The Sagamore of the Wabash is an honorary award created by the U.S. state of

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...

during the term of

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Ralph F. Gates, who served from 1945 to 1949. A tri-state meeting was to be held in Louisville with officials from Indiana,

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

and

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

. Aides to Gates learned that the

governor of Kentucky The governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of government of Kentucky. Sixty-two men and one woman have served as governor of Kentucky. The governor's term is four years in length; since 1992, incumbents have been able to seek re-e ...

was preparing "

Kentucky Colonel Kentucky Colonel is the highest title of honor bestowed by the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and is the most well-known of a number of honorary colonelcies conferred by United States governors. A Kentucky Colonel Commission (the certificate) i ...

" certificates for Gates and

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

Robert A. Taft, who was representing Ohio. The Indiana delegation decided to create an appropriate award to present in return. The term '' sagamore'' was the term used by Algonquian-speaking American Indian tribes of the northeastern

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

for the

tribal chief A tribal chief or chieftain is the leader of a tribe, tribal society or chiefdom. Tribe The concept of tribe is a broadly applied concept, based on tribal concepts of societies of western Afroeurasia. Tribal societies are sometimes categori ...

s. The Wabash is the "State River" of Indiana and major

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drai ...

of the

Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of ...

. Each governor since Gates has presented the certificates in his own way. Until 2006, the award was the highest honor which the Governor of Indiana bestows, a personal tribute usually given to those who rendered distinguished service to the state or to the governor. Among those who have received Sagamores have been astronauts, presidents, ambassadors, artists, musicians, politicians and citizens who have contributed greatly to Hoosier heritage. There is no official record of the total number presented, as each governor has kept his own roll, just as each has reserved the right to personally select the recipients. Some individuals have received the award more than once; for example, current Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb has received the award twice and

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universi ...

chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

Herman B Wells was honored six times.

Recipients of the Sagamore of the Wabash Award

The Sagamore of the Wabash Award does not have an official list of the number of Sagamore of the Wabash awards presented, but several notable individuals have received the award: * Harold Zisla, 1985, by Gov.

Robert D. Orr Robert Dunkerson Orr (November 17, 1917 – March 10, 2004) was an American politician and diplomat who served as the 45th governor of Indiana from 1981 to 1989. A member of the Republican Party, he served as United States Ambassador to Singapor ...

; abstract expressionist painter and arts educator * Ryan White, 1987 by Gov. Robert Orr; American teenager from Kokomo, Indiana, who became a national poster child for HIV/AIDS in the United States * John Gregg, 1989, 1996, 2002 and 2003 Democratic Speaker of the Indiana House from 1996 to 2003 * Tommy John, 1989 by Gov. Evan Bayh, 288-game winner in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...

and first pitcher to have Tommy John surgery * John Morton-Finney, 1990 by Gov. Evan Bayh * Bob Kevoian and Tom Griswold, 1994 and 2008 * Patricia Roy, 1994 by Governor Evan Bayh; Indiana High School Athletics Association, Assistant Commissioner. * Arie Luyendyk, 1999 by Gov. Frank O’Bannon; 1990 and 1997

Indianapolis 500 The Indianapolis 500, formally known as the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, and commonly called the Indy 500, is an annual automobile race held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) in Speedway, Indiana, United States, an enclave suburb of Indi ...

winner * Bob Chase, 2001 by Gov. Frank O'Bannon;

Fort Wayne Komets The Fort Wayne Komets are a minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL. They play their home games at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana. This team was previously a member of the Central Hockey League, the original Inte ...

play-by-play broadcaster. *

Mir Masoom Ali Mir Masoom Ali (born February 1, 1937) is a Bangladeshi American statistician, Distinguished Professor, educator, researcher and author. He migrated to the United States in 1969 and became a naturalized citizen in 1981. Ali founded the graduate ...

, 2002 by Gov. Frank O'Bannon; Ball State University George and Frances Ball Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Statistics * Dorothy Runk Mennen, 2003 * Thomas McDermott Jr., 2005; Democratic Mayor of Hammond, Indiana (2004–Present) * Mike Delph, January 2005; Indiana State Senator (December 2005 – present) * Martin C. Jischke, 2007 by Governor Mitch Daniels; 10th president of

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and ...

(2000–2007) *

David Letterman David Michael Letterman (born April 12, 1947) is an American television host, comedian, writer and producer. He hosted late night television talk shows for 33 years, beginning with the February 1, 1982 debut of ''Late Night with David Letterman' ...

, 2007 by Gov. Mitch Daniels; comedian and television host *

Jeff Gordon Jeffery Michael Gordon (born August 4, 1971) is an American former professional stock car racing driver, who is the Vice Chairman for Hendrick Motorsports. He raced full-time from 1993 to 2015, driving the No. 24 Chevrolet for Hendrick M ...

