"At nearly 3:45 in the afternoon the marchers, now numbering over four hundred, approached Lattimer with the American flag in the lead. Martin walked to the head of the column and announced that they must disperse. Not all marchers, particularly those in the back, could hear or see him. Martin attempted to tear the flag from the hands of Steve Jurich. Thwarted, he then grabbed a marcher from the second row. When others came to the marcher's aid, a scuffle broke out while part of the group continued forward. Martin drew his pistol and pulled the trigger, but the weapon did not fire.  Then someone yelled 'Fire!' and 'Give two or three shots!' (several eyewitnesses claimed it was the sheriff, though he would later deny this). A barrage of shots rang out. The flag bearer was the first man hit, crying to God in Slovak, 'O Joj! Joj! Joj!' as he fell mortally wounded. Several marchers at the front of the column realized that the deputies were not using blanks.  Those who understood what was occurring immediately began to scatter. Some ran toward the nearby schoolhouse. Teachers Charles Guscott and Grace Coyle watched the events unfold and thought at first that the bullets were blanks, until several men running toward them fell to the ground. Other shots pierced the schoolhouse walls, sending wooden splinters through the air.  Some deputies broke rank to take better aim at fleeing marchers, shooting them in the back as they ran...Some of the wounded cried out for help, to which one eyewitness heard a deputy respond, 'We'll give you hell, not water, hunkies!'  The shooting continued for at least a minute and a half, though some eyewitnesses claimed it may have been three minutes or more...Nineteen marchers lay dead. Another thirty-six were wounded."

-Pennsylvania Historical and Museuem Commision

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