Discover Wicksteed Park: Jerry the dog

Have you ever spotted the statue of a dog inside the rose garden? That is Jerry the dog!

Jerry the dog was one of the three known dogs that the Wicksteed family had. From archive images it is believed that he was a terrier of some sort, possibly a Jack Russel Terrier.

Jerry was a particularly important dog as he was Charles Wicksteed’s loyal companion. He travelled everywhere with Charles, including on some trips where Jerry would ride the train with him.

Charles’ daughter Hilda also wrote serval books that featured Jerry. These books include ‘Jerry and Grandpa’. She also wrote from Jerry’s perspective with lines written such as ‘I love to ride in the car with my master’ and ‘Today I went in the garden to try to catch the goldfish in the pond’.

Sadly, Jerry disappeared while Charles and Hilda were on a trip in South Africa in 1928.

Jerry’s statue can still be found in our rose garden today with a plaque reading:

“Closely bound to a human heart, little brown dog, you had your part, in the levelling, building, staying of the streams, in the park that arose from your master’s dreams.”