Unknown
Parson Hall School House — March 28, 1891
Liberty, Mississippi
- double barrel shotgun
Crime
During a school exhibition concert, an unidentified man entered the premises and opened fire at both students and adults.
Victims
- unknown
Motive
unknown
Reputation
unknown
Gear
Parker Brothers Side-by-Side (12 Gauge)The Parker Brothers shotgun is a classic American double-barrel side-by-side shotgun that was widely used in the late 19th century. By 1891, Parker guns were considered some of the finest sporting shotguns in the United States.
Basic Specs
- Gauge: 10, 12, 16, 20 (12 gauge most common)
- Action: Break-action
- Barrels: Double (side-by-side)
- Capacity: 2 shells
- Barrel length: 26" – 32"
- Weight: ~7 – 9 lbs
- Stock: Walnut wood
- Frame: Steel receiver
- Safety: Tang-mounted manual safety
Why It Was Popular
- Extremely well-made and durable
- Excellent balance and handling
- Offered in many grades and finishes
- Trusted for hunting and sport shooting
Parker shotguns were civilian sporting firearms, not military weapons.
Upbringing
unknown
Aftermath
Aside from the limited records of this case, there is no arrest or trial that follows this event.
James Foster
St. Mary’s Parochial School — April 9, 1891
Newburgh, New York
- shotgun
Crime
One day in April of 1891, an elderly man decided to open fire on a playground.
Victims
- several injured, but none identified
Motive
There is no credible historical documentation that records Foster’s motive. Secondary summaries sometimes speculate that children may have mocked him, but that is not sourced from period newspapers or police reports.
Reputation
There is no information of any mental illness history or any local/familial accounts.
Gear
It was reported that Foster was only armed with a shotgun.
Upbringing
unknown
Aftermath
There is no record that this specific incident led to any formal change in law or gun regulation at the state or federal level. Gun laws in the 1890s U.S. were sparse and highly localized — there’s no documented legislative response tied to this event in the available historical summaries.
Herbert Jerome Dennison
Harlem High School — January 12, 1910
Harlem, New York
- automatic pistol
Crime
A man described as a "black, bearded maniac" entered the school premises and opened fire, killing one student and critically wounding several others.
Victims
- Robert Lomas, 6 — shot in the heart and killed instantly.
- Arthur Shively, 6 — critically wounded, survived but no further details are available about his recovery
- others were wounded, but no names were reported
Motive
He was declared insane and committed to Matteawan State Hospital.
Reputation
Contemporary reports described him as mentally ill; he was later declared insane and committed to a state hospital (Matteawan State Hospital) rather than simply tried as a sane defendant.
Gear
There are no surviving detailed specifications (brand, caliber, or model) in the sources that have been digitized. Early 20th-century newspapers often just described guns generally as “automatic pistols” without more technical detail.
Upbringing
unknown
Aftermath
There is no record that Dennison’s shooting prompted new laws or gun regulations in New York City or state level. Early 20th-century firearm laws were very limited, and school shootings were rare enough that policy usually didn’t change in response to single incidents.
James L. Hill
West Virginia Schools for the Colored Deaf and Blind — April 13, 1934
Romney, West Virginia
- unknown firearm
Crime
After delivering a speech at a segregated school for deaf and blind black folks, superintendant James L. Hill (a white man) opened fire on the crowd.
Victims
- names unknown, due to how detailed reporting wasn’t preserved in widely accessible archives
Motive
Exact motives for Hill’s actions are not clearly documented in the sources that have been digitized and there is no surviving documentation.
Reputation
His reputation arises solely from this violent act in 1934 — he was the superintendent of the school at the time of the shooting. There isn’t a broader public record of his life or work outside this tragedy in the available historical sources.
Gear
It is only known that he was armed with a gun, but not what kind.
Upbringing
Any information about Hill (birthdate, upbringing, occupation, mental health history) aren’t broadly preserved in common historical databases.