, 2015 by Governor Mike Pence, 1994, 1998, 2001, 2004, 2014 Brickyard 400 Winner * Donald Davidson, 2016 by Governor Mike Pence, chief historian of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and host of The talk of Gasoline Alley. * Seema Verma, 2016 by Governor Mike Pence *

Adam Vinatieri Adam Matthew Vinatieri (born December 28, 1972) is an American former football placekicker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 24 seasons with the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts. Considered one of the greatest ...

, 2017 by Governor Eric Holcomb; placekicker for the

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

(2006–2019) *

John Stehr John Stehr (born August 20, 1958, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), is a former American television journalist. He is currently running for Mayor of Zionsville, Indiana, where municipal elections will be held in 2023. He retired as full-time lead anch ...

, 2018 by Governor Eric Holcomb; retired television journalist, anchor for WTHR in Indianapolis (1995-2019) * Robin Miller, 2021 by Governor Eric Holcomb

Sachem Award

In 2005,

Mitch Daniels designated another state honor, named the

Sachem Sachems and sagamores are paramount chiefs among the Algonquians or other Native American tribes of northeastern North America, including the Iroquois. The two words are anglicizations of cognate terms (c. 1622) from different Eastern Al ...

Award. He determined it would be awarded to only one person each year. It is Indiana's highest honor, and a plaque listing recipients is posted on the first floor of the Indiana Statehouse. It was first introduced in 1970 by Governor Edgar Whitcomb. * 2005:

John Wooden John Robert Wooden (October 14, 1910 – June 4, 2010) was an American basketball coach and player. Nicknamed the Wizard of Westwood, he won ten National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) national championships in a 12-year period as hea ...

, former

basketball player and college coach * 2006:

Theodore Hesburgh Theodore Martin Hesburgh, CSC (May 25, 1917 – February 26, 2015) was a native of Syracuse, New York, who became an ordained priest of the Congregation of Holy Cross and is best known for his service as the president of the University of No ...

, former president of the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin founded the school in 1842. The main c ...

* 2007: Jane Blaffer Owen, in recognition of her philanthropic efforts in historic preservation and the arts * 2008: Bill Gaither and Gloria Gaither, musicians * 2009: Donald C. Danielson, New Castle business and civic leader * 2010: Carl Erskine, former

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

and Los Angeles Dodgers baseball player * 2011: William A. Cook, entrepreneur, philanthropist and historic preservationist, co-founded the medical equipment manufacturer Cook Group * 2012: Ian M. Rolland, former chairman and CEO of Lincoln National Corp. * 2013: Don Wolf, former President and CEO of Do-It Best Corporation based in Fort Wayne, Indiana * 2014: P. E. McAllister, President of MacAllister Machinery and former chairman of the Indianapolis Capital Improvements Board * 2015: Amos Brown, a radio broadcaster who was a fierce defender and leader in the African-American community of Indianapolis * 2017:

Eva Mozes Kor Eva Mozes Kor (January 31, 1934 – July 4, 2019) was a Romanian-born American survivor of the Holocaust. Along with her twin sister Miriam, Kor was subjected to human experimentation under the direction of SS Doctor Josef Mengele at the Ausch ...

Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; ...

survivor and founder of

CANDLES Holocaust Museum and Education Center CANDLES Holocaust Museum and Education Center ("Children of Auschwitz Nazi Deadly Lab Experiments Survivors") is a museum in Terre Haute, Indiana, which educates the public about the Holocaust. The museum was founded by Holocaust survivor Eva Moz ...

* 2018:

Sammy L. Davis Sammy Lee Davis (born November 1, 1946) is an American soldier who served in the United States Army during the Vietnam War and was awarded the nation's highest military medal for valor, the Medal of Honor. Early years Born in Dayton, Ohio, on ...

, Vietnam veteran and recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor * 2019: George Rapp, orthopedic surgeon and pioneering inventor of hip prostheses * 2020: Reginald O. Jones Sr., Hoosier businessman, community leader and mentor * 2021: James T. Morris, civic leader, global ambassador, and advocate for youth

Contents of the award

When a Sagamore of the Wabash is given to a recipient it is accompanied by other artifacts. It's uncertain if the contents of the award vary by year or by recipient. The gallery below shows the contents of a specific award given on January 9, 2005. File:Sagamore of the Wabash - Folder.jpg, Folder File:Sagamore of the Wabash - Definition Letter.jpg, Definition Letter File:Sagamore of the Wabash - Certificate Letter.jpg, Certificate Letter File:Sagamore of the Wabash - Lapel Pin.jpg, Lapel Pin

References

{{Reflist Honorary titles of the United States Indiana culture State awards and decorations of the United States Governor of Indiana

Recipients of the Sagamore of the Wabash Award

Sachem Award

Contents of the award

See also

References