Grandson of runaway slave awarded Sagamore of the Wabash for lifetime effort of keeping grandfather’s story alive

INDIANAPOLIS — Governor Eric Holcomb awarded one of the state’s highest honors to a Hoosier who devoted his life to telling his family’s remarkable story .

Andrew Bowman’s grandfather escaped slavery in the Civil War. His ancestor joined the Union Army and fought bravely in the Battle of Honey Hill. After years of effort by the Bowman family, the grandfather was awarded the Medal of Honor for bravery.

Holcomb bestowed Bowman the Sagamore of the Wabash for his lifelong efforts to tell his grandfather’s story. For years, he visited Indiana schools as a Civil War re-enactor and spread a message of racial equality. Mr. Bowman said while his award shows how far the country has come, in his mind, it still has a long way to go to overcome discrimination.

“Our country has made a tremendous amount of change even though it doesn’t seem like it now. But, lots of changes have been made and I think we’re going to make a lot more,” said Bowman.

You can learn more about Andrew Bowman’s remarkable story and the story of his grandfather’s journey from slavery to heroism by clicking here .

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