A Midwestern Tragedy

In 1976, a young man entered Wichita’s downtown Holiday Inn—Kansas’s tallest building at the time. He rode the elevator to the top, carrying two rifles and a lunch pail packed with bullets. For the next 11 minutes, the man fired dozens of shots into the crowd below. Wounding eight. Killing three. Sparing no one.

Understanding the Era

1976: America stood at the crossroads of a rocky path years in the making.

In 1973, the beleaguered nation finally withdrew its troops from the Vietnam War. In 1974, a disgraced President Nixon resigned the presidency to avoid criminal conviction. And in 1975, a severe recession dragged on with high inflation, low economic growth, and persistent unemployment.

As a result, many Americans felt weary and pessimistic heading into 1976—our nation’s Bicentennial. Coast to coast, the country needed something to celebrate. Even at its very center.

As One Century Ends, Another Begins

Wichita’s Second Century Takes Shape

In the 1970s, Wichita, Kansas still felt like a small town. But the city had large ambitions. The decade didn’t just see America commemorate its 200th birthday: 1970 marked Wichita’s Centennial, the 100-year anniversary of the city’s incorporation.

In 1969, anticipating the milestone, Wichita built a new performing arts and convention center in the heart of downtown. Officials named this center “Century II,” heralding the city’s next 100 years and centering its sense of civic pride.

A High Rise for Rising Spirits

To welcome visitors, a brand-new Holiday Inn opened across the street from Century II.

Standing at over 260 feet tall, the 26-story hotel became Kansas’s tallest building at the time. New shops, restaurants, and entertainment venues quickly sprang up in the surrounding area, increasing pedestrian and vehicular traffic. As the development grew, the city teemed with excitement for its future.

August 11, 1976

A Drizzly Afternoon Turns Deadly

Wednesday, August 11th, 1976: A drizzly day in Wichita.

Shortly before 3:00 p.m., a Dodge Coronet pulled into the Holiday Inn’s north parking lot. Its driver—a pudgy, freckled young man in thick glasses and an even thicker mop of reddish-brown hair—reached for a crumpled, paper sack on the passenger seat. The sack contained one dozen boxes of recently purchased ammunition.

The young man tore open the box lids and stacked the ammunition into a silver lunch pail, filling it to the brim. The man slid two rifles—a .22 magnum and a .30-30 Savage—into a satchel and slung it over his shoulder. Then, he strode toward the hotel’s entrance at a measured pace.

Raining Bullets

The man crouched and loaded his weapons.

He rested the .30-30 on the balcony’s ledge and peered through the scope. Then, he drew in a breath and squeezed the trigger before exhaling.

Crack!

The sniper chose his targets at random, tracking any movement that caught his eye. Shots echoed in the gorge of downtown buildings. Screams filled the air. And bullets replaced droplets as the sniper rained down terror into the heart of downtown Wichita.

The Victims

Larry Ade worked as an assistant cashier at the Century Plaza building’s Mid-Continent Investments. At 2:45, he left the office to copy some documents at a nearby print shop.
Larry stood at the southwest corner of Douglas and Main. As he waited for the light to change, Larry heard a loud crack and felt something fly by his shoulder…
Glass workers Ray Merritt and Wally Hensley finished installing new windows on the second-story landing of the Holiday Inn Plaza’s Page Court. As the men cleaned up their worksite, they heard gunshots.
Crack!
Ray thought robbers held up the First National Bank next door. He and Wally leaned over the edge but saw nothing. Then, a shot landed at their feet, spraying gravel upward…
Teenager Janice Goodwin and her friends bought tickets to the upcoming Dr. Hook concert at Century II. On their way back to the car, Janice heard a loud crack overhead. Right away, she registered the sound as a gunshot…
Forrest Hudlin waited at Century II’s driveway for a ride from his ex-wife, Virginia. Just after she pulled up and Forrest got inside the car, a bullet shattered its left rear side window. Broken glass sprayed everywhere. Shards sliced into the car seat, the footwell, and Forrest’s legs…
Joe Goulart, a successful freelance photojournalist, prided himself on being the first on site at crime scenes. So, when his police scanner reported an active shooter at the Holiday Inn Plaza, Joe ran from his living room to his Dodge Dart without even putting on his shoes, rushing to Century II Plaza…
Mark Falen, a young loan officer, left his office building to visit a project site. His coworker and friend, Doug Starkweather, accompanied him. The two men drove east on Douglas when they heard a crack and a thud…
Teenage sisters Penny and Denise Guseman worked part-time gardening jobs at the city courthouse. When the girls finished their work, they drove their Ford Pinto to Century II. The sisters wanted to relax and enjoy some downtime in the convention center’s plaza. As they drove down Century Drive, Penny heard a loud crack…
Steven Morgan, a passerby, noticed the trouble on Page Court’s roof and climbed up the ladder to help. As Steven reached Wally Hensley, more shots rained down. Bullets shattered a window, and glass fragments flew in every direction. Including Steven’s…
Chris Hoy worked as a pipefitter for a local air conditioning company. That afternoon, he loaded a truck with building materials for the new Kansas Coliseum, currently under construction. Chris drove the company’s pickup truck east on Douglas as the shots rained down. The truck idled at the Douglas and Water stoplight when he heard what he thought was an explosion…

Police on the Scene

Within minutes of the first shots fired, police received an emergency dispatch:

“Active shooter at the Holiday Inn Plaza!”

Sirens howled on his cruiser as Lieutenant Mike Hill raced to the hotel. When he arrived on the scene, rifle shots cracked above him. Down below, bullets bit into asphalt, buildings, passing cars, and anyone unlucky enough to enter the shooter’s crosshairs.

Hill craned his neck and spotted a glint from the southeast penthouse balcony: the rifle’s scope catching the midday sun. As bullets pelted the ground, officers sought cover behind cars, concrete pillars, brick walls, and metal awnings. Hill knew they had to act fast to prevent mass casualties. In between shots, he and the officers risked their lives climbing for better vantage points and returning suppressive fire.

But the sniper remained undeterred.