I had a question recently from an alum about the college’s mascot – specifically, could I share some pictures of different mascots through the years.
According to some research undertaken by my predecessor, Herbert Hucks, the first time the college’s teams were called the “Terriers” in print was in a November 1914 article in the Wofford College Journal. In 1909, an image of a small dog appeared in the Bohemian in a cartoon on the gymnasium team’s yearbook page.
The 1911 and 1912 Bohemians also featured more elaborate drawings of dogs that appear to be terriers, and the 1912 volume identifies the dog as “our mascot.”
It’s not easy to find a lot of images of the mascot until after World War II. This image appears to be common from the late 1940s to the early 1970s. It was in a 1965 Old Gold and Black.
Several different types of terrier show up in various publications, Terrier Club newsletters, and the like in the 1970s to the 1990s. Here are a few:
In looking over the various images the college has used, I also found photos and stories about several specific mascots – dogs named Jocko, Baron Ben, Spike, and Blitz, among others. I'll work on something about those in the future.