The controversy over South Carolina flying the Confederate flag atop government buildings ignited a national debate over the image’s use — including right here in Southern Nevada at UNLV. A quick history on the Confederate connection:
Is Hey Reb! a Confederate soldier? No. UNLV’s News Center reports that Hey Reb! is a Western mountain man. In 1982 UNLV purchased local artist Mike Miller’s concept of the mascot, envisioned as a frontiersman like the men many Downtown streets are named for (think: John C. Fremont and Kit Carson).
Did UNLV ever have a Confederate-themed mascot? Yes. According to the News Center, UNLV’s first mascot was a wolf named Beauregard dressed in a Confederate uniform. Students voted to do away with the mascot in the ’70s, after black athletes voiced concerns, according to unlvrebels.com. As for Beau, he can still be found at the Barrick Museum, where he was painted center-court when the building still housed the university gymnasium.
Was there ever a Confederate flag on UNLV’s student newspaper, The Rebel Yell? Yes. The paper did away with it in 1962.
Why the Civil War connection in the first place? UNLV began as Nevada Southern University, a branch of Nevada (Reno). The school was said to have “rebelled” by going south—hence the parallels between the Union North and Confederate South.
