The Cat Who Was A Mayor For 20 Years.

Image Credit: quirkytravelguy

Talkeetna is a small town in Alaska with a population of 1055(as of 2020). The place is famous for its closeness to nature and in particular, for Mount Denali(the highest mountain peak in North America). Also, the town is famous because of its former mayor.

Stubbs by Jenni Konrad

The mayor of this small town was a rusty brown-coloured cat named Stubbs. Stubbs was found by Lauri Stec, the manager of Nagley’s General Store. The owners were giving him away with some other kittens and Lauri chose Stubbs because he had no tail as he was part Manx.

Stubbs was born in April 1997 and just within three months from the date of his birth, in July 1997, he was chosen as the mayor of the town. The reason for him being elected as the mayor was that the residents were not happy with any of the human candidates in the mayoral election. So, they voted for Stubbs as a write-in candidate. But how did a cat perform the duties of a mayor? According to Andi Manning, president of Talkeetna Chamber of Commerce, the post of mayor in Talkeetna is more symbolic than functional. Therefore, Stubbs did not have to worry about the duties of a mayor.

Nagley's Store by Jimmy Emerson

Stubbs spent most of his time in Nagley’s General Store. He would wander on the streets and go to different shops and restaurants. He had a habit of drinking water only from a wineglass or margarita glass with catnip in it.

Stubbs drinking from a glass

Image Credit: Dusty Rainbolt's Universe

During his tenure of two decades as mayor, Stubbs drew a lot of attention to the town. Dozens of tourists travelling to other parts of Alaska would go and see the mayor.

On August 31, 2013, Stubbs was attacked by a dog. Stubbs suffered a punctured lung, a fractured sternum, bruised hips and a deep cut. Eventually, he was saved by the vet. He suffered another injury prior to the dog attack when some boys opened fire with a BB gun. Due to the injuries and old age, Stubbs slowed down his public presence.

On July 21, 2017, Stubbs, after serving 20 years as a mayor, died at the age of 20 years and 3 months.

Click here to see some pictures of Stubbs.

REFERENCES:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stubbs_(cat)

https://edition.cnn.com/2012/07/17/us/alaska-cat-mayor

https://www.wsj.com/articles/mayor-of-alaskan-town-is-a-cat-1381889957

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/save-stubbs-the-cat-mayor-of-talkeetna?show_todos=true#/