Statue of dog catching a frisbee.

Frisbee Dog Memorial

Middlebury, Vermont

In 1938, so the story goes, a group of Middlebury College students were enroute to a fraternity convention in Nebraska. Delayed by a flat tire, with nothing more than an empty pie plate and a willing dog, the sport of frisbee tossing was born.

The slightly larger-than-life-sized sculpture commemorating the sloppy sports milestone is titled "Frisbee Dog," though Frisbees weren't invented until 20 years after this dog played catch. The iron sculpture of the exuberant Great Dane is the work of artist Patrick Villiers Farrow, brother of Mia Farrow, and was donated by Gary Merrill.

There are no bandanas, no hippies... but it's a unique landmark as far as campus quads go. For some hippie vibes, head over to the nearby "LOVE" sculpture, one of several made by Robert Indiana in the 1970s. The campus features thirteen other outdoor sculptures.

[Additional info provided by Doug Perkins and C. S. Martin]

Love sculpture.

Frisbee Dog Memorial

Middlebury College

Address:: Hwy 125, Middlebury, VT
Directions:: Middlebury College. East edge of town. On Hwy 125 (College St.). Munroe Hall is on the south side of Hwy 125; the Frisbee Dog statue is in back, on the quad side.
RA Rates:: Worth a Detour

Nearby Offbeat Places

Grave of the Mummy, Middlebury, VT - < 1 mi.
Sheldon Museum: Petrified Boy, Stuffed Cat, Mummy Grave, Middlebury, VT - < 1 mi.
Grave with a Window, New Haven, VT - 7 mi.
In the region: Bowman Mausoleum's Mourning Man, Cuttingsville, VT - 39 mi.

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May 24, 2013