The Nine Lives of a Cat, 1860 Style

Today we’re sharing something we just discovered yesterday on The Public Domain Review (a great resource if you’re looking for public domain material). What we found is an 1860 book called The Nine Lives of a Cat: A Tale of Wonder. It was written by Charles Bennett and published in London by Griffith and Farran. Bennett bills this tome as a “tale of wonder … told for children,” but it’s hardly the sort of children’s tale that would pass muster today.

Things were different for cats--and kids--back then

When we first meet the cat who is the star of the story, we see her stealing a fish. Then we learn that the cat pays a disproportionate penalty for this offense:

But when she was young,
Poor Kitty was hung;

Fortunately, though, this is a resourceful cat who keeps a knife in her pocket, so she manages to free herself. Now she’s down to eight lives.

And that is pretty much how the story goes: The cat suffers some potentially deadly calamity only to escape with her life, thanks to her own ability and cleverness. Some of these near-death experiences are the result of the cat’s own actions. She is burned while trying to snag meat off the fire and falls off a house while chasing a mouse, for example. But, disturbingly, she is also nearly done in three times by the deliberate actions of humans. One person attempts to hang her, as we’ve already seen; one attempts to drown her; and one attempts to shoot her. The disturbing part of these incidents is not that they happen at all, but that they’re mentioned so casually. The boy who tries to drown the cat isn’t described as “naughty” or “wicked” or any of the HBO words we might use; he’s just a kid having some fun.

Here, the cat falls of a house but survives by landing on her feet.

We do have to wonder if any 19th-century children were inspired by this or similar stories to try to harm cats or other animals. We suspect the answer is yes, but sadly, we also suspect that not much inspiration would have been needed in an age when violence toward animals was so accepted that it could be included in a children’s story without comment.

We’re glad humans—many of them, anyway—see things differently today.

In case you’re wondering, the cat lives to an old age and finally dies. Not exactly uplifting, although the author does remind us that the cat had lived nine lives, so we guess that’s something.

We suppose there is a moral to the story, but we’re not quite sure what it is. We're willing to entertain ideas in the comments.

Read with caution

If you’re interested in exploring how cats were portrayed in the past—or what children’s books were like in the past—we think The Nine Lives of a Cat is worth a look. None of the illustrations are horribly graphic, but we know some of you find any depictions of animal abuse upsetting. If you fall into that category, you should definitely skip this book. For others of you, we recommend taking a look at it not because it’s a great read—we thought it was awfully clunky and mostly not very enjoyable—but because it’s a piece of cat history. Also, the “Catalogue of New and Popular Works” at the back of the book is pretty interesting all by itself.

The Story of the Key Marco Cat

The Key Marco Cat.

Artifact Catalogue No. A240915, Department of Anthropology, NMNH, Smithsonian Institution.

Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

Have you ever heard of the Key Marco Cat? Chances are you may have seen an image of this famous Florida artifact, even if you didn’t know what it was. The Key Marco Cat is a human/feline figurine about six inches high. It was carved from buttonwood by an artisan of the Calusa culture. According to notes from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, the figure is dated to AD 1400–1500 or AD 700–1500.

Where is Key Marco and who were the Calusa?

Key Marco is the name of an archaeological site near Marco Island, a city on Florida’s southwest coast. According to the city’s official website, the Calusa people arrived in Florida “at least 4,000 years ago” (or about 2,000 BC). Besides being a “tall, handsome people … known for their fierce and warlike nature,” they were skilled woodworkers, as evidenced by the artifacts that were found in an 1896 excavation.

The Calusa lived on shell mounds and in huts raised above the water. They weren’t welcoming toward European explorers, and in 1521, an expedition led by Ponce de Leon landed in the area and was attacked by Calusa warriors. Ponce de Leon was wounded in the thigh (by a spear or poison arrow—accounts vary) and later died in Cuba.

The Calusa themselves were wiped out by diseases brought by Europeans.

The area of Florida where the
Calusa lived.
By Bryan Strome (www.firstnationseeker.ca)
[Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.

The Key Marco Cat

The 1896 excavation we mentioned was the Pepper-Hearst Expedition, led by an anthropologist named Frank Hamilton Cushing (the expedition was named for its sponsors, Dr. William Pepper and philanthropist Phoebe Hearst).  Cushing excavated at a small muck pond he called the Court of the Pile Dwellers. There he found the remains of buildings, woven mats, pottery, utensils such as spoons, and carved masks and figures, including an alligator head, a deer head, and of course the now-famous cat. Many of the wooden objects had still-vivid paint colors when they were first brought out of the wet conditions that had preserved them. But this was before archaeologists had good conservation techniques for wooden objects, and the painted colors soon faded.

