New Year, New Mascot

by Susan Zehnder, Director of Education 

February already, it seems the year just started. Regardless, it’s still a great time of year to reflect on new things. While new resolutions, new diets and new ideas abound, here, with a change of the educational baton at the Chemung County Historical Society, the new season of school and outreach programs has kicked off. For us, it’s a chance to encourage young historians from all over the county to learn more about our museum and the stories inside. When I recently asked a kindergarten class what’s inside a history museum, I was delighted to hear the reply, “everything!” And, cheering us on is our trusty and beloved museum ambassador Mark the Mammoth already known on Facebook and Twitter for his quirky antics. 

Our mammoth loosely represents the Big Horn Mammoth tusk or horn discovered in the Chemung River similar to the one prominently displayed in our main gallery. It is the confessed current favorite museum artifact of our own Director Bruce Whitmarsh, and is our mascot of mirth. Seems to fit, as Mark gets his name from another important Mark associated with Chemung County.

Speaking of mascots, did you know at the end of last year a new museum in Whiting, Indiana opened as The Mascot Hall of Fame? Looking up the dictionary definition for mascot, I find they are supposed to bring good luck! So here are a few other local lucky mascots they might consider:

First, we have the Elmira Pioneers in 1936 posing here as 2^nd half champions.  Note their mascot was youngster H. Arnold, who probably doubled as their bat boy. He looks pretty pleased with his role, I’m just wondering what happened to the first half champions?

Likewise, many local homeowners may have considered the LaFrance Fire Engine’s Dalmatian mascot especially lucky when they needed help. 

Our museum collection also houses a few other examples of local mascots. For example, we’ve got a bumper sticker from the Southside Green Hornets,

 and an image of Elmira Free Academy’s Blue Devil mascot.

EFA is proud of notable alumni like Hal Roach (1908), Ernie Davis (1958), Bob DeLaney (1942), Tommy Hilfiger (1970), and Eileen Collins (1974). Today, known as the Ernie Davis Academy and serving grades 8-9, their mascot remains a blue devil, but they identify as the Elmira Express, a nickname given to the legendary Heisman winning Ernie Davis, a player noted for his exceptional speed.

Over the years, mascots change. Today, our local Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League Elmira Pioneers use an image of a fierce pioneer as their logo but their mascot Stitches is the one who cavorts with the crowd to bring the team luck.

   (photo supplied by Elmira Pioneers)

And the new Federal Hockey League Franchise, The Enforcers have their version too. While their logo shows a burly police officer, their good luck charm may be their mascot Captain K-9.

  (photo supplied by Elmira Enforcers)

Like all the other mascots, he  shows up at games to engage the audience, and charm the crowd. He is a dog who accompanies the Enforcers ice hockey team at home and away games, strutting his stuff.

Our own icy mascot has changed too. Here at the Chemung County Historical Society, we’ve kicked off our new year introducing a new version of our mascot on Twitter and Facebook and now Instagram. He’s a smaller, leaner dude with just the right attitude.

 Already out visiting school classrooms, fairs, and even posting some of his exploits (with help), we’re finding he’s a good match for February’s cold and ice.  

Follow our icy @MarktheMammoth on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and our wish that he brings you good luck too!

Interview with the Mammoth

By Kelli Huggins, Education Coordinator

Have you met our sixth staff member yet? The small, fuzzy, prehistoric, supposed-to-be-extinct one? I’m talking about our museum mascot, Mark the Mammoth. You can often see him at the museum or check out his exploits on his Twitter page: https://twitter.com/MarktheMammoth

Mark the Mammoth, the star of the show

While the human staff here at the museum like to think we’re cool (despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary), we’ve got nothing on Mark. Mark has an international fan base. He helps us spread the word about Chemung County history near and far. He has been featured in articles and conference presentations, starred in music videos, has participated in an international mammoth exchange, and more. From his Twitter account, he shares items from the museum’s collections, glimpses into daily life at the museum, and some extinction humor thrown in for good measure.

Mark with his pal Mortimer the Mammoth of the Hull Museums on Mark's international mammoth exchange to Hull, England. There are multiple mammoths and mastodons on Twitter.

At the risk of increasing his already over-inflated ego, I’ve asked Mark to take some time from his busy schedule to sit down for this interview.

The staff competes in an annual Mark the Mammoth Halloween costume contest. This is curator Erin's 2014 Marie Antoinette masterpiece (which wasn't even the winner that year!).

Kelli: Thanks for agreeing to this interview Mark. I know that you have a pretty packed Tweeting schedule to attend to.

Mark: Thanks for the invitation.

K: Let’s start with the basics. Why are you here as the mascot of the Chemung County Historical Society?

M: Over 10,000 years ago, my kind roamed this area. Of course, there weren’t any of you humans here and things were a lot icier, but this has long been my home. Then extinction happened. As we died off, our bones fossilized and were found thousands of years later by some rather confused humans. This area was named “Chemung,” meaning “land of the big horn.” We’d call them tusks now, but horn works, I guess. Most of our visitors don’t realize this county is named after mammoths. I blow a lot of minds with that fact.

K: Your Twitter bio says that you “beat extinction.” Could you describe that process?

M: The scientists are still examining how that happened. Basically, I somehow shrunk down, allowing my body to survive on far fewer resources than a full-sized mammoth. People think I’m a stuffed animal, but they are mistaken. I am an actual, miniature mammoth. A modern scientific marvel, if I do say so myself.

K: That is certainly fascinating. I see that you are named after important local figure, Mark Twain.

M: Since I’m thousands of years older than him, I prefer to think that he was named after me.

K: Ok, sure. What do you see as your main role at the museum?

M: I like to think that I put a friendly, approachable face on the museum. Even though I know that my human colleagues aren’t scary and intimidating (most of the time), I know that a lot of people feel that museums aren’t for them or that they wouldn’t be welcome. We want everyone, of all ages, to feel like they are welcome to come visit us. Who wouldn’t feel welcomed looking at my adorable, fuzzy face? And for people around the world, my Twitter account is a way to spread the word about our fascinating local history to people who probably will never get a chance to visit Chemung County.

K: You are pretty adorable. Is there anything you would like to do more of at the museum?

M: I’d like to do more educational programming about mammoths and mastodons here in our local history. We already do some, and I might be biased, but I think we could do more! Our mammoth tusk is the literal centerpiece of our Bank Gallery and it’s definitely something that wows our visitors. 

Our "big horn"

K: Thank you for your time, Mark. Is there anything else you’d like to share before we go?

M: Just that people should check out my Twitter account. You can see what I’m posting even if you don’t have an account yourself. Find it here: https://twitter.com/MarktheMammoth. There are also lots of other fantastic museum mascots out there to follow. Just ask me if you want recommendations!