As a tradition rich institution whose narrative is often told through those traditions, Wabash has no shortage of historical touchstones that provide deep insight into the nature of the place. One such reservoir of knowledge is in the plaques that hang in the lobby of the Fine Arts Center to commemorate the Baldwin Oratorical Contest.

The contest itself originated from a gift from the late D.P. Baldwin. Judge Baldwin was a long time trustee of Wabash College.  He was well known on campus and spoke regularly both in chapel and in the classroom.  He was particularly well-known for his lectures on English Literature and Economics.   Judge Baldwin endowed an award to be given to the Wabash students who "compose and pronounce the best orations.”  As the story goes, in probably a Wabash-ian combination of fact and fiction, the Baldwin Oratorical Contest is not only one of the longest continuous running speaking contests in the nation, but “the longest running speaking contest west of the Alleghenies.”

A survey of the winners reveals a glimpse into the history of the college, and those with longer institutional memory than me will no doubt recognize even more of those names (and looking at the top three finishers from every contest yields even more interesting insights).  There are names of trustees, Rhodes scholars, advocates before the Supreme Court, PhDs and MDs, and other distinguished alumni of all sorts. There are names of winners reflective of generations of Wabash men from the same family, and a surprising number of last names that are shared with U.S. Presidents and presidential candidates. In fact one can find two McCains on the list (1889 and1950)—but, of course, no Obama.

The deeper history of the event goes beyond names, of course, to the orations themselves.  Participants have vivid memories of their own day on the Baldwin stage.  Former Dean Mauri Ditzler never forgot one of his Baldwin experiences in which the power went out and he was upstaged by a dog (he’ll have to share the story in full).  You may have your own Baldwin memory.  The manuscripts of winning speeches can be found in the College archives.  A set of speeches from the early 1920s made their way into a published form while the top three orations from each year are sent to the archives as another droplet in that reservoir of Wabash history and tradition.

Tonight another name will be added to the plaque, another Wabash student will be marked as the winner of the 135^th rendition of the contest. This year, contestants were asked to compose an oration in response to the theme “Dear Mr. President.”

To that end the contestants were instructed to compose an oration addressed to President Obama.   They were asked, if given the opportunity, what they would say to him about the country or the world, about the economy or the environment, about our opportunities and our obligations, or about topics altogether different. 

The five finalists will present their responses tonight (Monday February 16) at 8:00 p.m. in the Korb classroom of the Fine Arts Center.  The contest will be judged by Political Science Professor Melissa Butler, Assistant Director of Admissions Mike Owens ’02, and Head Football Coach Erik Raeburn.

The finalists and their titles:

Victor Nava '10, "The Dream Belongs to All of Us"

Michael Nossett '11,  “A Pensive Power”

Donovan Bisbee '12, "Good Night and Good Luck Mr. President”

Sam Prellwitz '10, "Our Feet Are Filthy"

Steve Maynard '11, "An Ode to Oratory"