The Key Marco Cat is a kneeling figure that appears to be half-human and half-feline. The feline part has been called a cougar or mountain lion, but it seems more likely (to us at least) that it was based on the mountain lion subspecies known as the Florida panther (Puma concolor coryi). It was carved with shell scrapers and a shark’s tooth and was then “rubbed with a protective layer of animal fat,” (Smithsonian NMNH).

Interestingly, some Native peoples of the North American Southeast have oral histories of underwater panthers who rule the lower world and thunderbirds who rule the upper world. Could the Key Marco Cat be a representation of one of these underwater panthers? That is a question that may never be answered for certain. The figure is believed to have had religious significance to the Calusa, though.

Where the cat is now and where it’s going

This 1989 US Airmail stamp featured
the Key Marco Cat.
Copyright United States Postal Service.
All rights reserved,

The Key Marco Cat is now at the Smithsonian in Washington, DC. But later this year, the figure is expected to return to Marco Island along with several other artifacts for “an extended visit” (Naples Daily News) to the Marco Island Historical Museum. The cat will be featured at a grand opening in January 2019.

Meanwhile, in the absence of the actual artifact, the museum has displayed a reproduction by artist Peter Sottong. It will be nice to see the Key Marco Cat go home, even if only temporarily.

Sources

Harriet, Howard Heithaus, “The Year of the Cat: Key Marco Cat Returns, This Time to a Home Built for It,” Naples Daily News, April 21, 2018, https://www.naplesnews.com/story/entertainment/arts/2018/04/21/year-cat-key-marco-cat-returns-time-home-built/523476002/

“History,” Key Marco Cat—Calusa Art Reproductions, https://www.keymarcocat.com/history.html.

“Key Marco,” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Key_Marco

“Old Marco Island,” City of Marco Island Florida, http://www.cityofmarcoisland.com/index.aspx?page=207

“Pepper-Hearst Expedition,” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepper-Hearst_expedition

Book Review: Seafurrers

Today we are pleased to bring you our short review of the fascinating book Seafurrers: The Ships’ Cats Who Lapped and Mapped the World, by Philippa Sandall and illustrated by Ad Long. This book covers the history of cats on ships from the very beginning, when cats took up duty stations on grain ships to feast on the rodents that ruined the cargo; to the years of exploration, when cats went along on the search for a route to the Pacific and on explorations of Antarctica; to stories of cats on warships; and finally to the end of cats and other live animal pets or mascots on Royal Navy ships in the 1970s.

First, let us tell you that this is not a boring old history book full of stuffy, dense prose. It is instead a thoroughly engaging read divided into short chapters called “incidents,” which include asides from a cat (“According to Bart”) and call-out boxes with additional interesting facts. Plus there are lots of photos of sailors and their cats and photo illustrations of cats on ships (our favorite of which is the cat coming up the gangplank wearing a sailor’s hat and with a pile of crates behind him marked “Cat”).

Second, let us tell you that, yes, Seafurrers is about cats, but it’s not just about cats. We learned about lots of other things too. Like how much grain a single rat or mouse can spoil, some particulars of voyages of discovery we didn’t know before…oh, and some stuff about squid. And of course we learned a lot about seafaring cats—for example, about cats catching flying fish, cats falling overboard and being rescued, the cat that survived the sinking of the USS Maine, and the cat who shared tent space with a pair of penguins.

We think if you have even a passing interest in ships’ cats and/or seafaring in general, you will love this book. It is well written, well designed, and a joy to read. When we got to the end, we wished it could have gone on a little longer. Thankfully, Bart also has an excellent blog that is worth a read.

The book and blog are both highly recommended!

A note on the "Paws Up" system: Miss C gives either one or two paws up. One paw is for a good read; two paws is for a great read. She never gives three or four paws because that would require her to lie on her back...and Miss C does not do that!

The link below is an Amazon Associates link. If you make a purchase through this link, old SoLT and I could get some coin for our kibble account. Thank you!

Tibs the Great: Number One Cat of the British Post Office (1950-1964)

Over the years, cats have held many official positions in government and business. Often, their main duties were to control rodents, and such is the case with our subject today, a 23-pound tabby named Tibs.

Tibs in his basement domain.

Tibs the Great, as he was known, served as the “number one cat” of Britain’s Post Office Headquarters for nearly 14 years. Born in 1950, he arrived at the headquarters as a youngster and quickly took care of a little rat problem in the basement. Thereafter, Tibs continued to live in the basement and no more rats were seen. He was once found with a pigeon he’d caught, and someone rescued the bird from him.

Like any other member of the staff, Tibs was paid for his services. His wages amounted to 2 shillings 6 pence a week. A cleaner named Alf Talbut made sure the cat was fed every day. Talbut had also cared for Tibs’ mother, Minnie (the tabby’s father has never been identified).

In serving as the rodent controller in the Post Office Headquarters, Tibs continued the tradition of professional cats that officially began back in 1868, when three cats went to work as rodent controllers in London’s Money Order Office. For their work in catching mice, the three original cats were paid 1 shilling a week—meaning 1 shilling was used to feed them each week. And by the way, that was 1 shilling total for all three cats, not a shilling apiece.

