On the morning of Friday, Sept. 20, the campus awoke to shocking and tragic news — Christopher Swanson, 41, an ex-high school teacher from Clearfield County, had taken his life with a rifle in feet away from the statue of Mary in front of Old Main. Along with the shock of his death came many rumors at Mercyhurst, some of them apparently supported by Swanson’s own postings on the Internet prior to his death. Others were simply wrong. Swanson, a former high school physics teacher for the Smethport Area School District, reportedly had a previous relationship with a student now attending Mercyhurst. The student expressed to Swanson that she didn’t reciprocate his feelings. Swanson divulged that he intended to take
his own life throughout the past year. His stress became evident even in a Facebook post from 2011. “She’s going to Mercyhurst, I’m going to be left alone… She would never love me anyways. I’m 22 years older than she is.” Originally from Clearfield County, which is about two hours southeast of Erie, Swanson drove from his home late Thursday night or early Friday morning to Mercyhurst with clear intentions to end his own life. Several news media, including the Bradford Era, The Erie Times-News and the Huffington Post, have reported that he sent multiple text messages to loved ones and posted Facebook status updates in the days and hours preceding the event.