By Tom Nader

Publisher and Editor

Ever wonder the story behind your school’s nickname?

The history and story that goes with it?

Here are the interesting tales of how they all came to be.

AURORA

Nickname: Greenmen

The History: The origin of the nickname “Greenmen” actually is connected to the Cleveland Browns. Aurora High School was established in 1897 and the earliest nickname documented was the “Irish.” However, during the late 1940’s, Aurora’s community had many members connected to the Browns, who gave Aurora permission to use the original “Brownie” elf logo.

The school colors had always been green so it was voted for the school to use the nickname “Greenies.”

Over time, the nickname was not overly supported by community members and some time around the early 1960’s, the nickname was voted to be changed to the “Greenmen.”

CRESTWOOD

Nickname: Red Devils

The History: Crestwood formed in 1950 as the consolidation of Mantua and Shalersville — and then eventually Hiram consolidated into Crestwood as well in 1964.

The school was known as Mantua-Shalersville High School from 1951-56.

Prior to that merger, Mantua Village (1893 first class) and Mantua Center or Mantua Township (1914) high schools combined in 1948.

The first high school class at Shalersville dates back to 1904 and the first at Hiram High School was in 1903.

OK, now as for the Red Devils nickname, that is connected to Mantua Village. Historically, the Red Devils is a nickname that dates back to at least 1946. And amongst all of the consolidations and mergers, the Red Devils nickname was carried to Crestwood.

FIELD

Nickname: Falcons

The History: Field High School, in reality, is a continuation of Suffield High School since Brimfield Township never had its own high school. Field High School was established in 1961 and prior to it, Suffield High School’s athletic teams were known as the Big Red.

The name carried over, along with the school colors of white and red, and adopted by Field High School at its inception.

The black school color was added in later.

Field transitioned to the Big Red Falcons, then made the permanent change to Falcons in 1975.

Prior to Field High School being formed, Brimfield Township residents would either attend Kent State High School or Kent Roosevelt High School.

GARFIELD

Nickname: G-Men

The History: Criminal Alvin Karpis led a high-stakes train robbery in 1935 in Garrettsville. An investigation into the $30,000 heist brought in federal government officers into town, known as G-Men. The investigation led to Karpis being convicted on multiple counts, including kidnapping, robbery, burglary and murder during a lifetime of criminal activity. James A. Garfield High School, which is named after the United States’ 20th President (six-month term in 1881 before dying two months after he was shot by an assassin), was formed in 1951 through the school mergers of Nelson Township, Freedom Township and Garrettsville.

KENT ROOSEVELT

Nickname: Rough Riders

The History: Another Portage County school that is named after a United States President. The school’s official name is Theodore Roosevelt High School, named in honor of 26th U.S. President Teddy Roosevelt, who served two terms from 1901 to 1909.

Roosevelt also had a direct influence on the school nickname. The “Rough Riders” was a nickname given to the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry — one of three regiments created in 1898 for the Spanish-American War. The 1st Division was the only cavalry to see combat when Roosevelt led them up San Juan Hill in Cuba.

The “Rough Riders” nickname, however, was not used until some time in the latter half of the 1930’s, which was well after the school was named Roosevelt in 1922.

Publications in the 1920’s reference the school’s athletic teams as the Roosters.

The school colors were originally just red and white and black was added as part of the colorweay in the 1980’s.

RAVENNA

Nickname: Ravens

The History: Ravenna Township High School and Ravenna City High School merged in 1960 to form modern-day Ravenna High School. Prior to the merger, the Ravenna Township athletic teams were known as the Bulldogs. At the time of the merger, the districts agreed to keep the city high school’s nickname of the Ravens, but adopted the township school’s colors of blue and white. The district’s red school color was added later. Ravenna City High School’s colors had been maroon and blue.

The Portage County Historical Society had previously identified the first reference of the nickname “Ravens” in a cheer that was published in the 1930-31 Ravenna High School Handbook.

