Norwich contest Saturday seeks look-alikes for WWI hero dog
Jun. 2—NORWICH — Is your dog sort of medium in size, tan and white, with a bulldog or boxer-type face, short ears and coat, and perhaps a brave heart?
Enter your dog in the Sgt. Stubby Look-Alike Contest at 10 a.m. Saturday at the Norwichtown Green for the chance to win approximately a year's worth of dog food and parade around the green wearing a replica of the World War I uniform jacket the real war dog hero Stubby wore in France during World War I.
The Norwich World War I Memorial Committee is hosting the contest as part of its effort to tell the lesser-known stories of the war and raise money for the restoration of Norwich's war prize: a captured German howitzer cannon.
"We're trying to mix this up a little bit and have fun as well," said Dale Plummer, committee chairman and city historian. "There are so many different aspects of WWI."
Plummer had hoped to bring back the WWI field oven to make authentic Salvation Army doughnuts on Saturday to accompany the dog contest, but the owner of the field oven had to cancel.
Tom Callinan, former official state troubadour and a Norwich resident, will perform a concert of WWI songs, "Over Here & Over There: Songs from & about the Great War," at noon Saturday on the Norwichtown Green.
According to Plummer, Stubby was a "plain, old stray street dog" on the streets of New Haven, when he was found by Robert Conroy, who was training in New Haven with the 102nd Connecticut infantry regiment, part of the 26th so-called Yankee Division of New England National Guard troops headed for France.
Conroy adopted the dog, taught him to salute and took him to France. He became a valued mascot for Conroy and the 102nd Infantry Division. Stubby was sensitive to the presence of poison gas and helped alert the troops to gas attacks. Stubby also helped capture German soldiers approaching to scout Allied troop positions. And he was a morale booster.
Stubby was wounded several times, received numerous awards and medals and was given the honorary titled of sergeant. Some French women made Stubby his tan jacket with his name on his left side, adorned with his medals and ribbons.
Stubby survived the war and died several years later. He was stuffed, dressed in his jacket and is on display at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. The museum also houses a collection of photographs of Stubby and Conroy.
Stubby's story has been told in books and in an animated movie, "Sgt. Stubby, An American Hero," released in 2018.
The new Hyde Home & Farm store, 217 Otrobando Ave., Norwich, and dog food company Nulo collaborated to offer the grand prize for the Sgt. Stubby contest: 12 bags of Nulo dog food kibble, up to 23 pounds each, to the winning dog. Plummer called it "a substantial prize" and thanked the sponsors.
Plummer said he has no idea how many contestants might show up Saturday. On Wednesday, he went to the Norwich dog pound in hopes of finding a potential contestant that might also be given a chance at adoption. None was found.
"It's kind of exciting," Plummer said. "We won't know about the dogs until Saturday at 10 o'clock. There's some around, whether (owners) they're willing to bring them, we don't know."