In November 1964, when Tibs was nearing 14 years of age, one morning he failed to come for his morning meal. The cat was nowhere to be found, and it was several days later that Alf Talbut finally located him and took him to the vet’s, where it was discovered that he had cancer in his mouth. Sadly, nothing could be done for him, and Tibs’ productive life came to an end.

“There will never be another Tibs,” Talbut was quoted as saying in Tibs’ obituary.

 Truly, Tibs was an excellent cat!

Sources

Erin Blakemore, “A Brief History of Post Office Cats,” 9 February 2016, Smithsonian.com, https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/brief-history-post-office-cats-180958061/?no-ist

“Tibs the Great Is No More” (obituary), January 1965, Post Office Magazine, http://500years.royalmailgroup.com/gallery/tibs-the-great-is-no-more/

And now, for something completely different ...

We hope you've got your not-so-great pet photos ready, because tomorrow, Friday, May 25, is the Pet Photo Fails Blog Hop! We will open the linky at midnight Eastern time, and it will stay open through 11:59 p.m. Monday. So stop on by and join in the fun!

Egyptian Cats, According to Herodotus

Have you heard about how ancient Egyptians shaved their eyebrows when the house’s cat died? Ever wondered how we know that? Today we’re going to tell you, by taking a quick look at what Herodotus, a Greek who lived in the 5th century BC, had to say on the Egyptians and their cats.

Photo via Adobe Stock.

Herodotus who?

Herodotus was a Greek born in ancient Halicarnassus (modern Bodrum, Turkey) in about 484 BC. He is considered the first historian and has been called “the Father of History”—or “the Father of Lies” by those who think he mostly made up his stories. Those stories are collected in The Histories, a work that includes accounts of important battles as well as descriptions of the places he traveled to and the peoples he encountered. One of those places was Egypt, and Herodotus is one source for information about the Egyptians and their cats.

The behavior of tomcats

Herodotus (II.66) noted that the domestic tomcats in Egypt had a habit of snatching kittens and killing them. Why? “The result is that the females, deprived of their kittens and wanting more (for their maternal instinct is very strong), go off to look for mates again. Herodotus calls the toms’ behavior “ingenious,” but it seems pretty brutal to us.

Saving cats from a burning house

The historian says, “What happens when a house catches fire is most extraordinary.” That’s because the people wouldn’t try to extinguish the fire. Instead, they would concentrate all their efforts on keeping the cats safe. The people would stand in a row around the structure, trying to keep cats from running or jumping past and “hurl[ing] themselves into the flames,” an outcome that “cause[d] the Egyptians deep distress” (II.66). This story doesn’t sound quite right to us. What cat—except a mother cat trying to save her kittens—would deliberately run into a fire?

Herodotus
Photo © Marie-Lan Nguyen /
Wikimedia Commons / CC-BY 2.5.

When a cat died

And now we come to the eyebrow-shaving portion of our tale. It was when a cat died naturally that “all the inmates of a house … shave[d] their eyebrows.” But when a house’s dog died, the people shaved their whole bodies, including the head.

Cats were taken to Bubastis after death to be embalmed and buried. Bubastis was the city where the cult of Bastet (goddess of cats, the home, domesticity, fertility, and childbirth) was centered. Dogs, on the other hand, were buried in whichever town they’d lived in. Other animals (Herodotus mentions field mice, hawks, and ibises) were, like cats, buried in specific cities.

  

Perhaps you are wondering what happened when someone killed a cat in Egypt. Well, Herodotus doesn’t tell us (which we find a little odd since he specifically mentioned the eyebrow shaving for cats that died naturally). It was a later historian, Diodorus Siculus (1st century AD), who wrote that anyone who killed a cat, even accidentally, was condemned to death.

We wonder why Herodotus did not mention this. Was he unaware of it? Did he forget to ask what the penalty was for killing a cat? Did he lose his notes on that topic? Did Diodorus get hold of some bad information? All questions we can’t answer.

Sources

“Cats in Ancient Egypt,” Ancient Egypt Online, https://www.ancientegyptonline.co.uk/cat.html.

“Herodotus,” Wikipedia, 15 May 2018 (last edited), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herodotus.

“Herodotus on Cats in Egypt,” Ancient History Encyclopedia, 18 January 2012, https://www.ancient.eu/article/88/herodotus-on-cats-in-egypt/.

Quotes from Herodotus, The Histories, translated by Aubrey de Sélincourt, new edition (Penguin Books, 1996).

Jimmy the Cat: Mascot of the HMS Renown

Some cats get around more than others, and Jimmy the cat, a fluffy, light-colored fellow who lived during World War I, had experiences on land and sea that most of us can’t imagine.

