Birch Evans Bayh Sr. (September 29, 1893 – August 26, 1971) was an American

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

and

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

coach. He was the head basketball coach at

Indiana State University Indiana State University (ISU) is a public university in Terre Haute, Indiana. It was founded in 1865 and offers over 100 undergraduate majors and more than 75 graduate and professional programs. Indiana State is classified among "D/PU: Doctor ...

from 1918 to 1923. During this time, he also served as the head baseball coach, athletic director and professor of physical education. He was also instrumental in the establishment of the

Indiana Intercollegiate Conference The Indiana Intercollegiate Conference (IIC) was a college athletic conference in the United States from 1922 to 1950. It consisted of schools in Indiana. The charter members of the conference were Indiana State University, Butler University, DeP ...

; additionally, he served as the first secretary-treasurer of that organization.

Life and career

Bayh was born in

Quincy, Indiana Quincy is an unincorporated community in northeastern Taylor Township, Owen County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. It lies just south of CR1150N, north of the town of Spencer, the county seat of Owen County. Its elevation is 738 feet (22 ...

, the son of Mettie/Nettie (née Evans) and Frederick C. "Fred" Bayh. His paternal grandparents were German immigrants. Bayh led the Sycamores to their first fifteen-win season and their first twenty-win season. Bayh's .640 winning percentage at Indiana State currently ranks him as the sixth-winningest coach in the school's history. He began his career as a teacher and coach in the public schools of

Owen Owen may refer to: Origin: The name Owen is of Irish and Welsh origin. Its meanings range from noble, youthful, and well-born. Gender: Owen is historically the masculine form of the name. Popular feminine variations include Eowyn and Owena. ...

and

Clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4). Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay par ...

counties of Indiana; he later became director of physical education of the

Terre Haute, Indiana Terre Haute ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Vigo County, Indiana, United States, about 5 miles east of the state's western border with Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 60,785 and its metropolitan area had a ...

, public school system and later held the same position for the Washington, D.C., public school system. He was a long-time high school basketball official in Indiana and officiated ten state championship games, a record that he still holds today. He was a

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

veteran, reaching the rank of

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

and held an exercise certificate (an associate degree) from the North American Gymnastics Union of Indianapolis. A second-generation alumnus of

Indiana State Indiana State University (ISU) is a public university in Terre Haute, Indiana. It was founded in 1865 and offers over 100 undergraduate majors and more than 75 graduate and professional programs. Indiana State is classified among "D/PU: Doctor ...

, he was the father of former U.S. Senator

Birch Bayh Birch Evans Bayh Jr. (; January 22, 1928 – March 14, 2019) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as U.S. Senator from Indiana from 1963 to 1981. He was first elected to office in 1954, when he won election to the Indiana ...

and Mary Alice Feather, and the grandfather of former Indiana Governor and former U.S. Senator

Evan Bayh Birch Evans Bayh III ( ; born December 26, 1955) is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States senator from Indiana from 1999 to 2011 and the 46th governor of Indiana from 1989 to 1997. Bayh w ...

and Christopher Bayh. In 2009, Indiana State renamed its School of Education the "Bayh School of Education" to honor the Bayh family.

Head coaching record

Basketball

Baseball

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bayh, Birch 1893 births 1971 deaths Basketball coaches from Indiana American people of German descent American people of English descent American people of Scotch-Irish descent American people of Scottish descent Indiana State Sycamores athletic directors Indiana State Sycamores men's basketball coaches Indiana State Sycamores baseball coaches People from Owen County, Indiana Bayh family American military personnel of World War I