Origin of the Hokie bird and other V.T. tales

Zann Miner / Culpeper Star Exponent
Published: April 25, 2007

Virginia Tech has been the school of choice for hundreds of thousands of students for the past 135 years. In light of the tragedies of April 16, perhaps it is an appropriate time to reflect on the founding of this land-grant school and some of its better-known traditions.

In the throes of the recent chaos and turmoil, I researched the history of Virginia Tech to find some sort of positive grounding. For me it was very therapeutic.

I had heard the phrase land-grant college for many years but was challenged to explain to anyone what it meant, until last week.
The Morrill Land Grant Act was first introduced in 1857 by Congressman Justin Morrill of Vermont and was ultimately signed into law by President Lincoln in 1862.The premise of the bill was to provide higher education in the trades to working-class citizens, particularly in the fields of agriculture and mechanics.

Each state was allocated 30,000 acres of federal land for each of its Congressmen and U.S. Senators. The land could be utilized or sold and the money appropriated to the state for the establishment and maintenance of the college. The program was extended to all existing states and those that would be formed in the future.

States could use the funds for a single integrated school or if segregated, a separate land-grant institution for persons of color was required. In 1864 Virginia voted to participate in the program and received $300,000.

Dubbed the "War of the Colleges" a six-year debate (1866-1872) ensued regarding application of funds to a new school or an existing one and whether or not to establish a second school. In March of 1872, the General Assembly had made its decision: the funds would be allocated to the existing schools of Hampton Institute for black students and Preston and Olin Institute for whites.

The land—grant status of Hampton Institute was transferred to Virginia State College in 1920. My research of the early alumni for Hampton Institute continues and will be reported at a later date.

Let's get back to how Preston and Olin Institute, a Methodist college located in Blacksburg and founded in 1851, became our beloved Virginia Tech.

Financially strapped for years P and O was willing to change its name and charter to comply with the requirements of the Morrill Act and the good citizens of Blacksburg pledged a $20,000 match. It was a marriage made in heaven and on March 19, 1872 the Virginia Agriculture and Mechanical College was established.

The enrollment in 1872-73 was 152 and the first graduating class in 1875 offered a three-year diploma to 12 young men. In 1874, George P. Major, the first student from Culpeper, was in attendance joined the following year by C. Edward Wager.

In 1896 the name was changed to Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College and Polytechnic Institute shortened informally to Virginia Polytechnic Institute (VPI). That year the VPI motto was adopted: "Ut Prosim" ("That I May Serve") and the school colors of maroon and orange were selected for the simple reason that they were not in use by any other college.

The origin of the term "Hokie" and the choice of a turkey as the school mascot are is a fun tale.

In 1896 with the new name came a contest for a new school cheer. O.M. Stull won the prize of $5 with the following "spirit yell." Little did he know how much spirit and loyalty it would come to evoke.

Hoki, Hoki, Hoki, Hy.
Techs, Techs, V.P.I.
Sola-Rex, Sola-Rah.
Polytechs - Vir-gin-ia.
Rae, Ri, V.P.I.

"Hokie" and turkeys initially had nothing in common. The origin of the term "Gobblers" varies from an early 1900s description of how student athletes would "gobble" up their more than ample servings of food to a 1913 introduction of a live turkey trained to gobble on command and paraded at athletic events as the school mascot.

The "Gobbler " image began to lose favor in the 1970s and morphed into an aberration known today as the HokieBird.

Since 1970 VT has been officially known as Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and has evolved to become an exemplary world-class university drawing more than 25,000 students from around the world to a 2,600-acre campus.

This is only a sampling of VT's extensive heritage. For more info go to any one of the following sites or just stop a "Hokie." Until next week.
http://www.vt.edu ; http://spec.lib.vt.edu/archives/125th/timeline.htm ; http://spec.lib.vt.edu/archives/125th/kinnear/kinnear.htm

Zann Miner, former director of the Museum of Culpeper History, can be reached at . Check out her history blog at StarExponent.com.