 Although known in their early days as " the Throstles " , the club 's more popular nickname among supporters came to be the Baggies , a term which the club itself looked down upon for many years but later embraced . The phrase was first heard at the Hawthorns in the 1900s , but its exact origins are uncertain . One suggestion is that the name was bestowed on Albion supporters by their rivals at Aston Villa , because of the large baggy trousers that many Albion fans wore at work to protect themselves from molten iron in the factories and foundries of the Black Country . Club historian Tony Matthews however suggests that it derives from the " bagmen " , who carried the club 's matchday takings in big leather bags from the turnstiles to the cash office on the halfway line . Other theories relate to the baggy shorts worn by various players during the club 's early years . The official club mascots are named Baggie Bird and Albi ; both are based on the throstle depicted on the club crest . 
