Wyoming is one of three U.S. states to have adopted bison as their state mammal, and Wyoming’s state flag prominently features the animal. The state is also home to much of Yellowstone National Park, where bison—after a brush with species-wide extinction in the late 1800s—are plentiful.
So it makes sense that one of the inaugural teams in the newly formed collegiate summer level Independence League adopted the animal as the centerpiece of its brand. The Gem City Bison unveiled their new look this week on social media, with a logo featuring a long-maned bison leaning on a baseball bat and tossing a ball in the air.
The geographic signifier “Gem City” comes from Laramie’s nickname, which it earned by being the place where Thomas Edison, on a fly-fishing trip, came up with the idea of the filament light bulb, and by being home to the first electrical plant in the Rocky Mountains. Per the website Laramie Live, “Laramie lit up the night sky like a gem, earning the nick name, ‘Gem City of the Plains.’”
The team will play at Cowboy Field at the University of Wyoming, which, not coincidentally, uses the same brown and yellow color palette that the Bison do. The Independence League begins play May 24.
