Hachikō

Thu 15 November 2012

Hachikō

Filed under: #satscene —— Sylvia @ 22:43

On the 10th of November 1923, an Akita dog was born on a farm in the Akita Prefecture in Japan. He was named Hachikō. He was taken in by a University professor in 1924 who commuted by train to his work.

Every morning, the professor and his dog walked to Shibuya station together. In the evening, Hachikō returned to the station to meet the professor and walk home with him. In May, 1924, the professor suffered a stroke while at work and died. Hachikō did not change his routine, however, and for the next nine years, the patient dog waited at the station for his owner to arrive.

Hachikō

Hachikō attracted the attention of other commuters. Many of the people who frequented the Shibuya train station had seen Hachikō and Professor Ueno together each day. Initial reactions from the people, especially from those working at the station, were not necessarily friendly. However, after the first appearance of the article about him on October 4, 1932 in Asahi Shimbun, people started to bring Hachikō treats and food to nourish him during his wait. This continued for nine years with Hachikō appearing precisely when the train was due at the station.

Hachikō died in 1935. The train station has placed bronze paw-prints and a plaque to mark the spot where he waited for his owner.

Meanwhile, on the 10th of November in 2012, these picturesque moments were immortalised by photographs submitted to Saturday scenes: