This Shaggy Dog Story is History

Written by Lorrette 31 Comments
Last Updated:: February 23, 2009

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Bob The Railway Dog - National Railway Museum

A Shaggy Dog Adventurer

I truly believe in the amazing intelligence of the humble household pet and am constantly amazed at some of the highly intelligent things that dogs (and at times cats) do.

Each exhibiting an individuality that is purely their own. There are the heroes who save lives and the defenders who protect. There are the humorous and the fun loving show offs.

There are those who have little or no idea that they are dogs (or cats) they just figure themselves to be 'extraordinary hairy humans'.

This post is about one of those extraordinary dogs. This one was 'an adventurer'.

This remarkable and quirky Australian tale is about a shaggy dog and his incredible love of traveling hundreds of thousands of miles on trains.

Only screwing-up once by responding to the sound of a steam whistle by mistakenly jumping on a steamer in Port Augusta, 'Bob the Railway Dog' spent his life traveling at times up to 150km from home before 'jump changing' engines at a passing loop and heading home again.

Bob's story began in the late 1870s

In a sheep van bound from Terowie to the Flinders town of Quorn, here was a puppy who would make history. He was one amongst 50 to 200 other dogs (although it is said that there is a 1924 story somewhere that suggests there were more like 900 dogs).

After the sheep van arrived at Terowie, a porter named William Ferry happened to spot this puppy, he made the decision to exchange another dog for him, named him 'Bob' and the rest, as they have reported in the various re-tellings of this quirky tale......is history!

Immediately 'Bob' was taken from the sheep van - he began his railway career.

He was, from that minute, known as 'Bob the Railway Dog'. His proud owner trained him to do all manner of tricks and, later when he became a guard on the narrow-gauge Northern Lines, Bob would travel thousands of miles with him in the guard's van.

When his owner William Ferry became Assistant Stationmaster at Petersburg, 'Bob the Railway Dog' who loved the sound of the engine whistle and the rattle of the wheels, and now well and truly committed to his daily train riding routine, simply continued to ride the trains.

He took his seat on many an out or homeward bound train, sitting up front on the coal heap in the tender, and travelling hundreds of thousands of miles. According to the Petersburg Times 'he lived on the fat of the land, and was not particular from whom he accepted his dinner'.

Bob was a seasoned and experienced train traveller - so much so that he quite often travelled interstate. He would bark happily and wag his tail. Children when they saw him would call out "There's Bob, Good old Bob". Bob continued to ride the engines all over South Australia for many years and was guest of honour at the Melbourne Exhibition. It is told and re-told that Bob had been seen at Hawkesbury River station, as far north as Queensland and at Oodnadatta and in Western Australia.

Bob spent his last days on the Silverton Tramway Co.

He died in the 1890's at, they say, the ripe old age of 17 years. It is reported that his body, which had been preserved, stood for many years in a glass case in the Exchange Hotel.

Today his collar can be seen at the National Railway Museum with it's inscription on a brass plate that says 'Stop Me Not'.

I applaud you 'Bob'- the steam lovin railway dog. I read your story and I smile, I think about your story and I still smile. What spirit, what an incredible sense of adventure.....what a dog!

I would love to have known you!