In 1961, Kent State grounds superintendent Larry Wooddell and Biff Staples of Davey Tree released ten cages of black squirrels obtained from Victoria Park in London, Ontario, Canada, to the Kent State campus. By 1964 their estimated population was around 150 and today they have spread in and around Kent and have become unofficial mascots of both the city and university. Since 1981, the annual Black Squirrel Festival is held every fall on the KSU campus.