Aftermath
Local newspapers such as the Charleston Gazette and Bluefield Daily Telegraph reported the shooting. Coverage focused on the shock of a school attack, the death of the teacher, and Hill’s suicide. Despite Hill being white, Reports did not explore racial or disability issues deeply; the school being for Black and disabled students was mentioned but largely as a secondary fact.
No documented new laws were passed in West Virginia or federally as a direct result of this shooting. 1930s America had limited public discourse on school shootings; most incidents were treated as isolated, individual acts. 1930s America had limited public discourse on school shootings; most incidents were treated as isolated, individual acts. The incident appears in historical compilations of early U.S. school shootings, which researchers cite to show the long-standing vulnerability of schools.
Verlin Spencer
South Pasadena Unified School District Headquarters
& South Pasadena Junior High School
— May 6, 1940
Pasadena, California
- .22-caliber Colt Woodsman semiautomatic pistol
Crime
Spencer opened fire on multiple school staff members after he was suspended from his job as a junior high school principal and called to a meeting to discuss his dismissal. He attempted suicide, but failed and was arrested.
Victims
- George C. Bush — 62 Superintendent of the South Pasadena City Schools
- John E. Alman — 50 Principal of South Pasadena High School
- Will R. Speer — 52 School District Business Manager
- Ruth Barnett Sturgeon — 45 art teacher (fatally wounded, died three days later)
- Verner V. Vanderlip — 35 mechanical arts teacher
- Dorothea Talbert — school board secretary, shot in the shoulder and permanently paralyzed
- Two students were reportedly wounded but survived.
Motive
Suspension from his job resulted in Spencer wanting to seek revenge.
Reputation
Initially, colleagues described him as intelligent and well-qualified, but his behavior became more erratic after promotion, leading to workplace tensions. Spencer’s coworkers described him as a perfectionist with a volatile temperament. Tensions grew after he was placed on an involuntary leave of absence in 1939 due to nervous breakdowns and severe headaches. By 1940, after his suspension, he became fixated on a meeting to discuss his job status — and instead brought his gun.
He suffered from chronic headaches and apparently began taking high doses of bromide (a then-common sedative) that later was shown to have had a significant effect on his mental state at the time of the shootings. He was reported to be an avid gun enthusiast, often carrying a pistol in his car and practicing shooting regularly.
Gear
Colt Woodsman (.22 LR)The Colt Woodsman is a classic American .22-caliber semi-automatic pistol introduced in 1915. It was mainly used for target shooting, training, and small-game hunting.
Basic Specs
- Caliber: .22 Long Rifle
- Action: Semi-automatic (blowback)
- Magazine: 10 rounds
- Barrel length: 4.5" – 6.6"
- Weight: ~33 oz (unloaded)
- Frame: Steel
- Sights: Fixed or adjustable
- Safety: Manual thumb safety
Why It Was Popular
- Very accurate
- Low recoil
- Reliable
- Great for beginners
The Woodsman was a civilian target pistol, not a military weapon.
Upbringing
His parents divorced at an unspecified time when he was young. There aren’t extensive records of his childhood or early schooling publicly available online — typical for someone from that era who wasn’t famous until a criminal act — but we do have some details about his education and adult life that shed light on his background. He graduated from Colorado State Teachers College in Greeley in 1925, earning a master’s degree from Stanford University in 1932.
Spencer worked for several years in the Ventura, California school district and moved to South Pasadena in 1933 with his wife, Mildred “Polly” Pollock, whom he married in 1931.
Aftermath
Spencer plead guilty to 5 counts of first-degree murder and 1 count of attempted murder. He was sentenced to 5 consecutive life sentences. He served 30 years in prison and was paroled, going to live in Hawaii where he lived quietly and helped former inmates reintegrate. He died at age 88.
Major papers like the Los Angeles Times and New York Times covered it extensively. What shocked people the most was that he was the school's principal. He targeted colleagues, not random students. Narratives pushed by the media focused on his mental state, but not so much about gun access. This case did, however, become a reference point whenever school violence was discussed for decades afterward.
Schools shut down temporarily, memorials were held, and teachers feared going to work. There was increased security presence on school grounds and tightened employee evaluations, but there was no public safety infrastructure like today.