Posted 11 years ago
aghcollect
(2304 items)
This is a Bicentennial "State of Indiana" solid bronze medallion. Made in 1976 as part of the Official American Revolution Bicentennial Medal Series (each State had it's own medallion design). It is minted with raised and faceted design with the obverse having a likeness of George Rogers Clark and "Indiana American Revolution Bicentennial" / The reverse having the "Seal of the State of Indiana" and the date 1816 (when statehood was granted).
It is a 2 1/2" in diameter and 1/4" thick. Weighs 4 ozs. Made by Medallic Art Co., NY
** George Rogers Clark - (1752-1818) was a soldier from Virginia and the highest ranking American military officer on the northwestern frontier during the American Revolutionary War. He served as leader of the Kentucky (then part of Virginia) militia throughout much of the war. Clark is best known for his celebrated captures of Kaskaskia (1778) and Vincennes (1779), which greatly weakened British influence in the Northwest Territory. Because the British ceded the entire Northwest Territory to the United States in the 1783 Treaty of Paris, Clark has often been hailed as the "Conqueror of the Old Northwest". Clark's military achievements all came before his 30th birthday. Afterwards he led militia in the opening engagements of the Northwest Indian War, but was accused of being drunk on duty. Despite his demand for a formal investigation into the accusations, he was disgraced and forced to resign. He left Kentucky to live on the Indiana frontier. Never fully reimbursed by Virginia for his wartime expenditures, Clark spent the final decades of his life evading creditors, and living in increasing poverty and obscurity. He was involved in two failed conspiracies to open the Spanish-controlled Mississippi River to American traffic. After suffering a stroke and losing his leg, Clark was aided in his final years by family members, including his younger brother William, one of the leaders of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.