Cats have been holding down jobs for hundreds of thousands of years, and most of us have no idea. Yes, we know about barn cats and bodega cats doing rodent control, but that is genuinely just the beginning. In honor of National Cat Day, I want to introduce you to ten cats who showed up, clocked in, and in some cases changed the world.
The Cats Who Made History
Let's start in New York. The Algonquin Hotel has had a lobby cat since the 1920s. When actor John Barrymore was nearby doing a production of Hamlet, he looked at the resident cat, whose name was Rusty, and declared that simply would not do. He renamed him Hamlet, and the tradition stuck. We are now on Hamlet VIII. If the lobby cat happens to be female, her name is Matilda. Guests book stays at the Algonquin specifically to meet him.
Meanwhile, up in Talkeetna, Alaska, a cat named Stubbs was living his best life at Nagley's General Store when the community decided to elect him mayor. Stubbs was the first to hold the post. Stubbs served from 1998 until he passed in 2017, and the town responded by electing another cat, Denali, to continue the work.
Then there is FDC Willard. In 1975, a Michigan State physics professor named Jack Heatherington was about to submit a paper to a peer-reviewed journal when a friend warned him that he kept writing "we" instead of "I." Without a co-author, the journal would reject it. Heatherington looked at his cat Chester, noted that the scientific name for cats is *felis domesticus*, and listed "F.D.C. Willard" as co-author. The paper was published. Heatherington later sent copies to friends with a paw print next to the byline.
At the British Museum, a cat named Blackjack guarded the gates starting in 1909. One day he brought a kitten to the Keeper of Egyptian Antiquities. That kitten, named Mike, went on to hold the position of museum guard for twenty years. Time Magazine called him the most famous British cat of the twentieth century.
Which brings us to the most famous British cat of the twenty-first century: Larry, the Chief Mouser at 10 Downing Street. His official job description includes greeting guests, inspecting security defenses, testing antique furniture for napping quality, and, yes, mousing . He has outlasted multiple prime ministers and once had a very public rivalry with Palmerston, the Foreign Office cat a few doors down. Palmerston eventually retired. Larry remains.
The Cats Who Built Communities
Dewey Readmore Books was dropped as a kitten into the book return slot of the Spencer, Iowa public library. He stayed for nineteen years. His official job description included greeting the public at the front door every morning at 9 a.m., inspecting all incoming boxes, attending meetings as Library Ambassador, and generating worldwide publicity for the Spencer Public Library. He ended up with a New York Times bestselling book written about him and two children's books after that.
Smudge started work in 1979 as the official mouser at the People's Palace Museum in Glasgow. When museum management tried to get her formally recognized as a union member, she was rejected. Another union, the General Municipal and Boilermakers Union, took her in, and she became the first recorded picket-line cat. She lived to approximately 28 years old.
Hank the Cat ran for a U.S. Senate seat in Virginia in 2012 on a platform of animal rescue, spay and neuter advocacy, and positive campaign reform. A Super PAC called "Canines for a Feline-Free Tomorrow" ran attack ads against him. His platform was worth every vote.
The Cats Who Became Legends
I have to include one honorable mention (or dishonorable, depending on which neighbor you ask): Dusty, also known as Dusty the Klepto Kitty, adopted from the Peninsula Humane Society in California in 2006. By 2008, his family had noticed their house filling with things that were not theirs. Animal Planet eventually installed a camera outside and documented his nightly runs. His record take for a single night was eleven items. His total inventory over three years included 213 dish towels, 73 socks, 40 pairs of underwear, and eight bathing suits, among many other things. Dusty, I have chosen to believe you were operating a cat-run redistribution network.
And then there is Tama. In the late 1990s, a calico kitten living near Kishi Station in Wakayama Prefecture, Japan, became so beloved by commuters that the president of the railway ordered a custom stationmaster's hat made for her and gave her the official title. She greeted commuters from a converted ticket booth that housed her bed and litter box. In 2008 she was promoted to Super Stationmaster and knighted by the governor. The railway reported a rise in ridership from the station of 300,000 passengers, credited to Tama. They designed a train in her honor. When she passed in 2015 at age 16, thousands attended her funeral and left flowers and cans of tuna at the station. In the Shinto tradition, she was elevated to the status of goddess of the Wakayama Electric Railway. Google marked what would have been her 18th birthday with a Google Doodle.
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By now I’m sure you’re dying to see pictures of these incredible working cats. I got you covered! Check out the video companion to this blog! [watch the full video here]
For thousands of years, cats have been showing up for us lucky humans. On National Cat Day, take a moment to look at the cat companion in your life and recognize what they bring to yours.
Light, Love, and Mojo,
Jackson
