This story begins with a hockey fan who simply wanted a T-shirt for the minor league team he grew up with. It culminates with a brand-new beer that has reawakened an entire community’s love affair with its long-defunct team. The New Haven Nighthawks played in the American Hockey League for
Category: The Story Behind the Nickname
Da-da-da-DAH-da-DAH! The Story Behind the San Diego Chargers
The NFL’s Chargers were born as members of the American Football League (AFL) in 1960. They played their first season in Los Angeles before moving to their current and longtime home in San Diego. The team has been in the news of late because they seem to be primed to
Snake, Rattle, and Roll: The Story Behind the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers
The origin story of the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers’ nickname is a short one. In the succinct words of Chris Mehring, the team’s director of media relations and radio announcer, it goes like this: “A timber rattler is a snake in northern Wisconsin. It’s indigenous to the area of northern Wisconsin.”
Honoring a Legend: The Story Behind the Kannapolis Intimidators
As with most baseball stadiums, Intimidators Stadium in Kannapolis, North Carolina, has a standings board that shows up-to-the-minute league results. The board at Intimidators Stadium, home of the South Atlantic League’s Single-A Kannapolis Intimidators, however, is a bit different from what you might find at most ballparks. “We’ve got a NASCAR Cup
It tells you who we are and where we are from: The Story Behind the Phillies
When Philadelphia’s National League baseball team took the field for its first-ever game on May 1, 1883 (a 4-3 loss to the Providence Grays), it was called the Phillies. More than 13 decades later, Philadelphia’s National League baseball team carries the same name. According to the team’s media guide, “the Phillies endure as
Fishy Train: The Story Behind the Altoona Curve
There’s a 2,375-foot stretch of railroad tracks in central Pennsylvania that spins trains 180 degrees in a hairpin turn on their way over and across the Allegheny mountains. The so-called Horseshoe Curve, built from 1851 to 1854, is the tightest train track turn in the country. It’s been traveled by presidents
The Horse He Rode In On: The Story Behind the Arkansas Travelers
There are two versions of the mid-1800s legend of a minstrel who gets lost in rural Arkansas and stumbles across a squatter playing a never-ending tune on a fiddle. The first is told by Arkansans themselves, and has its roots in a tale told by Colonel Sanford Faulkner, an important figure in the
The Perfect Union: The Story Behind the Winston-Salem Dash
I’ve discovered a lot of unique team name origins in the course of writing this Story Behind the Nickname series, but just when I had given up my dream of finding a team that combined two of my passions, baseball and punctuation, I stumble across the Winston-Salem Dash. The town of Salem in
Royal Treatment: The Humble Beginnings of KC’s Logo
In 1968, Shannon Manning was one of what he figures to be 500 to 600 artists working for Hallmark Cards, headquartered in Kansas City. The city had just been awarded a Major League Baseball franchise called the Royals, and the new team needed a logo. To that end, the Royals
All I Need is a (Fort Myers) Miracle: The Story Behind the Nickname
The logo for the Fort Myers Miracle, Class-A Advanced affiliate of the Minnesota Twins since 1992, portrays a peaceful, beachy scene that makes you want to kick your feet up an enjoy a drink with a pineapple wedge and a tiny umbrella in it. The scene, however, belies the team’s
Eskimos and Nordic Raiders: The Story Behind the Minnesota Vikings
On a recent episode of Dan Patrick Show, guest Josh Duhamel, noted actor, handsome person, and husband of the Black Eyed Peas’ Fergie, lamented that his Minnesota Vikings “get less press than any other team.” We here at SportsLogos.net are all about listening to the needs of the public, especially when that
The Ocean Blue? The Story Behind the Columbus Clippers
The city of Columbus, Ohio, is named in honor of the first European to set foot in North America, Norwegian explorer Leif Erikson. JUST KIDDING. We never talk about Leif Erikson because we don’t know exactly what date he first landed on coastal North America, so we can’t write catchy poems about