Sammy the Owl - Rice University, Houston, TX
Posted by: 
WalksfarTX
N 29° 43.099 W 095° 24.066
15R E 267733 N 3289987
Bronze Owl near the Rice Memorial Center
Waymark Code: WMP8T0
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 07/21/2015
Views: 4
From Rice University Website: "When athletic activities began at the Rice Institute in 1912, the teams adopted as their mascot the owl from the Rice seal. Over the years, Rice's various mascots have included students dressed in owl costumes, live Great Horned Owls, and large owl statues of fiberglass and of canvas, the latter being particularly famous in Rice lore (see below)."
"An early symbol of Rice's athletic teams was a large canvas owl, a tempting target for the Institute's rivals. In 1917, when students from Southwest Conference football rival Texas A&M kidnapped the owl, Rice students pooled their resources and hired a private detective to go to College Station to find the missing mascot. When the detective, having recovered the owl, sent a coded telegram to Houston that read 'Sammy is fairly well and would like to see his parents at eleven o'clock.' the Rice mascot had a name."
This bronze barn owl was a gift to the University by Mr. and Mrs. Ralph S. O'Connor.
School name: Rice University
Artist: Geoffrey Dashwood
Year Created/Dedicated: 2009
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