Gustavius A. "Gus" Welch (December 18, 1892 – January 29, 1970) was an

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

player,

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

athlete, coach of football and

lacrosse Lacrosse is a contact team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game w ...

, and college athletics administrator.

Early life

Welch was a full-blood Chippewa born in

Spooner, Wisconsin Spooner is a city in Washburn County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 2,573 at the 2020 census. The city is located mostly within the southwest corner of the Town of Spooner, with a small portion extending into the Town of Beaver ...

. He attended the

Carlisle Indian School The United States Indian Industrial School in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, generally known as Carlisle Indian Industrial School, was the flagship Native American boarding schools, Indian boarding school in the United States from its founding in 1879 t ...

, located in

Carlisle, Pennsylvania Carlisle is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in and the county seat of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. Carlisle is located within the Cumberland Valley, a highly productive agricultural region. As of the 2020 United States census ...

and graduated in 1911. Gus was one of Carlisle's first honor students. While at Carlisle, Welch was the

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

for the school’s football team, which featured

Jim Thorpe James Francis Thorpe (; May 22 or 28, 1887March 28, 1953) was an American athlete who won Olympic gold medals and played professional American football, football, baseball, and basketball. A citizen of the Sac and Fox Nation, Thorpe was ...

and was coached by

Pop Warner Glenn Scobey Warner (April 5, 1871 – September 7, 1954), most commonly known as Pop Warner, was an American college football coach at various institutions who is responsible for several key aspects of the modern game. Included among his inn ...

. He was a member of the USA Track and Field team during the

1912 Summer Olympics The 1912 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad () and commonly known as Stockholm 1912, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, between 6 July and 22 July 1912. The opening ceremony was he ...

, although an illness prevented him from competing. After 1912, Welch played professional football for the

Canton Bulldogs The Canton Bulldogs were a professional American football team, based in Canton, Ohio. They played in the Ohio League from 1903 to 1906 and 1911 to 1919, and the American Professional Football Association (later renamed the National Football Lea ...

, coached by Thorpe. In 1917, Welch graduated from the

Dickinson School of Law Penn State Dickinson Law, formerly Dickinson School of Law, is a public law school in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. It is one of two separately accredited law schools of Pennsylvania State University. History The Law School offers J.D. and LL.M. ...

Military

In 1917, he entered the

American Expeditionary Force The American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) was a formation of the United States Armed Forces on the Western Front (World War I), Western Front during World War I, composed mostly of units from the United States Army, U.S. Army. The AEF was establis ...

during World War I as a Second Lieutenant, 808th Pioneer Infantry, under

John J. Pershing General of the Armies John Joseph Pershing (September 13, 1860 – July 15, 1948), nicknamed "Black Jack", was an American army general, educator, and founder of the Pershing Rifles. He served as the commander of the American Expeditionary For ...

. During his time in the military he achieved the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

. He left the service in 1919.

Coaching career

From 1923 to 1929, Welch was the athletic director and head football coach at

Randolph Macon College Randolph may refer to: Places In the United States * Randolph, Alabama, an unincorporated community * Randolph, Arizona, a populated place * Randolph, California, a village merged into the city of Brea * Randolph, Illinois, an unincorporated com ...

. From 1930 to 1934, he served as the head

coach at the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

. From 1935 until 1937, Welch served as the director of athletics and head football coach at

Haskell Indian Nations University Haskell Indian Nations University (Haskell or HINU) is a public tribal land-grant university in Lawrence, Kansas, United States. Founded in 1884 as a residential boarding school for Native American children, the school has developed into a univ ...

, located in

Lawrence, Kansas Lawrence is a city in and the county seat of Douglas County, Kansas, United States, and the sixth-largest city in the state. It is in the northeastern sector of the state, astride Interstate 70 in Kansas, Interstate 70, between the Kansas River ...

. Afterwards he served as the head coach at Georgetown Prep School. From 1937 to 1938, he served as head football coach at

American University The American University (AU or American) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Its main campus spans 90-acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, in the Spri ...

where he compiled an overall record of two wins, ten losses and one tie. During World War II he was in charge of Physical Fitness at

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

; and by 1947 taught physical education at Lyndon Hill Junior High School, located in

Prince George County, Virginia Prince George County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 43,010. Its county seat is Prince George. Prince George County is located within the Greater Richmond Region of the U.S. sta ...

Camps

In 1929, Welch purchased a boys' camp near the Peaks of the Otter in

Bedford County, Virginia Bedford County is a county (United States), United States county located in the Piedmont region of Virginia, Piedmont region of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. Its county seat is the town of Bedford, Virginia, Bedford, ...

