Historical Perspective to The Lion Mascot
The Christian Work and the Evangelist, July 23, 1910, Volume 89, Page 122
Columbia's Lion Mascot.
Columbia University announces that it has added a new member to the intercollegiate menagerie, which numbers among its inmates the bulldog of Yale, the tiger of Princeton, the bear of Brown, the badger of Wisconsin and sundry other beasts.
The lion was, a short time ago, officially adopted as the Columbia mascot at a meeting of the alumni, and a large blue and white banner bearing on its surface a lion rampant and the motto "Leo Col big" was presented to the alumni. George B. Compton. 1909, made the presentation speech.
The lion is said to be a delayed legacy of the days when Columbia was Kings College and the lion of England was on friendly terms with the inhabitants of old New York. The choice is a fitting one, and there is no doubt that Columbia's sons will keep the lion from forgetting how to roar.