Jimmy “transfers” from land to sea

This pastel drawing of Jimmy was done by Georgina Shaw Baker.
National Maritime Museum, Greenwhich, London. [CC BY-NC-SA].

We’re not sure where he started life, but Jimmy and his person, an Australian whose name is unknown, spent time together in the war’s trenches until the person was wounded and sent to London. Jimmy went along with him, and while the two were at Victoria Station, a fortuitous meeting took place. Jimmy’s person happened to meet a Royal Navy cook named F. Conway, who was interested in the cat. Knowing he wouldn’t be able to keep the cat with him (we’re not totally sure why, but we suspect something like a “no cats in the hospital” rule was to blame), the Australian turned Jimmy over to Conway.

Wounded in the Battle of Jutland

At that time, Conway was assigned to the HMS King George V, and he took Jimmy aboard with him. The King George V was a dreadnought battleship that was part of the Royal Navy’s Grand Fleet and spent most of the war patrolling the North Sea. On May 31, 1916, the ship took part in the Battle of Jutland, in which the Royal Navy attempted to destroy Germany’s High Seas Fleet.

Unfortunately, Jimmy was on deck during the fight, and his left ear was hit by shrapnel when a shell exploded near him. We don’t know any cats who would stay outside in the noise of a naval battle, but that’s what Jimmy did. Afterward, he needed a few weeks for his ear to heal, but then he went right back up on deck.

Clearly, Jimmy was born to be a Royal Navy cat.

Transfer to HMS Renown

When Conway was sent to be a cook on the newly launched battlecruiser HMS Renown, Jimmy went along. We know a little more about his life on that ship, which also patrolled the North Sea but was not in any battles. Jimmy became the ship’s mascot, beloved by the crew. He was a social cat and liked to hang around with the crew, especially when there was any sort of sport going on.

HMS Renown (1916), photographed ca. 1918.
Official US Navy photograph. Public domain.

The cat still spent much of his time with Conway, though, and could often be found in the galley, where he could sometimes score a bit of food. He also slept with Conway, waking him at six every morning.

  

The Dumb Friends League created
this postcard of Jimmy.

Jimmy’s retirement

That ear injury still gave Jimmy trouble, though, and so when Conway left the Renown on leave in 1917, he took the cat along. Jimmy’s sea career was at an end, as Conway left him in Chelsea with the Dumb Friends League. The cat then got involved in fund-raising for the league and became quite well known. He also got regular visits from his former shipmates.

Jimmy died in 1924 and was reportedly mourned by many. Truly, his was a life well lived.

Sources

Bulanda, Susan. 2014. Soldiers in Fur and Feathers: The Animals That Served in World War—Allied Forces. Crawford, CO: Alpine Publications.

“HMS King George V (1911).” 2018 (last edited). Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_King_George_V_(1911)

“HMS Renown (1916).” 2018 (last edited). Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Renown_(1916)

Cats in Heraldry

The coat of arms of Benin, featuring
two natural leopards rampant.

Our subject today is a big one: heraldry, and specifically the use and symbolism of cats (mostly wild cats) in heraldry. The subject of heraldry can get complicated fast, but we’re sticking to some basics to keep it simple. First, we'll look at what heraldry is and where it came from, and then we'll explore what cats symbolize and some of the different positions they appear in. Finally, we'll start to explore domestic cats in heraldry.

An extremely brief introduction to heraldry

Heraldry has been around since the late 12th century, according to the website of English Heritage. Just think of knights in those metal helmets with visors that protected their faces. How could anyone tell which knight was which when their faces were all covered up? To solve this problem, knights started painting designs on their shields. Each design was unique to that knight, so people would be able to recognize him. They used different colors for the background, with shapes like crosses and chevrons (the shapes were called “ordinaries”) and emblems that could be shapes (stars, diamonds, crescents, etc.) or animals (birds, hares, deer, lions, etc.). The emblems were called “charges.”

The meanings of different cats in heraldry

The coat of arms of Jersey, with three
lions passant guardant, a position in
which they are known as leopards or ounces.

Not surprisingly, everything in heraldry means something. The cats most commonly used as charges seem to be the “big guys,” like lions and tigers, but smaller wildcats and even domestic cats have been used as heraldic symbols. Below are the meanings of different kinds of cats:

Cat, including wildcat and lynx: Liberty, vigilance, forecast, courage
Leopard or ounce: Valiant and hardy warrior who enterprises hazardous things by force and courage
Lion: Dauntless courage and majesty
Tiger:  Fierceness and valor; resentment; dangerous if aroused

The term “leopard” can be kind of confusing because often the so-called leopards you see in heraldry don’t have spots, and everyone knows a leopard can’t change its spots, right? Well, in traditional heraldry, a leopard was basically a lion in a certain position called “passant guardant.” That just means that the animal is walking (“passant”; the right forepaw is raised to indicate walking) and looking at the viewer, or “on guard” (“guardant”). In more modern heraldry, leopards are depicted with spots just as they appear in real life. A heraldic leopard is also sometimes called an “ounce” (tune in tomorrow to learn more about this word as it relates to cats!).

