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Charles and Callie Palm came to Medford from Ohio back in 1888, when the little railroad town counted barely 200 residents. The Palms knew a good thing when they saw it. Charles immediately went into the real estate business and prospered as the city grew.

Charles loved dogs. The couple had been planning to give the city a statue/dog watering hole, but Charles died (on June 17, 1933) before the statue could be dedicated. His obituary mentions his two cocker spaniels, so it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that the statue features a boy and two cockers.

The statue was dedicated in 1934, in what is now called Alba Park (to recognize Medford’s relationship with its sister city of Alba, Italy).

City officials put a fence around the statue later to keep children out of the pool. The fence also prevents thirsty pups from getting a drink at the dog trough below the pool.

Sculpture: Italian white marble; 3 ft. 9 in. x 2 ft. 9 in. x 2 ft. 6 in.
Base: granite; H. 3 ft. 4 in. x D. 3 ft. 9 in.

A young man seated on a rectangular bench, with two small dogs on either side of his feet. The dog at his proper left has its front paws on figure's proper left knee and dog at his proper right has its head on figure's proper right knee. He wears pants and a shirt with sleeves rolled up. Sculpture set in the middle of a fountain.

sources: mail tribune, smithsonian institution.