Benny Beaver

Benny Beaver
Benny with Oregon State Marching Band director Brad Townsend
University	Oregon State University
Conference	Pac-12
Description	Beaver: Aquatic mammal
First seen	1942
Related mascot(s)	Bernice Beaver
Official website	http://oregonstate.edu/

Benny Beaver is the official mascot of Oregon State University and current winner of the 2011 Capital One Mascot of the Year write-in campaign. The exact date of when the name was first used as the university's mascot is not known, but photographs in the school's yearbook document its use as early as the 1940s.

Mascot history

The current Benny Beaver logo.

The university's yearbook staff was the first known organization on campus to adopt the beaver as its namesake and did so in 1915. The yearbook's long use of the name eventually helped solidify the beaver as the university's official mascot. The popularity of the beaver was also shared by students at University of Oregon. For several early publishings, students at this school also used "The Beaver" as their yearbook's title. Oregon State University's first documented use of "Benny Beaver" was found in a photograph showing students posing next to a statue of a beaver inscribed with the name "Benny Beaver." This photograph appears in the 1942 edition of the yearbook. Although this is the university's first documented use of a beaver as the school mascot, there is considerable debate as to when it was actually first used. Alumni from the early 20th century have claimed the school used the Beaver as a mascot as early as 1910. However, no known documentation exists.

Early, "smiling" Benny Beaver logo (1951-1999)

BASKETBALL ATTIRE: Benny Beaver at a home game in Gill Coliseum.

Prior to the beaver, Oregon State's mascot was an individual known as John Richard Newton Bell (1893–1928). A longtime member of the university's board of regents, Bell became hugely popular among the students for his ritual of marching to the Marys River after each of Oregon State's Civil War victories. He was said to have tossed his top hat into the water as a token of celebration. Earlier mascots include "Jimmie" the Coyote (1892–1893), the "Aggies," and "Bulldog" (1906–1910, unofficial and for specific teams only, such as the Wrestling squad). The beaver mascot's name, "Benny," was officially adopted in 1945. Two failed attempts to maintain a live beaver mascot include Billy Beaver (stolen) and Beavo Beaver (fell ill and died). Although Oregon State did not adopt Benny until much later, many yearbooks and athletic programs in the OSU Archives refer to the athletic teams as the "Beavers," albeit in an unofficial capacity.

The early Benny Beaver "cartoon" icon/logo was created by famous graphic illustrator, and former Disney employee, Arthur C. Evans. As the art director for Angelus Pacific Company, Evans submitted his design to OSU and it was approved for use in 1951. His logos were used at hundreds of other universities and high schools throughout the nation. Evans' beaver logo also appeared in the 1985 movie "Teen Wolf."

The first appearance of the beaver mascot, in costume and during an athletic event, was performed by Ken Austin on September 18, 1952 . Austin later founded Newberg, Oregon-based A-dec, the largest privately-held dental equipment manufacturer in North America. Austin is also a major Oregon State donor.

Between the early 1980s and mid-1990s, Benny was often joined at sporting events by a co-mascot, known as "Bernice Beaver."

In 2001 the Benny Beaver costume changed to match the new logo, but was not well accepted by younger fans. In 2005 the mascot costume was changed to a more family-friendly version. This is the version in use today (2007). Benny wears #0 at football games and #6 at basketball games.

In December of 2010, Benny Beaver was ranked 13th on a list titled 20 Worst Behaved Mascots Of All Time, in part due to an incidence, caught on film, of Benny fighting with the Oregon Duck mascot, who was ranked #1 on this list. However, Benny Beaver won the 2011 Capital One Mascot of the Year write-in campaign. The win earns him $1,000 toward OSU’s Mascot Program and inclusion on the 2011 Capital One All-America Mascot Team.

Historical connection

The school's use of the beaver as a mascot is closely linked to Oregon's prominence in the early American fur trade. During the first half of the 19th century, the Oregon Territory was internationally renowned for beaver trapping.

President Lincoln wearing his iconic Beaver top hat. Beaver hats were very popular across Europe and North America during the first half of the 1800s.

Much like the gold rush during this same period, trappers trekked from around the globe to make their fortune in the territory's lucrative fur trade. Researchers at the Oregon Historical Society describe the fur as an important economic commodity. "Beaver pelts acquired from European colonies and American territories were sent mostly to London and Paris, where they were sold at large auctions primarily to hat-makers."

The British owned Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), a leading fur trader, constructed a number of large forts/trading posts in the vast Oregon Territory to profit, specifically, from the beaver trade.

The reverse side of Oregon's state flag features a beaver as the state symbol.

The HBC's Columbia District was headquartered at Fort Vancouver. The presence of the HBC in the Oregon Territory played a key role in bringing early commerce and civil laws to the Northwest. Notable district HBC supervisor and Oregon historical figure, John McLoughlin, was credited with helping to make the company's beaver trade highly profitable during this early territorial period.

By the 1830s, beaver furs were viewed by both British and American Governments as a highly valuable international commodity and the two competing interests laid claim to Oregon's vast territory. In 1847, the British Government conceded ownership to America with the signing of the Oregon Treaty.

Once Oregon acquired statehood in 1859, the beaver continued as the symbol of the state and was later adopted as Oregon's official animal in 1969. Oregon is still popularly known as "the Beaver State" and utilizes the beaver as a state symbol.

The beaver's central role in early Oregon history led students at OSU to adopt the semi-aquatic mammal as the university's mascot.

Current design

The mascot logo has seen several alterations since its inception. It was last redesigned in 2000 by Morrow Creative Group of Portland, Oregon. The new version (shown top left) was officially adopted by the university in 2001 and often referred to by fans as the "Angry Beaver." The make-over came about, in part, due a long desire by the company's CEO Michael Morrow to update the look, coupled with the university's successful fund raising campaign to expand the university's football stadium (Reser Stadium) in 1999 and 2000.

Other universities and colleges with a beaver mascot

• Babson College -Wellesley, Massachusetts
• Bemidji State University -Bemidji, Minnesota
• Blackburn College -Carlinville, Illinois
• Bluffton College -Bluffton, Ohio
• Buena Vista University -Storm Lake, Iowa
• California Institute of Technology (Caltec) -Pasadena, California
• Champlain College -Burlington, Vermont
• City College of New York -New York, New York
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) -Cambridge, Massachusetts
• Minot State University -Minot, North Dakota
• University of Maine at Farmington -Farmington, Maine
• University of Toronto -Toronto, Ontario, Canada