Posts Tagged ‘Seafaring cats’

Tom the Terror was reportedly a noted figure in the United States Navy. He came from a long line of naval cats, having been born on the Cob Deck at the Brooklyn Navy Yard in 1896. All of his siblings and cousins had also honorably served the United States Navy as rat killers and mascots.

According to the Seamen’s Church Institute of New York (one of the city’s oldest maritime establishments), cats and dogs were the most popular mascots on ships in the good old days. Seamen were especially fond of cats, as they brought good luck to a maiden voyage. The Institute also seemed to favor cats, and in fact had numerous feline mascots at its New York City headquarters on South Street during the 1900s.

On Saturday, December 11, 1920, employees at the New York General Post Office got a big surprise while opening some mail delivered to the United States from England via the steamship RMS Aquitania. Inside one sealed mail sack was a small male kitten.

On December 26, 1922, Minnie, the ship cat of the RMS Cedric, was honored for saving 36 lives (herself and her three kittens). The rescue took place during a severe storm in the Atlantic Ocean that disrupted Atlantic shipping and damaged or completely destroyed numerous steamships heading toward New York.

Seafaring Cats of Gotham Virtual Presentation (via Untapped New York): Travel back in time to explore amazing stories of famous and memorable ship cats and naval cats of Old New York; June 30, 2020, 12-1 p.m. (ET). Registration required.