Tommies Primary Logo

Since its inception in 1885, St. Thomas University has proudly sported the Tommies as its mascot and logo. This iconic symbol has been used for over a century to represent the school’s spirit and pride on athletic fields across Minnesota. With such an important role in university history, it is no surprise that the Tommies have seen several iterations over time - each representing a unique part of St. Thomas' story and its ever-evolving identity as an institution of higher learning.

The earliest version of the primary logo was created for use by both athletics teams and other departments at St. Thomas during World War II, featuring black lettering against a white background with two crossed swords underneath (symbolizing courage). This design remained unchanged until 1977, when it was updated to include red accents around the swords – giving them greater prominence within the overall image - while still keeping true to its original form factor from nearly four decades before!

In 1985, after much research into various historical sources related to university insignias throughout Europe (especially those found on coats-of-arms), designers decided to incorporate elements inspired by medieval heraldry into what would become known today as “the modern-day” Tommie Logo: A shield shape containing three golden stars above two crossed swords below which reads “StThomasU MN” – all set atop blue waves representing Lake Como where our beloved campus resides!

This classic look continued through 2019 when slight alterations were made, including replacing some colors with brighter hues like yellow instead of gold or orange rather than red, plus adding subtle details such as embossed edges around specific shapes inside, making them stand out even more prominently against their backgrounds, etc… All these changes serve not only aesthetically pleasing purposes but also help keep up appearances so that our beloved emblem remains recognizable amongst fans regardless if they are cheering us on from afar or right here at home games!