Nevada Northern Railway in Ely says its famed cat named Dirt has died at age 15.
In a lengthy Facebook post, the museum details the cat's history starting back in 2008.
They say workers originally named the cat Dirtbag, but once he started getting attention from visitors, it got shortened to just Dirt.
"He grew into a large rough-and-tough tom cat that ruled the shop and surrounding neighborhood. We saw him playing fetch with gophers and bats. Don't ask us how he got them, he just did. He hated being cleaned up, but loved being a railroader. It was not uncommon to find him rolling around in the dust outside the shop."
Staff members took good care of him, taking him to the vet and cleaning him up, but they say he didn't like that, instead opting for non-clean areas in the machine shop and engine house.
Thanks to a photograph taken in 2018, the image eventually went viral and Dirt soon became famous with articles of him published in The Washington Post, Trains Magazine and in newspapers all across Europe.
"Dirt was one-of-kind. He was the Boss Shop Cat at the Nevada Northern Railway. Con, our Trainmaster, selected a spot on the grounds in between the Depot, and the Freight Depot in the shade of a pine to serve as his final resting place. His burial site is opposite where all our excursion trains’ locomotives sit prior to departure, and it gives a view of the yard, that in addition to the shop, was Dirt’s domain."
The museum goes on to say, "to commemorate Dirt, we will be having two life size bronzes cast of Dirt. One will serve as his gravestone, the other will be placed in the machine shop, so Dirt can continue watching over the shop. As details become available on the bronzes, we’ll keep you posted."
While the museum is "saddened with the passing of Dirt," they do have a second cat who also lives on the grounds, aptly named Dirt Junior or DJ.
