Apr 29, 2017
Tama’s 18th Birthday
This Doodle’s Key Themes
Today’s Doodle celebrates little Tama, the beloved stationmaster of Kishi Station in Kinokawa, Wakayama, Japan.
For many years, the train station was lightly traveled, causing officials to close it in 2004. But in 2007, the railway appointed Tama the calico cat to be the stationmaster. The new local celebrity drew crowds of travelers to see her in her office, where she sometimes wore an official cat-sized cap. Not only did Tama draw tourists to her new cat-themed cafe and gift shop (even the station itself got a cat-themed makeover!), but her celebrity also kept the train service open for local residents.
Though Tama passed away in 2015, a new kitty called Nitama (or “Tama the second”) keeps the trains running and poses for selfies with passengers.
Happy birthday to the world’s first feline stationmaster!
Doodle by Lydia Nichols
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