Arago: Owney the Dog

Owney received this brass tag from the Fordham Hotel in Paris, Kentucky. There is no available information to indicate when this tag was presented to Owney.

Owney was a dog who became the unofficial mascot of the Railway Mail Service in the late 19th century. At some point in his travels, Railway Post Office clerks and postmasters began to attach mementoes to the dog’s collar. The steadily growing collection of tags included claim tags, hotel key tags, tokens, badges, medals, coins, buttons and other trinkets.