Tom and his brother cat were born in Gage & Tollner’s restaurant in 1917, when the famous oyster bar and chophouse was on the ground floor of the circa 1875 Craft building at 372-374 Fulton Street. No one knows what happened to his mother and brother, but Tom “apparently recognized his proper sphere in life” and stayed on at Gage & Tollner, where he dined on scallops alongside great icons like Mae West and Jimmy Durante.
Archive for May, 2022
1897: Dan, the Lifesaving Fire Horse, and Dick, his pal, of Engine 4 at Old Slip
Posted: 14th May 2022 by The Hatching Cat in FDNY Horses/Mascots, Horse TalesTags: Engine Company 4, FDNY history, Martin Cook, New York City History, Old Slip
When FDNY veteran Martin Cook received his promotion to captain of Engine 4 in 1886, the company received two horses, Dan and Dick. Even as the two horses aged, they did the city and the FDNY proud. Captain Cook often received offers to trade in his team for younger animals, but he always turned them down. According to the FDNY veteran, there was not a more reliable, more careful, or faster team of fire horses in America.
