William Sumpter McIntosh, a 53-year-old African-American civil rights leader from Dayton, Ohio, was fatally shot on March 4, 1974. McIntosh, born February 2, 1921, served as executive director of the Dayton chapter of the Congress of Racial Equality and was known for nonviolent activism, organizing protests and boycotts against segregation and discrimination in Dayton.

On the day he died McIntosh attempted to prevent a robbery at a downtown Dayton jewelry store and was shot in the heart by one of the robbers, identified as Calvin Farmer, outside his family-owned store. The city later named W. S. McIntosh Park in his honor and the University of Dayton established the W. S. McIntosh Memorial Leadership Award for minority students.

What details about that day or McIntosh’s community work are most important to preserve about his legacy, and does anyone have recollections of the events surrounding the shooting?