It is often the case that a railroad shop facility is
guarded by an 0-2-2-0 Mouser, and sometimes
that Mouser becomes famous. There's
a rainbow bridge at the final summit.
Dirt, who became a celebrity in 15 years as the shop cat at the Nevada Northern Railway, has died, the railroad has announced on its Facebook page.
The orange and white male cat was adopted as a stray kitten by shop crews in 2008 and became famous for his coal-dust-tinted fur, photogenic nature, and regular appearance during shop tours and other special events.
The cat was
at first wary of railroaders.
Dirt was discovered in the railroad’s locomotive shop all alone as a kitten in 2008. Not wanting the little cat to starve, the shop crews started providing him with cans of tuna and soft cat food. It took time, but after a while, the cat started to trust the workers, and shortly after that, the master mechanic brought him to a vet for a checkup.
After a while, the cat realized that the warmest place in the entire shop was in the cabs of the railroad’s two steam locomotives, NNRy 4-6-0 40 and 2-8-0 93. Because of that, the cat’s fur started getting dirty so the crews nicknamed it “Dirtbag.” Later it was shortened to “Dirt.”
“The engine house and machine shop are very dirty, noisy environments. In addition to the locomotives and railroad cars being moved in and out, repair work goes on all the time. Dirt got very wise, very fast, quickly figuring out where not to be when locomotives and cars were moving, or work was being performed,” the railroad’s staff wrote.
Later, he figured out the routine of the roundhouse enough to come out and show off for tourists. "To commemorate Dirt, the railroad plans on having two life-size bronzes cast of the cat. One will serve as his gravestone, the other will be placed in the machine shop, so Dirt can continue watching over things."
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