Cornplanter Medal facts for kids
The Cornplanter Medal is a special award named after the famous Iroquois chief Cornplanter. It is given to people who have helped us learn more about the Iroquois people through their studies or other important work.
The idea for the medal came from Frederick Starr, a professor who studied cultures at the University of Chicago. He used money from nine friends to start the award. His main goals were to:
- Recognize and reward people who were doing great research about the Iroquois.
- Show that the Iroquois people had amazing artists, even though some people didn't think so. He wanted to highlight the art of a young Iroquois artist named Jesse Cornplanter.
The money to keep the medal going came from selling a booklet called Iroquois Indian Games and Dances (around 1903). The young artist, Jesse Cornplanter, was given credit in the booklet as "Jesse Cornplanter, Seneca Indian Boy."
Who Receives the Cornplanter Medal?
The Cornplanter Medal was first given out in 1904 by the Cayuga County Historical Society in Auburn, New York. It was awarded every two years to people who fit into one or more of these groups:
- Ethnologists: These are people who study cultures and make important discoveries about the Iroquois.
- Historians: People who add new and true information to what we know about the Iroquois past.
- Artists: Those who create art (like paintings or sculptures) that truly show Iroquois life or people.
- Philanthropists: These are people who give money or help others based on a good understanding of the Iroquois' needs.
List of Medal Winners
Many important people have received the Cornplanter Medal over the years:
- 1904 General John S. Clark, who was a historian and archaeologist.
- 1906 Rev. William Martin Beauchamp, an archaeologist and ethnologist.
- 1908 Dr. David Boyle, an archaeologist and ethnologist.
- 1910 William P. Letchworth, a philanthropist.
- 1912 Reuben Gold Thwaites, a historian.
- 1914 J.N.B. Hewitt, an ethnologist.
- 1916 Arthur C. Parker, an archaeologist and ethnologist.
- 1919 Alvin H. Dewey, a philanthropist.
- 1920 Mary Clark Thompson, a philanthropist.
- 1923 Professor Frederick Houghton, an archaeologist.
- 1926 Edwin H. Gohl, an archaeologist and artist.
- 1965 William N. Fenton, an ethnologist and historian.
- 1966 William A. Ritchie, an archaeologist.
- 1967 Merle H. Deardorff, an ethnologist and historian.
- 1968 Aldelphena Logan, an artist.
- 1969 Kenneth E. Kidd, a historian and archaeologist.
- 1970 Anthony F. C. Wallace, an ethnologist and historian.
- 1971 Floyd G. Lounsbury, a linguist and ethnologist.
- 1975 Marian E. White, an archaeologist and historian; and Walter K. Long, an artist.
- 1977 Richard S. MacNeish, an archaeologist.
- 1979 Bruce G. Trigger, a historian and archaeologist.
See also
- List of archaeology awards
- List of history awards
