Rich Haskell: Well, I like to think I'm a better person because of it. She is a trained rural historian who specializes in oral history, childhood history and memory studies. Details: At 1:20pm on Friday, May 16, 1986, forty-three-year-old David Young and his forty-seven-year-old wife, Doris, wheeled a shopping cart containing a homemade gasoline-filled bomb into Cokeville Elementary School in Cokeville, Wyoming, just after the lunch hour recess. Well, when I arrived at Cokeville, of course they had the roads all blocked off and there was not a lot of people around the school at the time. Have you had anything like this, anything close to this happen? When I walked inside of the classroomit was a kindergarten classroom which meant that the desks were smaller, everything was smaller because of the smaller children. They're the ones that died from the whole thing. Well, he had went into the bathroom and she was out with the bomb, and they said she was complaining of a migraine headache. David Young. That's what it was designed to do was to go out and be particles and that gasoline was gonna ignite it and blow it up. Rich Haskell: Pretty sophisticated guy is what he was. All the hostages escaped, though 79 were hospitalized with burns and injuries. He used to work in Cokeville. She fled the building and drove the Youngs vanwith Deppe and Mendenhall still insideto the town hall, where she reported her fathers plan. What should people know going into the film? Because they refused to participate, Princess, Deppe, and Mendenhall were never charged in relation to this crime. And screaming, I can't imagine the screams that she was making. I mean, Columbine, it wasn't that way. I know there's angels. She lured them by telling them there was either an emergency, a surprise, or an assembly there. Hey, I am not the survivor, but I spent my summers in Cokeville, my family is from there, and I have been helping on publicity for the film. No. Rich Haskell: No, I don't think it exited. Rich Haskell: Yeah, there was some people ready to just shoot him right where he was sitting. You can check out [CokevilleMiracle.com] (http://www.cokevillemiracle.com/movie.html). AN EXPLOSION of vapors, resultLing from a combination of circumstances at the Kearney, N. J., plant of the Koppers Coke Company, on May 17, 1948, resulted in the death of ten men and started a . One hostage observed a birthday on that day and songs were sung in his honor. Mark Junge: Oh, really! Mark Junge: Well, yes. Of what you would picture an angel, with the wings and, Mark Junge: Well, if I'm a skeptic, I could say, "Well, that's just the way the flames shot up.". Rich Haskell: Well, after I arrived it took probably three to four hours to make sure everything was neutral and everything was not going to be a threat any longer. Jessica Clark, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of history and political science at Western Wyoming Community College in Rock Springs, Wyo. One of the miracles that day was that not a single person was lost. Then, several years later, Jennie Sorensen identified what she thought was a teacher who led her out of the building after the blast. Now this is just for my own information and it doesn't have anything to do with this case, but whenever I read about a bomb threat in the paper, I think to myself, "Oh, no! You see the bag ladies pullin' them around behind them when they go to the store and they can put their groceries in or whatever else. Well, with the window being open, with the ceiling tiles being able to lift up and down, I think that absorbed a lot of the explosion of the gasoline bottle. Accessed May 17, 2013, at, Wyoming Horror: A Fiery Schoolhouse Bomb., A 1986 Hostage Event at a Cokeville, Wyoming Elementary School., Jarvik, Elaine. So we decided to take some masking tape, and we tapedI think it was an eight-foot square in the middle of the room, right here, and he pushed the cart, the homemade bomb into this, and we told the children this was the magic square. Mark Junge: Where at? Why? With the explosionwhat occurred? Then when I became a deputy, Sheriff Stark says, "You know, we're going to start finding a bunch of old explosives, dynamite and things. He demanded a ransom of two million dollars per hostage ($308 million, $720 million adjusted for inflation), and an audience with President Ronald Reagan. "[6] The two men eventually refused to participate in the event. I got a chance to talk to Jennie Sorensen Johnson, who was seven when David Young rolled a bomb into her first grade classroom. A Project of the Wyoming Historical Society. Shortly after their wedding, David and Doris left Cokeville and headed to Tucson, Ariz. During their time in Tucson, according to Doris daughter Bernie Petersen, David became increasingly reclusive, focusing on his philosophical readings and writings. Parentheses ( ) are used for incidental non-verbal sounds, like laughter. "Move!" At about 9:30 a.m., the bomb disposal