Greyfriars Bobby
Of all the history and tales about Greyfriars, there’s probably one that captures the public imagination more than any other – that of Greyfriars Bobby.
During the 1850s, a man by the name of John Gray, walked the streets of Edinburgh as a night watchman for the local police, and with him, went his trusty Skye Terrier Bobby. They trudged the cobbled streets together but in 1858 John died and was buried in Greyfriars Kirkyard.
The story goes that Bobby refused to leave his master’s graveside, no matter what the weather. Several times the gardener of the Kirkyard tried to move Bobby on, but he always returned, and in the end the gardener relented and made up a shelter next to his master’s grave.
Bobby became a bit of a celebrity and was well looked after, but he never left the graveside. For 14 years he kept vigil until he himself died in 1872 aged 16.
In 1981 an unconsecrated grave was made for Bobby near to where John Gray is buried. It has become a shrine for the thousands of visitors who leave flowers, toys and twigs to keep him company.
If you would like to know what he looked like there’s a nice little statue of him on top of a drinking fountain near to the Greyfriars Bobby pub – and if you want to really engross yourself in the story there’s a Walt Disney film based on a children’s book by Eleanor Atkinson.
Originally posted 2018-12-06 07:14:52.
Ah, y e cannae have posts about Edinburgh and not have one about Bobby.
Absolutely not!
A good Disney film with a loose take on facts, as this is fiction? John Gray and his dog did live in the broad area but when he died he was buried in the Old Preston cemetery around half a mile away. This is recorded at General Records House. The dog came back to the cafe where he was fed at Greyfriars and as the story around the town got the owners extra trade, when the first dog died they replaced it. If he was going to his masters grave he had a very poor sense of direction. The memorial to John Gray in Greyfriars is a memorial not a gravestone or an indication he was buried there. He is notably excluded from that claim by the church who at the gate have listed the many famous citizens actually buried there and he is not amongst them, whilst many much less well known, are.
Thanks for sharing this info Graham. I watched the film too, and if nothing else, Disney always made films that had a feel-good factor, and if it meant embellishing the truth, then what did it matter? It’s good that you’ve given a more probable account of what happened as I was always a bit sceptical. Thanks for your input. It’s very much appreciated.
I’m sure many people would have heard of it, but I don’t suppose everyone has
A story well worth the retelling!
I first became aware of Greyfriars Bobby when we visited Edinburgh in the early 1980’s and found it a very touching story. I still have the tiny crystal bell I bought which has Greyfriars Bobby’s image engraved on it!
Any story like that is always going to pull at the heart strings.