The Bath School Massacre: America's Forgotten Tragedy
04/14/25 • 54 min
The Bath School Massacre of 1927 stands as the deadliest school attack in US history, yet remains largely forgotten in American memory. Andrew Kehoe, fueled by financial troubles and anger over increased school taxes, meticulously planned and executed a devastating bombing that claimed 45 lives, including 38 children.
• Andrew Kehoe's troubled life included his mother's death, a severe head injury, and strained family relationships
• After suffering financial hardships and facing farm foreclosure, Kehoe blamed rising property taxes for his problems
• Despite serving on the school board, Kehoe harbored growing resentment toward the Bath community
• Over several months, Kehoe secretly planted explosives throughout the school building
• On May 18, 1927, Kehoe detonated explosives at his farm, killed his wife, then targeted the school
• A second cache of 500 pounds of explosives failed to detonate, potentially saving many lives
• Kehoe completed his attack with a suicide bombing that killed several rescuers
• The community demonstrated remarkable resilience, rebuilding the school within a year
• Despite being America's deadliest school massacre, the incident received limited historical recognition
• The attack shares disturbing parallels with modern mass violence events, highlighting our continued struggle to identify warning signs
www.deviantcriminology.com
The Bath School Massacre of 1927 stands as the deadliest school attack in US history, yet remains largely forgotten in American memory. Andrew Kehoe, fueled by financial troubles and anger over increased school taxes, meticulously planned and executed a devastating bombing that claimed 45 lives, including 38 children.
• Andrew Kehoe's troubled life included his mother's death, a severe head injury, and strained family relationships
• After suffering financial hardships and facing farm foreclosure, Kehoe blamed rising property taxes for his problems
• Despite serving on the school board, Kehoe harbored growing resentment toward the Bath community
• Over several months, Kehoe secretly planted explosives throughout the school building
• On May 18, 1927, Kehoe detonated explosives at his farm, killed his wife, then targeted the school
• A second cache of 500 pounds of explosives failed to detonate, potentially saving many lives
• Kehoe completed his attack with a suicide bombing that killed several rescuers
• The community demonstrated remarkable resilience, rebuilding the school within a year
• Despite being America's deadliest school massacre, the incident received limited historical recognition
• The attack shares disturbing parallels with modern mass violence events, highlighting our continued struggle to identify warning signs
www.deviantcriminology.com
Previous Episode
Marquis de Sade: Inside the Sadistic Mind
The term "sadistic killer" traces back to the Marquis de Sade, an 18th-century French nobleman whose criminal actions and controversial writings initiated an entire psychological classification now used in profiling serial murderers.
• Criminal justice defines sadistic killers as offenders who derive sexual gratification from inflicting pain and suffering
• The FBI's classification identifies specific patterns including captivity, torture, and careful planning
• The Marquis de Sade's notorious crimes included imprisoning, torturing, and sexually assaulting multiple victims
• His philosophical writings advocated for pursuing pleasure without moral restraints
• Notable works like "The 120 Days of Sodom" blended graphic depictions with complex philosophical arguments
• The term "sadism" was coined in 1886 by psychiatrist Richard von Krafft-Ebing
• Several notorious serial killers have been influenced by Sade's writings, including Ian Brady of the Moors Murders
• The concept raises philosophical questions about consent, harm, and where society draws moral boundaries
If you're enjoying our podcast, please follow, rate, or subscribe on your preferred platform. Downloads help our growth, so share with friends, family, or coworkers through word of mouth or social media. Visit our website at www.deviantcriminology.com for show notes and more information.
www.deviantcriminology.com
Next Episode
Veronica Gedeon: Easter Weekend Triple Murder
Easter Sunday 1937 became infamous not for celebration, but for the shocking triple homicide that claimed the lives of model Veronica "Ronnie" Gideon, her mother Mary, and a deaf boarder named Frank Barnes. Their killer, Robert Irwin, was a talented sculptor whose descent into untreated schizophrenia revealed catastrophic gaps in America's mental health system.
Ronnie's story unfolds against the backdrop of Depression-era New York, where her Hungarian immigrant family struggled through Prohibition and economic hardship. Her career as a model for detective novels and "racy" publications made her a recognizable face—and later, allowed the media to subtly blame her for her own murder through sensationalized coverage that emphasized her "provocative" lifestyle.
The case raises disturbing questions about society's treatment of female victims, even today. While Ronnie and her mother were each worth only "20 years" in the killer's sentencing, Frank Barnes—the male victim—warranted 99 years, revealing deep gender biases in how the justice system valued lives. Meanwhile, Irwin's repeated attempts to seek help for his deteriorating mental condition went inadequately addressed, creating a perfect storm of tragedy.
What makes this case particularly haunting is how many opportunities existed to prevent it. Irwin had voluntarily committed himself multiple times, clearly aware something was wrong with his mind. Yet the primitive understanding of mental illness in the 1930s meant he was repeatedly released without proper treatment for the delusional thoughts that eventually turned deadly.
The silver lining—if one can be found amid such tragedy—is that the Gideon murders sparked significant reforms in New York's mental health system, potentially saving countless lives through improved assessment protocols and stricter oversight of psychiatric facilities.
Have you ever wondered what happens when someone recognizes their own dangerous thoughts and seeks help, only to be failed by the system? What responsibility do we bear as a society when warning signs are ignored? Join us as we explore this haunting case that reveals how far we've come in mental health treatment—and how far we still have to go.
www.deviantcriminology.com
Deviant Criminology - The Bath School Massacre: America's Forgotten Tragedy
Transcript
Welcome back to another episode of Deviant Criminology . I'm Richard .
Speaker 3I'm .
Speaker 2Heather , we'll just get the names out of the way . So today the case we're going to talk about is one that I have been heavily interested in and researched since about 20 years ago when I first started doing act
If you like this episode you’ll love
Episode Comments
Generate a badge
Get a badge for your website that links back to this episode
<a href="https://goodpods.com/podcasts/deviant-criminology-626152/the-bath-school-massacre-americas-forgotten-tragedy-89393020"> <img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/goodpods-images-bucket/badges/generic-badge-1.svg" alt="listen to the bath school massacre: america's forgotten tragedy on goodpods" style="width: 225px" /> </a>
Copy