bath Consolidated School
Bath Community School was a school in Bath Township, Michigan, USA. It was the subject of the Bath School bombing on May 18, 1927, which killed 45 people and injured 58. Most of the victims were children in the second to sixth grades attending the school. This was the deadliest act of mass murder...
in a truck rigged with more explosives which he detonated next to the school superintendent. In all, Kehoe killed 44 people and himself, in the worst school violence in U.S. history. Only half of the 1000 pounds (453.6 kg) of explosives set under the school went off, probably greatly lowering the death toll. Thirty-eight out of the 314 students, three teachers, the superintendent, the postmaster and a local farmer assisting at the scene were killed. Most of the dead were students from second to sixth grade. Fifty-eight others were injured.