squad used a robotic device to shoot out the end caps of the device, remove the . All the hostages escaped, though 79 were hospitalized with burns and injuries. David Young had initially planned to involve longtime friends Gerald Deppe and Doyle Mendenhall, who had invested money with him in a get-rich-quick scheme that he had called "The Biggie. Mark Junge: What do you want to do with the rest of your life? The subsequent police report states that David opened the door from the connecting bathroom, shot his injured wife in the head and killed her,[9] shot and wounded John Miller, a music teacher who was trying to flee, then closed the bathroom door and killed himself with a shot from a .45 pistol to the head. Bomber's body removed - Billings Gazette It became a story of a miracle rather than a tragedy. As I sat there and watched him, I could feel he was becoming agitated. The Cokeville Town Hall is located at 110 Pine St. For more information, visit the website of the Cokeville Chamber of Commerce at http://www.cokevillewy.com or call (307) 459-4195. I wondered what that was, but then immediately noticed my friends over by the door talking to Doris. I didn't look at the speedometer, I was just kind of watchin' for animals and everything else. On May 16, 1986, David Young, Cokeville's former town marshal, and his wife, Doris, carried five rifles, five handguns and a "dead man's bomb" into the elementary school. I remember watching that when I was a younger kid, and when they were interviewing the witnesses, I remember several of them referencing "Heavenly Father " instead of "God," and I knew immediately they were LDS. For instance, The Cokeville Miracle Foundations 2005 book Witness to Miracles: Remembering the Cokeville Elementary School Bombing and the Wyoming State Archives oral history project called Survivor is My Name both focused on the reconstructing of this narrative as a miracle instead of a tragedy. Rich Haskell: I don't think that they were planningor David was planning on the ceiling tiles in the school. Sue Castaneda: Which is the son who is also running for sheriff? When I arrived I could see out on the lawn, there was a black object laying out on the grass. The incident was detailed in the book The Cokeville Miracle: When Angels Intervene[12] by Hartt Wixom and his wife Judene, published by Cedar Fort, Inc., which formed the basis for a CBS made-for-TV movie titled To Save the Children. Accessed May 28, 2013 at. She lifted her hand up to rub her forehead and when she did that pulled the pin out and detonated the bomb. Don't go past this square. Did you see anything? The Cokeville Elementary School hostage crisis occurred on Friday, May 16, 1986 in Cokeville, Wyoming, United States, when former town marshal David Young, 43, and his wife Doris Young, 47, [1] took 136 children and 18 adults hostage at Cokeville Elementary School. David and Doris Young took 167 hostages (150 children, 17 adults and one unlucky UPS driver) at the elementary school. Survivors shared their stories with each other, investigators, family members, and hospital personnel. The Power of Faith: 25 Years After School Bombing, Town Remembers Story of Survival., Mitchell, Ruth Ann. Rich Haskell: Well, run fordo another term as sheriff and then retire, and my wife and I are going to doshe loves genealogy. And, then, shortly after 4 p.m., the bomb exploded. Windows were opened to rid the room of gasoline fumes, and prayers were offered in small groups among the children. Rich Haskell: Yes, there was a briefcase in the hallway, and we were toldbefore I had gotten there they had gotten papers from his daughter. Rich Haskell: Uh, I can understand that. Here is a local story from the 20 year anniversary (we are at the 29th year now), What's your side of the story? From Tragedy To Triumph- Talking To A Cokeville Bombing Survivor. Just before implementing the Biggie, David Young had also sent a copy of the document to President Ronald Reagan, the president of Chadron State College and numerous media outlets. Wyoming Town Still Healing a Year After School Bombing., Schoolhouse Blast Still Felt a Year Later., Survivor is My Name: Cokeville Elementary School Bombing1986 News Report Audio. Audio Recording. Retro Report took a look back at this episode, with a focus on how Johnson & Johnson and . This allowed gasoline to drip into the tuna fish cans, turning the aluminum-flour mixture into paste, unable to aerosolize. After a two-and-a-half hour standoff, the children were becoming restless, so the teachers preoccupied the kids in the form of movies, games, prayer, and books. The tuna fish cans, if you can imagine, here's two tuna fish cans sittin' here like this, and a gallon jug of gasoline sittin' above it. Young met his second wife, Doris Waters, while in Cokeville. These are designed to just spread out the particles all over the air. Of course, I can imagine the noise that it made. The woman who died with her husband as they held an