Greyfriar's Bobby

One of the most famous sights in Edinburgh is the statue of Greyfriar’s Bobby, a Skye terrier that lived in Edinburgh during the late-19th century. Millions of tourists from around the world visit the statue each year and books and movies have portrayed versions of the true story of the little dog with a lot of heart. When I was little, I read the story of Greyfriar’s Bobby in a book and I have never forgotten about the little black terrier. It is such a sweet story that I wanted to share it with you.

Bobby was owned by a policeman, John Gray, who died in 1858. For 14 years after his master’s death, the little dog laid on his grave in the Greyfriar’s Kirkyard. Initially, the church groundskeeper tried to deter Bobby, but touched by his loyalty and determination, the groundskeeper allowed the dog to stay in the cemetery and even fashioned a shelter under two stone benches. Bobby would leave only for food given to him at a nearby restaurant and on very cold nights he was taken in by kind residents. Famous in his time, people would stand at the gates to watch Bobby leave and return at mealtime. To protect Bobby, the Lord Provost of Edinburgh Council paid the dog’s licensing fees so he would not be considered a stray and gave him a brass identification collar.

When Bobby died in 1872, he was buried near the gates of the church (he could not be buried with his master because the cemetery was consecrated ground) and a monument was erected near the Kirkyard gates. It features a granite fountain topped by a statue of Bobby which was sculpted a few years before he died. Later, the humane society erected a stone for Bobby at the entrance of the churchyard with the inscription “Let his loyalty and devotion be a lesson to us all.”