It is largely believed, but not documented, that the “Ravens” nicknamed was selected simply because of its relativity to the city’s name.

ROOTSTOWN

Nickname: Rovers

The History: Many people have asked, “What is a Rover?”

In the history of Rootstown High School, the nickname has taken two different meanings.

Initially, it was a friendly collie dog that served as the school mascot. That changed in 1959-60 when an editorial authored by Richard Howell in the school paper “The Dog Gone” was published to try to influence a name change. The name of the paper was even a play on words with the hope of trying to remove the collie as the school’s mascot.

Howell cited a class lecture by Robert Dunn that Vikings or Norsemen were Rovers, and Howell went on to suggest an interpretation change to a “rover of the seas.” The new nickname and a new viking ship logo officially changed for the 1962-63 school year.

The original viking ship logo was selected as part of a student design competition and there is a myth that the winner was selected after tracing a ship out of a National Geographic — instead of it being a genuine drawing.

SOUTHEAST

Nickname: Pirates

The History: Southeast High School was established in 1950 and was the creation of five township schools consolidating into one school: Deerfield (first high school opened in 1895), Edinburg (1905), Paris (1912), Charlestown (1915) and Palmyra (1917). Initially, Southeast High School was not known specifically as Southeast.

It was first listed in publications as the “new school in the southeast district of Portage County.” Eventually, the student body led predominantly by its senior class, voted to simply name the school Southeast. The first graduating class had 65 students.

Students also voted “Pirates” as the school nickname, according to Joe Kainrad, who was a member of the school’s first-ever graduating class. It was at the same time, with the same vote, that the school colors were selected as maroon and gold, which were selected over black and white.

STREETSBORO

Nickname: Rockets

The History: Streetsboro High School was first founded in 1902, but then closed in 1950 before being reestablished in 1962. For the 12-year void, students either attended Aurora High School or Kent Roosevelt High School. The school’s nickname is believed to be the creation of a large rocket structure that was erected outside Rev. Mel Grubaugh’s Baptist church that sat behind what is now Giant Eagle.

The rocket was a visual identifier, and at a time before technological advances, when people would question where Streetsboro was, people would commonly answer, “the home of the rocket.”

WATERLOO

Nickname: Vikings

The History: A unanimous school-board vote one Sept. 16, 1965, officially approved the merger of Randolph High School and Atwater High School. Before the merger, however, the athletic teams in Atwater were known as the Spartans and the school colors were orange and black. The teams in Randolph were known as the Tigers and the school colors were black and yellow. At the time of the merger, the two schools totaled for 461 students to form Waterloo High School.

Retired Hall of Fame basketball coach John Herchek was a freshman in 1965 and tells the story of the student councils from Atwater and Randolph met several times in 1964 to discuss the school name, nickname and colors.

The name Waterloo was chosen because of the commonality between the two schools, with Waterloo Road serving as a main roadway to connect Akron and Youngston before the “new 224” had been created and also before the 76 exchange in Rootstown had been put in place. The student councils also were adamant the new school’s colors would not be anything that resembled their former schools, which led them to select burgundy and white.

The nickname Vikings emerged because of the word “water” being part of Waterloo.

WINDHAM

Nickname: Bombers

The History: Many naturally attempt to link the nickname to the Ravenna Arsenal, which appropriated half of Windham Township. However, the government did not begin purchasing the land for it until 1940 — and respected and thorough Windham historian George Belden has documentation of the “Bombers” nickname being used pre-1940.

For starters, Windham’s athletic teams were recognized as the Yellowjackets from 1928 to 1939.

The first reference to “Bombers” came in a newspaper article published in the Record-Courier by sportswriter Oliver Wolcott, who, Belden believes, likely used the name as a reference because of the outstanding passing efforts of sophomore quarterback Bob Turner. From that point forward, the Bombers have been the Bombers.