In 1850 a gardener called John Gray, together with his wife Jess and son John, arrived in Edinburgh, Scotland. Unable to find work as a gardener, he obtained employment in the Edinburgh Police Force as a night watchman.
To keep him company through the long winter nights John took on a partner, a diminutive Skye Terrier, his ‘watchdog’ called Bobby. Together John and Bobby became a familiar sight walking through the old cobbled streets of Edinburgh. Through the years, winter and summer, John and his faithful little friend were inseparable.
The years on the streets took its toll on John, and he contracted tuberculosis. Eventually he died of the disease on the 15th February 1858 and was buried in Greyfriars Kirkyard, Scottish for churchyard. Bobby, the little pooch, as faithful as can be, followed his master to the grave site and there he remained, refusing to leave his master’s grave, even in the worst wintry conditions. He was as close as he could get, guarding his master’s grave, come rain or shine, or the cold blast of freezing winters. He could have stayed in his family home with all the comforts a loving family would provide, but he chose his best friend’s place of rest. The local residents were touched by Bobby’s devotion and would offer him food. He would follow William Dow, a local joiner and cabinet maker to the same coffee house that he had frequented with his master, where he was given a meal.
The gardener and keeper of Greyfriars tried on many occasions to evict Bobby from the Kirkyard. In the end he gave up and provided a shelter for Bobby by placing sacking beneath two tablestones at the side of John Gray’s grave.
Bobby’s fame spread throughout Edinburgh. It is reported that almost on a daily basis the crowds would gather at the entrance of the Kirkyard waiting for the one o’clock gun that would signal the appearance of Bobby leaving the grave for his midday meal.
In 1867 a new bylaw was passed that required all dogs to be licensed in the city or they would be destroyed. Sir William Chambers (the Lord Provost of Edinburgh) decided to pay Bobby’s license and presented him with a collar with a brass inscription “Greyfriars Bobby from the Lord Provost 1867 licensed.” This can be seen at the Museum of Edinburgh.
The kind folk of Edinburgh took good care of Bobby, but still he remained loyal to his master. For fourteen years, Bobby kept constant watch and guard over the grave until his own death in 1872.
Baroness Angelia Georgina Burdett-Coutts, President of the Ladies Committee of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA), was so deeply moved by his story that she asked the City Council for permission to erect a granite fountain with a statue of Bobby placed on top.
William Brody sculptured the statue from life, and it was unveiled without ceremony in November 1873, opposite Greyfriars Kirkyard. Scotland’s capital city will always remember its most famous and faithful dog.
Dear friends, what a beautiful story of faithfulness. The Bible says that “There is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother” (Proverbs 18:24). We know who that friend is: He gave up everything for us, including His life. “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). Are we making efforts daily to get close to Him? Do we pray, witness, study and truly live for Him?
Bobby’s headstone reads “Greyfriars Bobby – died 14th January 1872 – aged 16 years – Let his loyalty and devotion be a lesson to us all”.
Yes friends, let us be loyal and devoted to our Master, to the very end.
(Anonymous)
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