Old Coaly (1855 – January 1, 1893) was a

mule The mule is a domestic equine hybrid between a donkey and a horse. It is the offspring of a male donkey (a jack) and a female horse (a mare). The horse and the donkey are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes; of the two pos ...

who helped to build the original

Old Main Old Main is a term often applied to the original building present on college or university campuses in the United States. The building serves today as home to administrative offices, such as the president or provost, but in its early inception may ...

building on the campus of the

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvan ...

and gained fame as an early Penn State

mascot A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as fi ...

. Born in

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

in 1855, Coaly came to

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

in 1857 with his owner, Piersol Lytle, whose son Andy was among the workmen hired to construct Old Main. Coaly was used primarily to haul limestone blocks to the construction site from a quarry located on what is today a part of the Old Main lawn, near the intersection of College Avenue and Pugh Street. A plaque now marks the quarry's location. So great was their affection for Coaly that his bones were preserved and housed in various buildings throughout campus over the years. His skeleton was relocated to the first floor of the HUB–Robeson Center, to coincide with the

sesquicentennial An anniversary is the date on which an event took place or an institution was founded in a previous year, and may also refer to the commemoration or celebration of that event. The word was first used for Catholic feasts to commemorate saints. ...

celebration of the school in 2004. Several points of interest on campus have been named in honor of Old Coaly; There was an eatery in the HUB known as "Coaly's Cafe" until renovations on the building necessitated its closing between 2001 and 2002. Penn State's new baseball stadium,

Medlar Field at Lubrano Park Medlar Field at Lubrano Park is a 5,570-seat baseball stadium in University Park, Pennsylvania, that hosted its first regular season baseball game on June 20, 2006, when the State College Spikes lost to the Williamsport Crosscutters, 5–3. The Pe ...

, features a food concession called "Coaly's Corner". There is also an honorary society for College of Agricultural Sciences students at Penn State named "The Coaly Society".

External links

"Old Coaly" history and photos
official PSU website
"Penn State honors legend for sesquicentennial"
''The Daily Collegian'', September 10, 2004

Penn State University College of Agricultural Sciences

Former college mascots in the United States Individual mules Pennsylvania State University 1893 animal deaths 1855 animal births Individual animals in the United States History of Pennsylvania {{mascot-stub