Tama, a calico cat at Kishi Station in Wakayama, became stationmaster in 2007 and helped turn a struggling railway stop into a beloved destination.

Kishi Station, Kinokawa, Wakayama, Japan

Story

Tama was appointed stationmaster at Kishi Station in 2007 and became a symbol of the Wakayama Electric Railway.

Her presence drew visitors, changed the station’s public identity and continued through later feline stationmasters after her death.

Tama is archived because the story preserves how a community animal can reshape a public place and local memory.

Sources

• Wikipedia: Tama (cat)
• CNN Travel: The cat that saved a Japanese train station
• Wikimedia Commons: Tama