elementary school hostage with a gasoline bomb last week was not killed by the . (before I see Hollywood's version). This wasn't a pipe bomb. Cokeville Elementary School hostage crisis, "Radical Right Link Suggested in Hostage Case", "Cokeville Elementary School Bombing | WyoHistory.org", "Couple take over school but die after bomb blast", "Couple in School Blast Linked to Extremist Group", "Certified Bomb Technician Rich Haskell on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School | WyoHistory.org", "Lead Investigator Ron Hartley, Father of Four Student Survivors, on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School | WyoHistory.org", "Secretary Tina Cook on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School | WyoHistory.org", "A projectile killed Dorris Young, not bomb blast, police in Cokeville say", "In 1986, 154 children and teachers survived the bombing of Cokeville Elementary School", "Emergency Management Coordinator Kathy Davison on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School | WyoHistory.org", University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Liberty Point International Middle School, Central Visual and Performing Arts High School, "'No Way to Prevent This', Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens", List of school shootings in the United States by death toll, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Cokeville_Elementary_School_hostage_crisis&oldid=1139490391, Improvised explosive device bombings in the United States, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 15 February 2023, at 11:55. Cokeville Elementary School teachers and staff tried to keep kindergarteners through sixth graders calm and entertained. You know their names but not their birthdays. Rich Haskell: Yes, I did. Mark Junge: That's a record of all the people we've talked to! I believe a presence was entering the room at about that time. David had the makeshift bomb attached to his body and housed inside a grocery cart, while Doris and Princess carried an arsenal of rifles, handguns and ammunition, as well as the Zero Equals Infinity handouts. David, Doris and Princess proceeded to the elementary school and entered the building shortly after 1 p.m. that Friday. Rich Haskell: I'm Rich Haskell. Do you ever think about that? David was a diabetic. You can also read about it on [Wikipedia] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cokeville_Elementary_School_hostage_crisis). So you got that and you got the flour and the gasoline and that's what it was all designed to do in millisecond delays. Mark Junge: Okay. School Bombing Survivor Converted after Priesthood Blessing This wasn't a simple bomb. Gallery: Cokeville School Bombing, 25 Years Later - Casper Star-Tribune Can you describe this? I contacted my sheriff, and that was Jim Stark at the time, and he said, "Definitely! No, not at all. And then he shot himself. And what happens if they trigger something accidently?" Maybe writing that up 2 years ago when this came along was more healing for me than for him, but I gave it all to him! They were sitting out across the fence with scopes on their rifles just ready to shoot until the sheriff went out and said, "No. Cokeville Bombing - Wyoming When I looked at everyone looking at me (as if I should call on someone to say it) I realized I should call on Allyson Cornia - literally because she was the smartest kid in the class! He was in high fevers until the therapist allowed him to speak openly. Press J to jump to the feed. Mark Junge: No? Cokeville Bombing. Undated scrapbook. But it still sent flames all over in the room and you can see where all the flames were in that room. They believed in reincarnation, which probably led, in part, to the creation of Davids Brave New World idea. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Rich Haskell: No, it's not. It has shaped me to know that God is real. The Cokeville Miracle - The American Tragedy That Never Happened Rich Haskell: Oh my goodness! All the hostages escaped, though 79 were later hospitalized with burns and injuries, the majority of which were severe.[3][2]. You know, the kids have forgot about it, let's let 'em move on. How much interaction did you have with the director/producers of the movie? There was nobody killed but the perpetrators. I was up there as part of his protection team. On May 16, 1986, David and Doris Young took 154 people hostage at the Cokeville Elementary School in tiny Cokeville, Wyo. Rich Haskell: I think it could be a spiritual experience that I have with church, or being around the kids, I don't know. Go to their hands and knees and crawl out. I cannot explain it! One of the miracles that day was that not a single person was lost. He instructed Doris and Princess, by now a young adult, to handcuff them inside his van. On May 16, 1986, when former town marshal David Gary Young and his wife Doris Young took 154 children and 13 teachers hostage at Cokeville Elementary school in Wyoming, and kept them at bay with a shopping-cart sized bomb attached to five hairpin-trigger blast caps, it should have ended in great tragedy - one of the worst in American history. 