And while we’re on the subject of words that mean something different than you might think, a beast called a “tyger” has also been used in heraldry. This looks sort of like a lion but not quite. It has no stripes, and it’s sometimes called a “heraldic tiger.”

A tyger, or "heraldic tiger."

More terms used to describe attitudes of animals in heraldry

We introduced the terms “passant” and “guardant” above, but there are several more words you will commonly see and hear when it comes to the positions or "attitudes" of cats and other animals:

Rampant: reared up on the hind legs
Statant: standing, all four feet on the ground
Sejant: sitting on the haunches; the forepaws are on the ground
Couchant: lying down with the head raised
Regardant: looking over the shoulder

Domestic cats in heraldry

It’s easy to find lots of examples of lions and leopards used as heraldic symbols. Many countries feature these cats or other big cats in their coats of arms, as you’ve seen from the examples we’ve shown. But what about domestic cats? Well, we did find several examples. Here are some of our favorites:

The coat of arms of Sakvice, Czech Republic, has a kitty cat statant facing a lion rampant:

The arms of the family of Muyser Lantwyck (Belgium), with a cat that has caught a red mouse:

And the coat of arms of the municipality of Vaugondry (Switzerland) features a gray cat with its tongue out:

Now that you've seen some examples of cats in heraldry, maybe you'd like to create your own coat of arms featuring a cat or cats. This would be a terrific subject for Caturday Art! Just sayin'.

Sources

American College of Heraldry: http://www.americancollegeofheraldry.org/achsymbols.html

"Lion (Heraldry)," Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lion_(heraldry)

Image credits

All images via Wikimedia Commons. Coat of arms of Sakvice by Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic [Public domain]. Arms of Muyser Lantwyck by Keghel [CC BY-SA 3.0]. Coat of arms of Vaugondry by Delta-9 [CC BY 3.0]. Coat of arms of Benin by Tinynanorobots, Fenn-O-maniC [CC BY-SA 3.0]. Coat of arms of Jersey by Man vyi [Public domain]. Tyger, or “heraldic tiger”: Image taken from A Complete Guide to Heraldry, 1909. [Public domain].

Hieroglyphic Cats from Ancient Crete

We stumbled upon an interesting little tidbit earlier this week. At first we didn’t even believe it and thought it must be one of those alternative facts that are so easy to find on the internet. But a little digging brought us to some reputable sources, so we are ready to tell you that the so-called Cretan Hieroglyphic writing system (not related to the more famous Egyptian hieroglyphs) included pictures of cats. This system, from the Mediterranean island of Crete, arose around 2000 BC. It has not been deciphered, so no one is 100% sure what the cat pictures mean—but there is a guess at the end of this post!

Just where is Crete? Follow the red arrow. The island
is roughly southeast of mainland Greece.
Image via Adobe Stock.

The cat pictures

Seal of green jasper with Cretan Hieroglyphic writing
including a stylized cat's head.
Photo by Ingo Pini [Public domain], from Wikimedia Commons.

The cat pictures in Cretan Hieroglyphics took different forms. Sometimes a full cat’s body was depicted, sometimes just a stylized cat’s head. In Linear A, the next writing system to come along on Crete, there was still a cat’s head symbol, but it was much more stylized, with something that looks roughly like a head with eyes, pointy ears, and sometimes a mouth. Linear A was used from about 1850 to 1400 BC and overlapped with Cretan Hieroglyphic for many years. Then, in about 1600 BC, came Linear B. Linear B also used a cat’s head, but you sort of have to use your imagination to see the cat. This is because it is basically all ears.

By the way, all three writing systems were named by archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans.

What did the cat figures mean?

Broadly, hieroglyphic writing is any system where the characters are pictures of recognizable things. The individual pictures can represent the thing they depict (a crow symbol could mean “crow”), or they could represent a sound (a crow symbol could mean “caw”—and obviously we are sort of making this up as a general example).

While we don’t know for sure what the cat in Cretan Hieroglyphic writing meant, Pippa Steele of the CREWS Project says we can sort of guess by working backward from Linear B, which has been deciphered. All of these systems are syllabic, so the symbols represent sounds—and the sound that the Linear B cat’s head represents is “ma.” Steele says that the symbol and its sound likely came from Linear A. It’s possible that the Cretan Hieroglyphic cat also stood for “ma” or something very similar.

Detail from a table of Cretan Hieroglyphic signs.
The cat is number 75.
From The Palace of Minos, Sir Arthur Evans.
Digitized by Internet Archive Book Images
[No restrictions], via Wikimedia Commons. 

