Angel’s Alex statue is lying on a stone platform with his name engraved on it. Rex has stood guard over his owner’s plot near the corner of Sycamore and Greenbough Avenues for overflow 100 years and continues guarding him.

Rex is John E. Stow’s dog, the city’s longest practicing fruit merchants  in 1884. Many citizens leave sticks and fallen branches on Rex’s grave.

“When it involves Rex, he obviously stands out,” Stacy Locke, communications manager for Green-Wood Cemetery, told The Dodo. “People see him from the road — it’s kind of a prominent spot, right off of the intersection of two roads here.”

“It’s right under a tree and there are many sticks around,” Locke added. “People will drop a stick across his little paws. Someone also left an image of a dog there once, maybe their little pet who gave up the ghost , as to say, ‘Rex, take care of my baby .’”

People who love nature have visited a lot Green Wood in the pandemic, which also increased the sticks left on Rex’s grave.

Since 1879 many owner’s have burried their pets and honored them with a grave. “There’s another dog sculpture that features a similar mysterious story but it’s a touch bit more off the beaten path,” Locke said. “And that one typically has toys left thereon .”

A note in Green-Wood’s files dating to the 19th century refers to the location of a “bronze likeness of a dog,” but whether Rex is buried next to his owner remains a mystery. “I think people wish to believe that there’s a dog interred there and there alright could be ,” Locke said. “But it’s hard to mention .”

Share with family & friends!