How history may remember the Butler County assassination attempt directed at Trump
The Butler County Historical Society wants to know: Where were you July 13, 2024?
That day, Butler County was thrust into the world spotlight as a lone gunman attempted to assassinate then candidate President Donald Trump at a rally at the Butler Farm Show grounds in Connoquenessing Township.
It was a mass shooting in Butler County. The toll included the fatal shooting of Buffalo Township resident Corey Comperator; and two other spectators who were critically injured. Trump’s ear was grazed and suspected shooter Thomas Matthew Crooks was killed by law enforcement.
Mackenzie Herold, outreach coordinator for the Historical Society, said the organization wants to preserve everyone’s memories and emotions. It is compiling images and objects from the day that can be referenced by people “20, 40, 100” years from now.
“We want to know how the events of July 13 impacted all residents,” Herold said. “We want to get these firsthand accounts so that Butler County has a voice; so future historians can really access those feelings.”
The Butler County Historical Society has a page on its website, butlerhistory.com, where people can contribute their memories and other observations surrounding that fateful day. On the site, the historical society asks, “How did the events of that day impact you and your lived experience as a Butler County resident?”
Herold said information provided to the historical society through the digital submission form will not be accessible to anyone for 15 years.
She also said people can submit other files through the site, which will further paint a picture of the event which future historians can piece together.
“We're accepting photos, audio, video, they can send it in a Word document, they can contact us to hand over their physical account,” Herold said. “As long as it pertains to the events or the impact of July 13, we would much welcome it.”
Documents and artifacts received by the historical society are cataloged by Jamie Jones, the society’s collections manager. The historical society already has a binder marked “2024,” which contains significant documents and files from the year.
The historical society has done this type of project before. It compiled testimonies from people about their experience in the COVID-19 pandemic, which also is meant to be referenced by future historians, according to Herold.
Because the historical society is seeking first-person accounts of the July 13 event, Herold said each account could vary widely. The historical society is not looking to interpret people’s memories or accounts of what happened that date, but rather just compile personal stories that will help paint a picture of the assassination attempt for the future, she said.
Herold added that people can submit their accounts on other aspects of the event or its aftermath, even if they weren’t in the stands at Butler Farm Show grounds on July 13, 2024.
“They didn't have to attend the rally to submit their recollections. We want to hear from Butler Countians about their experiences,” Herold said. “I bet most Butler Countians know exactly where they were when that happened. Even if you weren't directly involved in it, you still have a story.”
The site where the assassination attempt took place, the Butler Farm Show grounds, has also become a point of interest for organizations looking to preserve the story of the historic event.
Bill May, a historian who gives tours and talks based on significant Butler County happenings, said a marker would be an appropriate gesture for the Farm Show grounds.
“I think there should be a marker that identifies that location where the president’s life was almost taken and, of course, where Corey Comperatore’s life was taken,” May said. “It’s important to remember major historical events, and in that case, with the assassination attempt of Trump, that really was the turning point of his election.”
There has already been at least one attempt from an organization to mark the site. Earlier this year, Connoquenessing Township supervisors voted to decline a specially designed historical roadside marker from the Jewish American Society for Historic Preservation that would recognize the assassination attempt.
The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission has also weighed in on the potential of a marker for the site, which could be documented through its Historical Marker Program. The program commemorates the people, places and events that have affected Pennsylvanians with signs of blue and gold placed on or near the site of significant events.
It may be some time before the commission formally reviews petitions to mark the site.
“Because of this, generally speaking, sufficient time must have passed to allow for the event’s lasting historical significance to be assessed and context for the significance to be expressed in a marker,” said Jay Losiewicz, the commission’s communications director.
