source: Flying Queens Museum
Have you ever thought about the stories behind sports team’s names? The name of the women’s basketball team Flying Queens has a particularly interesting history. In their early days, the team went by the name “Wayland Harvest Queens”, a nod to a local grain elevator that was among their initial sponsors.
In 1951, Dr. James W. “Bill” Marshall, the president of Wayland at that time, approached Claude Hutcherson, a local entrepreneur who owned Hutcherson Air Services. Dr. Marshall asked for Hutcherson’s assistance in flying the team to an out-of-town game to spare the players from fatigue after long car rides. Hutcherson agreed, piloting the team to their games alongside a few other aviators. While on the journey, Dr. Marshall suggested that Hutcherson sponsor the team, and Claude Hutcherson agreed to do so.
In honor of their new sponsors, the Harvest Queens underwent a name change, becoming the Hutcherson Flying Queens. The team flew to their away games in the Hutcherson airplanes. Using the planes to travel became so iconic and a part of the team’s identity that the planes became the logo for the Hutcherson Flying Queens. The plane was showcased on everything Hutcherson Flying Queens related, including memorabilia (like this patch) that were given to new players when they joined the team. This specific patch was donated to the Flying Queens Museum by Judy Wallek Stridde.
Today, the Wayland Flying Queens no longer fly (https://www.flyingqueensfoundation.com/off the court), but they still honor their previous sponsors with their name. If you want to know more about Flying Queens’ history, you can check out the Hutcherson Flying Queens Foundation website (https://www.flyingqueensfoundation.com/) or visit the Flying Queens Museum in Plainview, Texas. The museum is located in the Mabee Regional Heritage Center on the Wayland Baptist University campus, where the enduring legacy of the Flying Queens lives on.