Inductees

April 26, 1927—October 7, 2015

Harry  ” The Horse” Gallatin played nine seasons for the New York Knicks in the NBA from 1948 to 1957, as well as one season with the Detroit Pistons in 1958. In 1954 Gallatin led the NBA in rebounding, and was named to the All-NBA First Team. For his career, Gallatin played in seven NBA All-Star Games. A member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, he is also a member of the SIU Edwardsville, Truman State University, Missouri Basketball, Illinois Basketball, Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA), and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Halls of Fame.

Growing up in Roxana, Illinois, Gallatin was granted a basketball scholarship by Northeast Missouri State Teachers’ College (now known as Truman State University). But after graduating from Roxana High School, he enlisted in the United States Navy and served until the end of World War II. Following the war he starred at Northeast Missouri, averaging 12.9 points per game and lead his team to a 59-4 record and two appearances in the NAIA tournament. Despite his fear of ever being able to get into college, he earned his bachelor’s degree from Northeast Missouri in only two years.

The New York Knicks selected him in the 1948 NBA draft. In his third year, Gallatin was selected for the first NBA All-Star Game in 1951, and from 1951 through 1957 was chosen for seven consecutive NBA All-Star games. It was in the NBA where he earned the nickname “The Horse”. He played his entire career as an undersized center at 6’6″ and 215 lbs., but he had tremendous physical strength and epitomized hard work both in college and in the NBA.

In addition to basketball, he also played baseball. He played two seasons of varsity baseball at Northeast Missouri. During the off-seasons between his first three seasons in the NBA, he played for the Class B Decatur, Illinois Cubs/Commodores of the Illinois-Iowa-Indiana League.

After his retirement from playing in 1958, Gallatin became the head coach of the Southern Illinois University-Carbondale where he led his teams to a 69-35 record and post-season tournament appearances every year.

He returned to the NBA in 1962 as coach of the St. Louis Hawks from two years, being named  NBA Coach of the Year.

He became the first athletic director and basketball coach at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville in 1967. He remained at SIUE until his retirement in 1992, where he also taught in the physical education department and was SIUE’s  men’s golf coach for 24 years, leading that team to NCAA Division II championships 19 times and finishing in the top 10 six times.