, which he operated during the next 30 summers as Camp Kewanzee for young people. In 1939, some of his land was condemned by the

US Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal lands and natural resources. It also administers programs relating t ...

to extend the

Blue Ridge Parkway The Blue Ridge Parkway is a National Parkway and National Scenic Byway, All-American Road in the United States, noted for its scenic beauty. The parkway, which is the longest linear park in the U.S., runs for through 29 counties in Virginia and ...

, a seizure Welch fought vigorously. He then purchased a farm near

Bedford, Virginia Bedford is an incorporated town and former Independent city (United States)#Virginia, independent city located within Bedford County, Virginia, Bedford County in the U.S. state of Virginia. It serves as the county seat of Bedford County. As of the ...

, and continued to work with young athletes. Gus finally served as athletic director at

in Washington, D.C. prior to his 1970 death.

Honors

In 1973, Welch was named to the American Indian Athletic Hall of Fame and in 1975 to

National Football Foundation The National Football Foundation (NFF) is a non-profit organization to promote amateur American football on all levels throughout the United States and develop "the qualities of leadership, sportsmanship, competitive zeal and the drive for academi ...

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive Tourist attraction, attraction devoted to college football, college American football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players ...

. In the late 1960s, Welch's help was sought by both the Jim Thorpe Project of Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and the Jim Thorpe Athletic Award Committee of

Yale, Oklahoma Yale is a city in Payne County, Oklahoma, Payne County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,059 at the 2020 census, a decline of 13.6 percent from the figure of 1,227 in United States Census, 2010, 2010. History Yale's founding in 189 ...

Family

In 1923, Welch married Julia Carter, daughter of Charles David Carter, Oklahoma Congressman from

Boggy Depot ''Boggy Depot'' is the debut solo album by Alice in Chains guitarist and vocalist Jerry Cantrell. The vinyl edition was released on March 31, 1998, and the CD was released on April 7, 1998, through Columbia Records. The album was named after the ...

. A

Chickasaw The Chickasaw ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands, United States. Their traditional territory was in northern Mississippi, northwestern and northern Alabama, western Tennessee and southwestern Kentucky. Their language is ...

, Carter descended from David Carter, a white man captured in

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

and raised as an Indian who elected to remain with them as an adult, married an Indian woman, and for a time edited The Phoenix, an Indian newspaper. The Welchs had no children but adopted a niece, Serena, who became the model for the figure portrayed on the canning labels of Pocahontas Foods. Carter's family was also close to

Vinnie Ream Lavinia Ellen "Vinnie" Ream Hoxie (September 25, 1847 – November 20, 1914) was an American sculptor. Her most famous work is the Statue of Abraham Lincoln (U.S. Capitol), statue of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln in the United States Capit ...

, after whom

Vinita, Oklahoma Vinita is a city and county seat of Craig County, Oklahoma, Craig County, Oklahoma, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 5,193. History Vinita was founded in 1870 by Elias Cornelius Boudinot. In 1 ...

is named. Ream became a sculptor of several statues in Washington, D.C., including one of

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...

placed in the

United States Capitol rotunda The United States Capitol building features a central rotunda below the Capitol dome. Built between 1818 and 1824, the rotunda has been described as the Capitol's "symbolic and physical heart". The rotunda is connected by corridors leading so ...

Death

Welch died on January 29, 1970, of a heart attack, at Bedford Memorial Hospital in

Head coaching record

Football

References

External links

*
Gus Welch papers, 1911-1979, Department of Special Collections and University Archives, McFarlin Library, The University of Tulsa
{{DEFAULTSORT:Welch, Gus 1892 births 1970 deaths American football quarterbacks American Eagles athletic directors American Eagles football coaches Carlisle Indians football players Carlisle Indians football coaches Canton Bulldogs (Ohio League) players Canton Professionals players Dickinson Red Devils football players Haskell Indian Nations Fighting Indians athletic directors Haskell Indian Nations Fighting Indians football coaches Randolph–Macon Yellow Jackets athletic directors Randolph–Macon Yellow Jackets football coaches Virginia Cavaliers football coaches Virginia Cavaliers men's lacrosse coaches Washington State Cougars football coaches College Football Hall of Fame inductees United States Army personnel of World War I United States Army officers People from Spooner, Wisconsin Players of American football from Wisconsin Native American players of American football American Ojibwe people Native American United States military personnel Military personnel from Wisconsin