1 of 7. They just didn't let it die out. The Cokeville Elementary School hostage crisis occurred on May 16, 1986, in Cokeville, Wyoming, United States, when former town marshal David Young 44, and his wife Doris Young 47, took 136 children and 18 adults hostage at Cokeville Elementary School . One thing to mention is that the tension in real life seemed much more present at first, and then once prayers were said the mood really lifted. On May 16, 1986, . over there. Angelic Intervention save all 153 in bomb blast - Cokeville Wyoming - Unexplained Mysteries - Angels Brain Boyle 2.05K subscribers Subscribe 928 158K views 11 years ago All 153 Children &. I know that for a fact! Located in Lincoln County and nestled between the towns of Star Valley and Kemmerer on the Wyoming-Idaho border, Cokeville, many residents believed, was a safe place to rear children. Doris tried numerous times to calm the children by telling them to "think of it as an adventure movie," or that they "would have a great story to tell their grandchildren." They do now - ever since the Youngs barged in on the Cokeville Elementary School with guns and a bomb to demand . Just like with a pair of pliers, pair of snips. David saw John Miller, the music teacher, trying to escape and shot him in the back. My husband and I are looking forward to seeing the movie, as we weren't around when it happened and have just recently learned about it. It was in their Tucson home that David came up with what he considered the Biggie, a plan to get rich quick and create a Brave New World. This plan involved Davids longtime friends, Gerald Deppe and Doyle Mendenhall, who believed by investing in Davids scheme they would get rich. Casper Chapter, Wyoming Archaeological Society, June Frison chapter, Wyoming Archeological Society. Several other survivors were there. Mark Junge: And your great-grandkids? Mark Junge: Do you think he took up thatwanted to take that up because of you? She is a trained rural historian who specializes in oral history, childhood history and memory studies. The only thing I bristle at is that TC has me suggesting that we say a prayer. NOTE: Witness to Miracles was published in 2006 by Pronghorn Press, www.pronghornpress.org . WyoHistory.org welcomes the support of the following sponsors. Weredo you think it had something to do with angels? Many recalled praying silently, forming prayer circles and seeing angels during the crisis. I actually hadn't thought of doing that, yet. it is VERY LDS, and yet there are at least 3 other churches in town: Episcopal, Catholic, Baptist (and sometimes a non-denominational church). Boston columnist: 'This was an attack on family' - Today And that's what we in this country have that these other fanatics or whatever is the family is the import factor. The wire was cut. Mark Junge: How many actual bombs have you had experience with? Nobody come inside this circle." She is one of the survivors whose story has become a part of The Cokeville Miracle. Now you've got problems. 2 Recreation Board, Indigenous People in Wyoming and the West, http://news.google.com/newspapers/p/deseret_news?id=nz1TAAAAIBAJ&sjid=BYQDAAAAIBAJ&pg=4165,3587249&dq=cokeville+bombing&hl=en, http://archive.org/details/SurvivorIsMyName-VoicesOfTheCokevilleElementarySchoolBombing, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udNB_xdPiYE, http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=mz1TAAAAIBAJ&sjid=BYQDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6656,2193766&dq=cokeville+trying+to+rebuild&hl=en, http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=oD1TAAAAIBAJ&sjid=BYQDAAAAIBAJ&dq=cokeville&pg=7027%2C3851642, http://wyospcr.state.wy.us/MultiMedia/Display.aspx?ID=86&icon=1, http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1928&dat=19870529&id=-AogAAAAIBAJ&sjid=c2UFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1067,6238243, http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1499&dat=19870521&id=w4sfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=zH4EAAAAIBAJ&pg=4596,6209063, https://www.deseret.com/2006/5/15/19953524/cokeville-recollects-miracle-of-1986, http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_18072820, http://trib.com/news/state-and-regional/article%E2%80%943077bf4a-a45e-5dad-ae3a-a99aa8fcf3aa.html, http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=336&dat=19960515&id=Ke5LAAAAIBAJ&sjid=fuwDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5227,9406392, http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=336&dat=19940404&id=GoQwAAAAIBAJ&sjid=iuwDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2778,1992787, http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705372484/Cokeville-miracle-marking-25-years.html, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qe_ZX4Qbsi4, Emergency