Ernest Bruce Haswell

This medal's obverse bears bust of MacDowell, left. Arond top, · EDWARD MACDOWELL · ; signed under truncation, Ernest Bruce Haswell / 1916

The reverse bears seated draped barefoot woman concentrating on incense burner (?) in her hands. Around, · LITERATVRE · DRAMA · MVSIC · ART · ARCHITECTVRE · ; to left of woman, THE / MACDOWELL / SOCIETY; signed in exergue with (circled H monogram)

Edward MacDowell (1860-1908) was an American composer and pianist of the Romantic period. He was best known for his second piano concerto and his piano suites Woodland Sketches, Sea Pieces and New England Idylls. Woodland Sketches includes his most popular short piece, "To a Wild Rose". In 1904 he was one of the first seven Americans honored by membership in the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

Particularly the reverse is wonderfully designed, with the young woman seated on the exergue and her back picking up the curvature of the medal. I regard this medal to be a little gem.

The medal was struck in bronze by the Medallic Art Company of New York. No mintage is reported.

The medal's obverse bears bust of Bishop facing left. In two lines around bottom half, · ROBERT · HAMILTON · BISHOP · FIRST · PRESIDENT · OF · / (leaves) MIAMI · UNIVERSITY (leaves); signed under truncation at right, EBH

The reverse shows college building with three bare trees, two flanking, one in front. Around top in three lines, WILLIAM · HOLMES · McGUFFEY : ROBERT · CUMMINGS · SCHENK : BENJAMIN · HARRISON / ·· DAVID · SWING ·· WHITELAW · REID ·· JOHN · SHAW · BILLINGS ·· / HENRY · MITCHELL · McCRACKEN : ANDREW · DOUSA · HEPBURN ·; in exergue, KIYOSHI TOMIZAWA / AWARDED FOR / MERITORIOUS PUBLIC / SERVICE / 1937

Robert Hamilton Bishop (1777-1855) was a Scottish-American who became the first President of Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Before that he was an early sympathizer with the plight of black slaves. In 1815, he organized a Negro school at Pisgah in Woodford County, Kentucky, and in 1816 he opened a school for African-American girls at Transylvania. His 1824 history of the church in Kentucky gave credit to the slaves Peter Durrett and his wife for founding and building up the First African Baptist Church of Lexington, Kentucky. Late nineteenth -century histories noted only white churches in Kentucky.

Miami University maintains a page with all recipients of the Bishop Medal.

Issued by Miami University, the circular medal measures 70mm in diameter and was struck in bronze by the Medallic Art Company of New York.