Wouldn’t it just make sense that someone would draw a cat to represent something like the sound a cat makes? And let’s not forget that the ancient Egyptian word for “cat” was “miu,” so who knows—maybe the people of Crete called cats “mau” or “maur” or something.

Versions of the Linear A and B cat signs.
Adapted from illustrations in Steele 2017.

Sources

Steele, Pippa. 2017. “Cats in the Aegean Scripts.” CREWS Project website, August 7. https://crewsproject.wordpress.com/2017/08/08/cats-in-the-aegean-scripts/.

“Linear A and Linear B.” Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Linear-A#ref106905

The Black Cats of Amherst in World War I

As part of our ongoing but extremely occasional series on cats in military insignia, today we bring you the story of a group of young men from Amherst, Massachusetts, who volunteered as ambulance drivers for the French army in the First World War. They came to be known as the Black Cats, after the distinctive symbol they chose: a black cat in full-on scary pose, with its back arched and tail pointing straight up. This symbol may have been selected for good luck, writes amateur historian Jim Hamilton. Although in much of the US today, the common superstition is that black cats bring bad luck, let us not forget that cats of all sorts of colors have been credited with (or blamed for) bringing all sorts of luck in different places and times.

The black cat symbol of SSU 539.
Used with permission.

So, what kind of luck did the Amherst Black Cats have? Let’s find out…but first we must thank Jim Hamilton, who runs the Amherst Black Cats Twitter account and graciously agreed to tell us a little more about the history of this unit. It was through this Twitter account that we first learned of these young men from Amherst.

The Black Cats answer the call

The group that would become known as the Black Cats got its start on June 6, 1917, when several students and recent graduates of Amherst College, as well as a few others, signed on to drive ambulances for the French army. That summer, the unit headed to Allentown, Pennsylvania, to train at Camp Crane, which was actually on the site of the Allentown Fairgrounds. A photo recently posted on the Black Cats’ Twitter account shows that their barracks was the Bantams and Pigeons building. Their training included driving lessons and medical procedures. On August 6, they boarded the SS San Jacinto for the crossing to Europe, arriving at St. Nazaire, France, just over two weeks later, on August 21.

The entrance to Camp Crane, 1918.
The Amherst volunteers arrived here in summer 1917.
US Army photo.
Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

The Black Cats on the Western Front

Officially known as Section Sanitaire États-Unis 539, or SSU 539, the Black Cats were sent to the war’s Western Front. They served with four French army groups:

• The 47th Chasseurs Alpins
• The 27th Division Infantry (briefly)
• The 5th Division
• The 4th Army (briefly)

Driving Ford Model T ambulances with their unit’s emblem on the side, the Black Cats participated in three major offensives in 1918:

• the Aisne-Marne Offensive
• the Oise-Aisne Offensive
• the Ypres-Lys Offensive

They also participated in a few minor operations. For their actions in evacuating the wounded, often in difficult conditions, the Black Cats were awarded the Croix de Guerre and were also entitled to wear the Fourragère.

Regarding luck, theirs seems to have been good. In the course of their service, only one member of the Black Cats was wounded and three were gassed. They all recovered. One member of the unit said this in a letter home:

We are the original horseshoe section, if there ever was one. Think of having been in a year with only one man slightly wounded! I think it’s the black cat on our cars, although that didn’t prevent a shell from ruining Riefler’s car, just after he was safe in a dug-out. I know it takes a lot of narrow escapes to get a man, but we’ve had an unusual number of them, every one of us.

Ambulance Corps training (not SSU 539)
at Camp Crane, Allentown, PA, 1918.
Photo by unknown USAAS photographer.
Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

The Black Cats after the war

Following the Armistice that was signed on November 11, 1918, the Black Cats were stationed in Belgium and Germany before sailing for home in March 1919. They arrived back in the US on April 2. On April 23, a group of them marched from the Amherst train station to the college and presented the unit’s flag to the college president. The following year, they published a unit history (Amherst has two copies of it in their archive), and going forward, they maintained a chain letter of news updates for another ten years or so. College reunions provided an opportunity for the men to meet up in person.

Now, a century later, the Black Cats’ history continues to be written, as Jim Hamilton is finishing an early draft of a book that he plans to publish later this year. He will also be participating in a panel called “Amherst at War” at the reunion in May of this year. The Black Cat banner, which resides in the Amherst College archive, is in delicate condition, and he is hoping that it will be restored, a process that may involve some fundraising from alumni and Black Cat descendants.

Sources

Our main source, Jim Hamilton, is an amateur historian whose books include “The Writing 69^th,” the story of a group of war correspondents, including Walter Cronkite and Andy Rooney, who covered the 8^th Air Force out of England during World War II. His current research is for a book to be called “The Black Cats of Amherst,” which is about the World War I ambulance unit that his grandfather served in. For more information on Jim and his writing projects, please visit www.greenharbor.com.

