THE ORIGIN OF THE SEAHAWK NAME

In response to inquiries from older alumni as to the origin of the nickname "Seahawks," the Link herewith tells the story as we got it from Ronald Reynier, originator of the name. The name grew out of a student body competition in the fall of 1947. It was felt that the nicknames often in use, "The Green Wave" and "The Hilltoppers," were not sufficiently distinctive. Reynier was the winner of the contest with his suggestion of "Seahawk." He tells us, first of all, that there is no such bird as a Seahawk. The origin of the name dates back to the time of the great Spanish Main. A small band of English pirates, who operated in the Caribbean Sea and attacked the large ships of the Spanish, were given the nickname of Seahawks. Taking Wagner's location, looking out over the sea, and the small school playing many large schools in sports, it seemed that Wagner had a close analogy to the original Seahawks. The name was submitted. The student body did the rest.