The memories of our loyal pets often stay with us for a lifetime, but how about 100 years? That’s how long the memory of one loving dog has been preserved in the Green-Wood Cemetery in south Brooklyn.
The pup’s name was Rex, and as it turns out, he was a very good boy.
Although, you can only find his grave if you really search for it.
The Green-Wood Cemetery stretches across a massive area, covering 478 acres of rolling hills, valleys, and ponds.
It’s the final resting place of dozens of famous people including former baseball stars, entertainers, politicians, and even several Civil War generals.
The cemetery was even accepted as a National Historic Landmark back in 2006.
However, one of the most interesting gravesites belongs to a dog named Rex.
He has been watching over the cemetery for well over 100 years.
He is buried next to his owner John E. Stow — a fruit merchant that lived in the city and died in 1884.
The beautiful bronze statue of Rex hasn’t gotten much attention over the years besides from those who notice it when they happen to walk by.
However, recently, more and more people have been visiting the gravesite and leaving sticks at it, says communications manager for Green-Wood Cemetery, Stacy Locke.
“When it comes to Rex, he obviously stands out,” Locke told The Dodo. “People see him from the road — it’s sort of a prominent spot, right off of the intersection of two roads here.”
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The dog’s image is very distinct and one of the last things you would expect to see in a cemetery.
Whereas people leave flowers at the graves of humans, dogs much prefer other items.
“It’s right under a tree and there are lots of sticks around,” said Locke. “People will drop a stick across his little paws. Someone also left a picture of a dog there once, maybe their little pet who passed away, as to say, ‘Rex, look after my little one.'”
Judging by the posts that have been showing up on social media, a lot of people have been stopping by these days.
Because of social distancing and pandemic related lockdowns, lots of people have been visiting the historic cemetery as a way to get out of their homes and into nature.
In Greenwood Cemetery in Brooklyn there is a gravestone for a dog named Rex. People bring him sticks and place them at his feet because he is still a good boy. cc: @dog_rates pic.twitter.com/0GhxcZwjSz
— Kevin T. Morales 🗳 (@KevinTMorales) August 2, 2020
There are not just two or three sticks sitting in front of Rex’s grave now, but probably fifty or more.
It’s enough to keep the dog busy for another 100 years.
Although, dive into the old records of the cemetery and it’s not entirely clear the true nature of the gravesite.
The records simply state that a “bronze likeness of a dog” was placed in the cemetery, not that a dog was officially buried there.
“I think people like to believe that there is a dog interred there and there very well might be,” Locke said. “But it’s hard to say.”
No one really knows for sure Rex’s whole story, but it is clear that he was once very loved.
In the year 1880, Green-Wood Cemetery decided to cease the practice of allowing pet burials after a public outcry of complaints following the burial of a dog named Gipsy. Many people didn’t like the fact that dogs were being buried next to humans and Rex may have made it into the cemetery just in time.
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Now, his marvelous statue will help keep his memory alive for many more years to come.
Check out an additional photo of a dog gravesite in Green-Wood Cemetery below.
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