*SOME SORT OF STRINGR VIDEO OR GALLERY OF THESE OLD LOGOS*
Indiana high school sports programs carry a rich history. Not only in the glorious heyday of pre-consolidation where gyms were stuffed nightly but the creativity and origins of the mascots.
Looking back on the 123 years of organized high school sports in Indiana means finding some unique former nicknames and mascots. Here’s a look at the more interesting mascots that were created and formed from the Lafayette area specifically.
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Mulberry Berries (1910-11; 1913-14; 1915-61)
A counter to the Berries that reside in Logansport, the Mulberry Berries became famous for eventually having its old scoreboard used in the “Hoosiers.” Mulberries are edible and known for having a dark purple color and soft texture.
Battle Ground Tomahawks (1908-11; 1912-13; 1917-70)
Before consolidating into modern-day Harrison, the Tomahawks roamed Battle Ground. They now exist today as a middle school.
Buck Creek Cobras (1917-58)
Buck Creek once had the Cobras slithering around Washington Township in Tippecanoe County. Today, there are 181 residents. The area was originally named Transitville in 1858.
Scircleville Ringers (1916-59)
Part of a lost history of Indiana located in Clinton County, there was once a summer baseball club that traveled across Indiana. A drug store existed along with a restaurant called Roy Blackburn, according to the “History of Scircleville, Indiana” Facebook page.
Pine Village Pine Knots (1908-10; 1911-12; 1913-73)
A program with deep basketball history, the Pine Knots dawned blue and orange and was once where 6-foot-5 forward Bax Brutus towered over opponents. Brutus died in 1972 at the age of 17 from a farming accident before the Pine Knots went an inspiring run, becoming the smallest school that season to capture a sectional title. Indy Star columnist Gregg Doyel chronicled the history of the Pine Knots in 2020.
Clarks Hill Hillers (1905-07; 1909-10; 1919-55)
Hard to imagine what the chant was, but the Hillers of Clarks Hill roamed the countryside of Lauramie Township in Tippecanoe County. Famed former residents of the town include Herschel Daugherty, a known dialogue director for films in the 1940s, including acclaimed films like The Adventures of Mark Twain. He carried over 100 credits in feature films and television.
Ladoga Canners (1905-71)
The town and name reflected the economy of the time, with Ladoga being a major of canned food products distributor through the Ladoga Canning Company. They produced a myriad of goods, including canned pumpkins, country gentleman corn, golden bantam corn, evergreen sugar corn, tomatoes, tomato juice, tomato puree, asparagus, peas, pork and beans, red beans, lima beans, vegetable soup, tomato soup, spaghetti, and lye hominy, according to Streets of Ladoga on blogspot.
Freeland Park Rockets (1913-14; 1916-17; 1919-63)
Freeland Park was once home to a high school program that would become Benton Central. Red and black color with rockets as a mascot sounds like a 1950s sci-fi fan dream. Freeland Park won five sectional titles in 1928-29, 1939-40, 1940-41, 1947-48 and 1949-50.
Burlington Polar Cubs (1911-61)
Burlington hosts 610 residents and had a proud sports tradition that spanned over 60 years. Burlington played host to the basketball tournament known as the Burlington Invitational Tourney from 1929-57. The Polar Cubs took home IHSAA sectional titles in 1926-27 and 1942-43.
Mt. Ayr Ayrdales (1920-28; 1929-67)
What is an Ayrdale? A resident of Mt. Ayr located in Newton County. But the word can also be spelled Airedale, which is defined as the largest Terrier breed that comes from Great Britain. The Ayrdales carried a proud football tradition and captured three straight Kankakee Valley Conference titles from 1941-43.
Medaryville Black Horses (1912-67)
Situated in Pulaski County, the old basketball gym of the Black Horses still exists out of Medaryville American Legion. The program never won a sectional, but was chronicled in Lost Gyms by Kyle Neddenriep series as a gym left in poor shape. A reminder of the fragmented history that is stuck in time. Notable residents include actress Geneva Doris Mitchell, who performed in The Three Stooges.
Burnettsville Bees (1919-20; 1921-63)
We’ve heard of the Rossville Hornets and Rensselaer Bombers, but what about some honey? The Burnettsville Bees played in the Beehive Gym in White County, a gym that’s still in existence in town.
Mellott Derbies (1914-17; 1919-25; 1927-31; 1932-33; 1935-42)
Another school from the Hoosier yesteryear whose history is preserved at the Indiana High School Basketball Hall of Fame in New Castle. The Derbies from Fountain County’s mascot was a hat worn for horse races.
