University of Texas tower shooting

The University of Texas tower shooting was a school shooting in the United States. It happened on August 1, 1966. It took place in Austin, Texas at University of Texas at Austin.

University of Texas Tower shooting
Main building of the University of Texas
Location	University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, U.S.
Date	August 1, 1966 (1966-08-01) Stabbing: c. 12:15 a.m. – 3:00 a.m. Shooting: 11:48 a.m. – 1:24 p.m. (UTC-06:00)
Attack type	School shooting, mass shooting, familicide, matricide, uxoricide, mass murder, stabbing
Weapons	Remington 700 ADL (6mm) Universal M1 carbine Remington Model 141 (.35-caliber) Sears model 60 Semi-automatic shotgun (12 gauge) S&W Model 19 (.357 Magnum) Luger P08 (9mm) Galesi-Brescia (.25 ACP) Knife
Deaths	18 (including Whitman and an unborn child)
Injured	31
Perpetrator	Charles Whitman

Sixteen people were killed in the incident. A 17th victim succumbed to his injuries in 2001.

Charles Whitman was the mass murderer. It has been suggested that Whitman's violent impulses, with which he struggled for years, were caused by a tumor on his brain. Whitman had killed his wife and his mother hours earlier.

After the shootings, the observation deck was closed. The many bullet holes were repaired. The tower was closed again in 1975 after four suicides. It reopened in 1999 after security features were put up.