A cornjerker is a laborer who harvested crops in times before modern machinery, when corn ears were picked, pulled or jerked from the stalk.
The leaves were shucked off and the golden ears were thrown in a wooden wagon pulled by a team of mules.
By using modern machines, a farmer is capable of tending larger fields, thus producing more food with less effort.
This walking ear of corn was created by coach and athletic director at that time, Dick Hobbs.
Later, with the addition of nearby towns Cheneyville, East Lynn, Wellington and Rankin, the name was changed to its current form, "Hoopeston Area".