Jack was the pet and assistant of double leg amputee signalman James Wide, who worked for the Cape Town–Port Elizabeth Railway service. James "Jumper" Wide had been known for jumping between railcars until an accident where he fell and lost both of his legs.[2] To assist in performing his duties, Wide purchased the baboon named Jack in 1881, and trained him to push his wheelchair and to operate the railways signals under supervision.
An official investigation was initiated after a concerned member of the public reported that a baboon was observed changing railway signals at Uitenhage near Port Elizabeth.[3]
After initial skepticism, the railway decided to officially employ Jack once his job competency was verified. The baboon was paid twenty cents a day, and half a bottle of beer each week. It is widely reported that in his nine years of employment with the railway company, Jack never made a single mistake.[4][5]
After nine years of duty, Jack died of tuberculosis in 1890.[3] Jack's skull is in the collection of the Albany Museum in Grahamstown.
Wallechinsky, David (1975). The People's Almanac. Doubleday. p. 697. ISBN9780385040600.
External links
December 29, 2022
jack, baboon, confused, with, jack, monkey, jack, died, 1890, chacma, baboon, attained, some, fame, acting, assistant, disabled, railway, signalman, south, africa, jackjames, wide, with, jackspeciesbaboonbreedchacma, baboondied1890cause, deathtuberculosisresti. Not to be confused with Jack the Monkey Jack died 1890 was a chacma baboon who attained some fame for acting as an assistant to a disabled railway signalman in South Africa 1 JackJames Wide with JackSpeciesBaboonBreedChacma baboonDied1890Cause of deathTuberculosisResting placeAlbany MuseumOccupationAssistant to a disabled railway signalman Contents 1 History 2 See also 3 References 4 Sources 5 External linksHistory EditJack was the pet and assistant of double leg amputee signalman James Wide who worked for the Cape Town Port Elizabeth Railway service James Jumper Wide had been known for jumping between railcars until an accident where he fell and lost both of his legs 2 To assist in performing his duties Wide purchased the baboon named Jack in 1881 and trained him to push his wheelchair and to operate the railways signals under supervision An official investigation was initiated after a concerned member of the public reported that a baboon was observed changing railway signals at Uitenhage near Port Elizabeth 3 After initial skepticism the railway decided to officially employ Jack once his job competency was verified The baboon was paid twenty cents a day and half a bottle of beer each week It is widely reported that in his nine years of employment with the railway company Jack never made a single mistake 4 5 After nine years of duty Jack died of tuberculosis in 1890 3 Jack s skull is in the collection of the Albany Museum in Grahamstown See also EditList of individual monkeysReferences Edit Conway Morris 2003 p 242 Williams Michael 2 August 2012 Stranger Than Fiction Jack the Signalman Knoxville Daily Sun Retrieved 27 October 2014 a b Cheney amp Seyfarth 2008 p 31 Wallechinsky 1975 p 697 Signalman Jack The Baboon Who Worked for the Railroad and Never Made a Mistake www mentalfloss com 11 October 2018 Retrieved 14 March 2020 Sources EditCheney Dorothy L Seyfarth Robert M 2008 The Primate Mind in Myth and Legend University of Chicago Press ISBN 978 0226102443 Conway Morris Simon 2003 Life s Solution Inevitable Humans in a Lonely Universe Cambridge University Press p 242 ISBN 9781139440806 Wallechinsky David 1975 The People s Almanac Doubleday p 697 ISBN 9780385040600 External links EditJack the Signalman by Pieter du Plessis Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Jack baboon amp oldid 1101843710, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