Additional sources:

McFeely, William S. “The Black Cats of Amherst.” Amherst Magazine, Spring 2010. https://www.amherst.edu/amherst-story/magazine/issues/2010spring/blackcats

Ginn, Richard V. N. “World War I: The Ambulance Service.” The History of the US Army Medical Service Corps. 1977. http://history.amedd.army.mil/booksdocs/HistoryofUSArmyMSC/chapter2.html

Official State Cats of the United States

The Maine coon is the state cat of--you guessed it!--Maine.
Photo via Adobe Stock.

 Our topic today is official cats, and specifically, cats that have been named as official symbols of states in the US. Only three states have named a certain type of domestic cat as their “state cat,” and only one of those is an actual breed of cat; the other two are cats with certain coat patterns. We don’t know why more states don’t have official cats, because a great cat is certainly something to be proud of. Interestingly, initiatives to name a state cat have often begun with schoolchildren (which just goes to show you who has their priorities in order).

Official state cats

The three states with official cats are Maine, Massachusetts, and Maryland. We guess it is a total coincidence that these states all begin with the letter M. (Or is it? Are you familiar with the M pattern that famously adorns the foreheads of tabby cats?)

Maine was the first state to name an official cat, back in 1985. It makes perfect sense that this state’s cat is the Maine coon, since this large breed “is regarded as a native of the state of Maine,” according to the kids’ section of the maine.gov website. The Cat Fanciers Association says that Maine was the first state to recognize these cats as a unique breed. Generally, Maine coons are known as sturdy, intelligent cats with a shaggy coat and tail, tufted paws, and large, tufted  ears. They appeared in cat shows as early as the 1860s, when Maine farmers organized a show at the Skowhegan Fair, which resulted in the winning cat being named “Maine State Champion Coon Cat.” In 1895, a Maine coon named Cosey won a cat show held at Madison Square Garden. You can see a picture of the silver collar she won in the CFA article “America’s First Show Cat—the Maine Coon Cat.”

You can also read more about the history of Maine coons in our post “Legends of the Maine Coon.”

Cats with a tabby coat pattern are the cat of the
commonwealth in Massachusetts.
Photo via Adobe Stock.

Massachusetts named the tabby the “official cat of the commonwealth” in 1988. “Tabby” is not a breed of cat; instead, the term describes a striped coat pattern that many cats have. Schoolchildren in the state pushed for the tabby to receive the honor of being the cat of the commonwealth. Why tabbies? We have so far not been able to find the answer to that question, so if you know, please tell us!

You can learn more about tabbies in our posts “Words with Webster: Tabby” and “Words with Webster: Mackerel and Blotched.”

In our home state of Maryland, the calico was named state cat in 2001. Again, “calico” is not a breed, it’s a coat pattern in which a cat has patches of black, orange, and white fur. The calico was chosen as state cat of Maryland because this coloring resembles the colors of other state symbols: the state flag, bird (Baltimore oriole), and insect (Baltimore checkerspot butterfly).

We are partial to the calico, which is our state cat
in Maryland.
Photo via Adobe Stock. 

Official state pets

Several other states do not have a specific state cat, but they have named dogs and cats either in shelters or adopted from shelters in their states as the “official state pets.”

In Colorado, the effort to declare as state pet those dogs and cats who are shelter alumni started in 2013 with some middle schoolers from Peakview School in Walsenburg. The goal was to bring attention to shelter pets (and to see the state’s legislative process up close). Despite objections from those representing the interests of breeders and dog-show organizers, as well as those who thought the bill discriminated against other kinds of pets, such as reptiles and birds, the measure passed both the House and Senate and was signed by Governor John Hickenlooper on May 13, 2013.

Tennessee declared dogs and cats adopted from the state’s shelters and rescues as the official state pet in 2014.

California named “a shelter pet” as its official state pet in 2015. In making this declaration, the state’s legislature wrote that the aim of the measure was “to raise public awareness of shelter animals.”

Illinois declared shelter dogs and cats (whether adopted from or currently in shelters) as the official state pet in August 2017.

In New Hampshire, the bobcat is the state wildcat.
Photo via Adobe Stock.

Honorable mentions: Wildcats and extinct cats

So far, we’ve dealt strictly with domestic cats, but some states have gone to the wild side when choosing cats as symbols.

In Florida, the endangered Florida panther was named the official state animal in 1982.

New Hampshire named the bobcat as its official state wildcat in 2015, with prompting from fourth- and fifth-graders at the Well School in Peterborough. (North Carolina also tried to make the bobcat the official state wildcat in 2015, but the attempt failed in the state’s senate.)

Finally, one state, California, has designated the extinct the saber-toothed cat as the state fossil.

Did we miss any official cats of the US? Let us know in the comments!