Michigantown Ganders (1913-14; 1916-59)
Was a high school team named after a gander described as a male goose? Or was it Ganders, a term of phrase once used to describe the townsfolk of Michigantown? Apparently both, according to the reporting of Gregg Doyel, with the goose supposedly wrapped in a diaper. For all its quirks, the Michigantown Ganders come packed with serious history with its Wilbur Rule Gym still in existence today as the Michigantown Community Center. Famed alumni of the school include Glynn Downey, a 1937 All-American at Purdue, and 3-star lieutenant general James F. Record.
Linden Bulldogs (1904-08; 1910-71)
The name Bulldogs is common for schools across the country, but the Linden Bulldogs were anything but that. Alumni Daryl Warren is the all-time leading scorer in Montgomery County history where he amassed 2,083 points, averaged 29.3 points, 16 rebounds, four assists and three steals per game before going onto have a college career at Indiana Central College (now University of Indianapolis). A book written by West Lafayette resident Thomas Speaker called The Last County Championship about the Linden Bulldogs and Montgomery County history can be bought here.
Klondike Nuggets (1926-70)
Klondike stood alone with West Lafayette and was home to the Nuggets. Klondike is now a middle school, but there’s a yearly school reunion of former teachers and classmates held every year, according to klondikealumni.com.
Monitor Commodores (1917-58)
Before there was McCutcheon and Harrison, the rival to Lafayette Jeff was Monitor. Monitor would lead an upset of the Bronchos in the 1943 boys basketball sectional. Lafayette Jeff would begin a run of capturing a record 29 sectional titles a season later.
Bowers Blackshirts (1915-55)
The Blackshirts of Bowers are another program in Montgomery County with a 42-year history that saw its program compete among the elite teams at the time. Bowers proudly won the County Championship in 1948 and captured its lone IHSAA sectional title in 1927.
Kirklin Travelers (1905-11; 1913-59)
The quirks of Clinton County include another famed nickname, the Travelers of Kirklin. Records from almanacsports.com indicate Kirklin won what was described as a “mythical state title” in football in 1914 with a record of 5-0-1 and 1921 going 6-0 during those years. It’s also a town known for music. Dennis Lafferty, Darrin Lafferty, Kenny Jobe and Kent Kercheval, members of The Travel-Aires quartet, were born in Kirklin. Also in existence is a distillery that sells bourbon called Traveler’s Point.
Monon Railroaders (1908-09; 1911-63)
Before its consolidation into North White High School, the Railroaders prided itself on having a football program that competed in the Kankakee Valley Conference from 1956-62.
Remington Rifles (1905-07; 1909-10; 1913-71)
Before Tri-County formed, there was the Remington Rifles, which carries a strong alumni following through its Facebook page. The Rifles won IHSAA sectional titles in 1942-43 and 1944-45. Famed residents include pitcher Frances Janssen, who played in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League from 1948-52 and attended Gilboa High School in Benton County.
New Market Purple Flyers (1909-11; 1913-21; 1922-71)
If there was ever an underdog in Montgomery County history, the Purple Flyers might have been the darlings of all. Indiana High School Basketball Hall of Fame 2002 inductee Earl Gardner played for the Minneapolis Lakers and won the 1949 Basketball Association of America title before joining the NBA. In high school, Montgomery County sports historian Bill Boone wrote New Market won the Crawfordsville sectional in 1967. The Purple Aces accomplished the feat despite winning just two games during the regular season. There was also the time New Market lost 40 straight games. The dubious streak finally ended in 1971, beating Ladoga 12-6, according to Journal Review writer Barry Lewis. The school merged into Southmont the following year.
West Point Cadets (1915-39; 1945-56)
West Point was consolidated into Southwestern High School after 1956 and molded with McCutcheon in years after. West Point captured IHSAA basketball titles in 1924-25, 1925-26 and 1928-29. The town is the burial site for famed WWE wrestler The Ultimate Warrior.
Colfax Hickories (1904-06; 1913-61)
Former Journal & Courier writer Dave Banghert wrote about the ‘small town with big dreams’ in 2017. Colfax captured its lone IHSAA basketball title in 1956-57 and won the Clinton County title in 1941.
Ethan Hanson was a sports reporter for the Journal & Courier in Lafayette.
NOTE: This story is part of a special “America 250” project on the history of Indiana high school basketball by journalists within USA Today Co. at the South Bend Tribune, Journal & Courier (Lafayette), The Star Press (Muncie), The Herald-Times (Bloomington) and The Courier & Press (Evansville). All stories will run on those respective sites between July 6-17, with select stories in printed copies of the paper as well.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: History of Lafayette pre-consolidation high school sports mascots
Reporting by Ethan Hanson, Lafayette Journal & Courier / Lafayette Journal & Courier
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Ethan Hanson, Lafayette Journal & Courier | USA TODAY Network
