On May 4, 1970, members of the Ohio National Guard fired into a crowd of Kent State University demonstrators, killing four and wounding nine Kent State students. The impact of the shootings was dramatic. The event triggered a nationwide student strike that forced hundreds of colleges and universities to close.

The killing of four white students 50 years ago brought the anti-Vietnam protests global attention. The killing of black students at the same time went unnoticed.

Mathew McManus, one of eight Ohio National Guard members who were indicted and acquitted in the fatal Kent State shootings that transpired on May 4, 1970, can still recall what he saw and did that day as a sergeant for Company A.

A look at the evolving story of how Kent State has sometimes distanced itself from this defining moment for the university, while at other times focused on it and ultimately came to embracing it fully.

Census data for Kent from the 1970s through the early 2000s.

Official website of Kent State University.

“One thing that's definitely come out of this is an increase in patriotism,” said Jim Purcell as he filled out a sales slip in his downtown men's store. “You can spot the patriotic people showing their flags.”

A half century has passed since the May 4, 1970, shootings at Kent State University. The Commons area where the protests and shootings occurred are essentially still there, with memorials and signs added over the years.