Bombings are a tragedy that has unfortunately taken place multiple times throughout our nation's history. The Boston Marathon bombing in 2013, the World Trade Center in 1993, and the Oklahoma City Bombing in 1995 killed over 168 people and injured 500 just to name a few.

John Ashcroft Attends Dedication Of New Federal Building In Oklahoma City
Getty Images
loading...
97.9 WGRD logo
Get our free mobile app

However, the second-largest bombing in American history and the largest school disaster is one that is rarely discussed. Even within the state of Michigan, many people aren't aware of the Bath Consolidated School Bombing in Bath, Michigan that took the lives of 45 people, 38 of which were children. 

⬇️FBI'S MOST WANTED IN MICHIGAN (2025)⬇️

Bath Consolidated School
Bath Consolidated School
loading...

May 18th, 1927

When I first learned about this bombing, I was initially very confused because Bath seems like such a peculiar place for a disaster of this magnitude to take place. Bath Township is located just outside of Lansing with a population of 13,430 (in 2024). Back in 1927, the town only had a population of 300 people. So why did Kehoe take such drastic action in such a small town? Revenge.

READ MORE: Shipwreck Mystery Solved: WW2 Era Ship Found In Lake Superior | 

Andrew Kehoe was a former school board member who was angry for three reasons.

  1. The township of Bath had just established its first 1-12 school, large enough for all the kids in the area to come. However, the cost of this new building fell on the landowners, who experienced higher taxes. This was bad news for Kehoe, who was already at risk of losing his farm to foreclosure.
  2. Kehoe, the school board treasurer, lost his local reelection to be Bath Township Clerk.
  3. His wife's health was failing.
Bath School Museum (1927)
Bath School Museum (1927)
loading...

Seeking revenge on the town, Koehe began packing the school that he viewed as the source of his problems with nearly 600 pounds of dynamite over several months. On May 18th, 1927 an alarm clock went off at 9:45 a.m.blowing up the entire North Wing of the building, killing two teachers and 38 children. Explosions on the South Wing malfunctioned.

From left to right: Blanche Elizabeth Harte (5th grade teacher), Emory E. Huck (Superintendent), Hazel Iva Weatherby (3rd & 4th Grade teacher), all former staff members of Bath Consolidated School.
From left to right: Blanche Elizabeth Harte (5th-grade teacher), Emory E. Huyck (Superintendent), Hazel Iva Weatherby (3rd & 4th-grade teacher), all former staff members of Bath Consolidated School.
loading...

Kehoe enacted a personal vendetta against Superintendent Huyck by blowing up his truck next to Huyck, killing himself, Huyck, and four others. Preceding the explosion, Kehoe lit his farm on fire and murdered his wife.

Above is a vivid retelling of the story from Susan Hagerman, daughter of a bombing survivor and Bath School Museum President. The content is chilling. You can read a more in-depth telling of this from Click on Detroit and the book Bath Massacre: America's First School Bombing by Arnie Bernstein.

FBI's Most Wanted in Michigan 2025

Gallery Credit: FBI.gov and Canva

Grand Rapids Public Museum Riverfront Expansion & Discoveries

Throughout the building of Grand Rapids Public Museum's massive new riverfront expansion, relics from Grand Rapids' past have been found. All photos and renderings are provided by the Grand Rapids Public Museum.

Gallery Credit: Tommy McNeill

Detroit's James Scott Mansion: Then and Now

This iconic mansion in Detroit sat crumbling since the 1980s before being restored in 2018.

Gallery Credit: Tommy McNeill

More From 97.9 WGRD