Why is purdues mascot a boilermaker

Purdue University , in West Lafayette, Indiana, has had winning sports teams since the 19th century, when both our union and the university were young. In , Purdue's football team traveled to Crawfordsville, Indiana, to play Wabash College, whom they defeated Wabash students and the people of Crawfordsville were devastated by the defeat. According to one correspondent from the era, the town began referring to the Purdue team as "a great big burly gang of corn-huskers," "rail-splitters," "foundry molders," and "log-haulers.

Over the next few years, Purdue's reputation did not dim, and when their team gave Wabash College a drubbing in , the local press wrote wildly about the carnage. The first issue of the student newspaper, the Exponent , is published. Purdue's first seal is created by Bruce Rogers, but it is never officially recognized by the University. Under accusations of recruiting athletes from boiler shops, the "Boilermakers" name is adopted for Purdue's athletic teams.

An 85,pound Schenectady No. Abby Phelps Lytle, head of the Purdue art department, designs a new, official seal for the University. Lytle's design incorporates three motifs still seen in the seal today: the shield, the griffin and the Uncial typeface.

The Purdue University Airport is established as the first university-owned airport in the nation. In the season opener, the team traveled to Wabash College in nearby Crawfordsville. Besides coming away with a victory, the Purdue "eleven," as football teams were known back then, headed back to West Lafayette with a new nickname.

In the s, hometown newspapers were considerably more protective of college teams than they are today. After the drubbing, one Crawfordsville newspaper lashed out at the "Herculean wearers of the black and old gold. By the next week, the Lafayette papers were returning the taunts: "As everyone knows, Purdue went down to Wabash last Saturday and defeated their eleven. The Crawfordsville papers have not yet gotten over it. The original Boilermaker Special was presented to the student body in during a convocation in the Hall of Music.

Even though there have been five versions of the Special, two elements of VII came from I -- the bell and whistle. Once common among many student groups, the wearing of caps largely died out in the late s, although the Reamers still retain their billed pots adorned with numerous buttons. In the distance are the Electrical Engineering Building far left, with the radio towers just visible , Forney Hall of Chemical Engineering and Hovde Hall right, with the smokestack behind it.

Purdue University Archives photo. Neil Armstrong Hall of Engineering is to the left. Trouble with this page? Disability-related accessibility issue? Please contact News Service at purduenews purdue. Quick Links.