Additional Sources

“State Dogs/Cats,” State Symbols USA https://statesymbolsusa.org/categories/dog

“Official State Cats,” Netstate.com, http://www.netstate.com/states/tables/state_mammals_cats.htm

First Cat in Space to Get Well-Deserved Memorial

Not many people know that, before any human dared venture into space, a cat was sent to test things out. Now, this brave cat who did not have any say in whether she got sent into space may finally be getting a memorial.

The first and only feline in space

Félicette was a black-and-white tuxedo cat who was found living on the streets in Paris (or was purchased from a dealer; the accounts are apparently inconsistent) and, along with 13 other cats, was put into France’s space program. She went through training similar to what the human astronauts did, including being put in a compression chamber and in a centrifuge and going round and round and round. One thing that was done to the cats but not the humans was the implantation of electrodes in their brains to keep an eye on activity there.

The tuxie was selected to be “the one” either because she could remain calm in a crisis or because the other trainees got too plump.

And so, on October 18, 1963, Félicette was put into a capsule on a Véronique AG1 rocket. At 8:09 a.m., the rocket blasted off, and the cat was sent nearly 100 miles above Earth. She traveled at speeds reaching up to Mach 6 (which we are pretty sure makes her the fastest cat ever), and she pulled up to 9 g’s. Her non-orbital flight lasted 15 minutes, and she returned safely to Earth by parachuting down in her capsule.

Righting some wrongs with a crowdfunded memorial

We’ve already mentioned how Félicette did not get to decide whether she wanted to do all that she did. That’s the first wrong, in our opinion. The second wrong is that Félicette was euthanized three months after her flight so her brain implant could be tested some more. The third wrong is that not many people even know about Félicette, perhaps partly because she has never been memorialized (except on a postage stamp, where she was wrongly identified as “Felix”).

But now Félicette might be posthumously getting her due, as there is a Kickstarter campaign to create a bronze statue of her. The statue is to be created by sculptor Gill Parker and is expected to include a representation of Félicette and a rocket. When we checked, the campaign had raised just over $44,000. Its goal is $52,576, and the campaign ends TOMORROW, November 17, at 3:01 a.m. EST. That means you have very little time left if you wish to contribute and help send the campaign over the top. We pledged about $37 for the reward of two enamel badges and a replica postcard because we think it is important that this brave cat be recognized.

Click here to learn more about the campaign and to contribute!

Sources

“Félicette,” Wikipedia.

Hanneke Weitering, “FirstCat in Space to Receive a Proper Memorial,” Live Science, November 8, 2017

Prehistoric Cat News: Saber-Toothed Cats Lived in Europe Longer Than We Knew

An interesting news item flashed across our computer screen last week, concerning new findings on ancient cats. Big cats. With big teeth. It seems that some of these cats in Europe went extinct hundreds of thousands of years later than previously thought, and that means these cats could still have been around when modern humans stepped foot onto the European continent.

What cats are we talking about?

Homotherium, with human for size comparison.
By Dantheman9758 at English Wikipedia [CCBY 3.0], via WikimediaCommons.

The cats in question are called Homotherium (that’s their genus name). They were lion-sized saber-toothed cats that originated in the Old Word and also lived in the New World. They were related (but quite distantly, it turns out), to what you probably think of when you think “saber-toothed cat”—Smilodon fatalis.  S. fatalis is the species whose remains have been found in California’s famed La Brea Tar Pits. In North America, both Homotherium and Smilodon are known to have survived until the Late Pleistocene, or until about 10,000 years ago.

The picture is different in Europe, though, where Homotherium was thought to have disappeared by about 300,000 years ago.

New study finds new dates

But that old picture changed recently, with the results of an ancient-DNA study. A team led by Johanna Paijmans of the University of Potsdam in Germany examined DNA from a unique fossil: a Homotherium jaw bone found in the North Sea off the coast of the Netherlands that has been firmly dated to just 28,000 years ago (which, you’ll notice, was many, many thousands of years after the cats were thought to be extinct). Their work confirmed that the fossil is in fact from Homotherium, which means that these cats were living in Europe a lot longer than we knew. And that means that "when the first anatomically modern humans migrated to Europe, there may have been a saber-toothed cat waiting for them," Paijmans says.

Homotherium reconstruction.

By Sergiodlarosa (Own work) [CCBY-SA 3.0], via Wikimedia  Commons.

Just imagine that welcoming committee!

And by the way, why are we telling you this? Well, because we cats all have a common ancestor from way back in the distant past, and that means that Homotherium is the (extremely) distant cousin of your housecat. Just think of that next time you're telling your cat it's not time to eat yet!

Source

“Ancient DNA offers new view on saber-toothed cats' past.”

Current Biology, Paijmans et al.: "Evolutionary History of Saber-Toothed Cats Based on Ancient Mitogenomics" http://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(17)31198-3 , DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2017.09.033

Read more

National Fossil Day: The Big Cats of Pleistocene Park.