Management Coordinator Kathy Davison on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, EMT Glenna Walker, Mother of Three Young Children, on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Public Works Director and Fireman Kevin Walker, Father of Three Young Children, on the 1986 bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Lead Investigator Ron Hartley, Father of Four Student Survivors, on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Certified Bomb Technician Rich Haskell on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Secretary Tina Cook on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, First grade teacher Janel Dayton on the 1986 bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Second grade teacher Carol Petersen on the 1986 bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Third grade student Rachel Walker Hollibaugh on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Third grade student Jamie Buckley King on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Fourth grade teacher Kliss Sparks on the 1986 bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Fourth grade student LeaKae Roberts on the 1986 Bombing of Cokeville Elementary School, Law and Order in Cokeville: A Woman Mayor and Prohibition, Green River Historic Preservation Commission, Natrona County Board of Cooperative Educational Services, Natrona County Recreation Joint Powers Board, Sublette County Historical Preservation Board, University of Wyoming School of Energy Resources, A Projectile Killed Doris Young, Not Bomb Blast, Police in Cokeville Say., Castaneda, Sue and Mark Junge. Totally destroyed it! It would have killed them. Rich Haskell: Well, I didn't know a lot about 'em and I still don't know a lot about 'em. They have a lot of first-person histories of the actual event, teachers, investigators and students. But everything was black, like you had gone in there with a flamethrower and just torched everything inside there. Interview by Mark Junge. He had just big rings of perspiration. After a stand-off lasting two and a half hours, the gasoline bomb the couple had brought into the school went off prematurely, badly burning Doris Young while David Young was out of the room. Chalkboards andwhat do they call those?whiteboards, I think they are, along the walls. What had happenedI can't explain it. Because it was sittin' low enough and the kids were low enough that it would have done it. The Hilton Garden Suites in Laramie, Wyo. Cokeville Trying to Rebuild A Normal and Secure Life.. During my years here in Wyoming I have refereed both basketball and football on the high school and the junior high school level, and I was watching the ball game at that time. The hostage takers took part in the singing. Cokeville Elementary School Explosion - Unsolved Mysteries Wiki Some of the children just sat right all around and just watched him. Did this shake the faith of some people, or would you say it strengthened it in most? Which is hard to believe, but a positive experience in that they learned something. . Cokeville Elementary School is located at 205 N. Sage St. in Cokeville. I did open that briefcase remotely like I was taught in school to do. Students, teachers, staff and visitors frantically exited the building, with teachers helping many of the children escape through the windows. You just do whatever you have to do and get up there." In 1986 , 154 children and teachers survived the bombing of Cokeville Elementary School. Mark Junge: That's a mighty powerful gun! He was asking large amounts of money. There was no give in the school bus. ", Mark Junge: So it took you three days, three and a half days. There was no give in the school bus. Both David and Doris had ties to white supremacist groups, including the Posse Comitatus and the Aryan Nations. TC (the director) also worked incredibly hard to make this a story that can be widely appreciated by members of all faiths. Had a gallon milk jug full of gasoline on one level, had aluminum powder, flour and those two components was in tuna fish cans directly under the gasoline bomb. But I know that, well, I'll just be quite frank. I didn't touch the body at all. David, who dared not risk their reporting him to the authorities, responded by holding them at gunpoint. David Young entered the school with his wife transporting a large gasoline-filled device that appeared to be a bomb. I've spent many, many hours and many days with the leaders of the Mormon church, with the Prophet of the Mormon church. Rich Haskell: Were above the level of the kids, yeah. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Mark Junge: And you're sheriff in Sweetwater? Vengeance for having been fired did not seem to have been the motive, but rather a philosophy recorded in journal entries referring to a Brave New World where he wanted to reign over intelligent children.
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