Story: Harry Orscheln

Story: Harry Orscheln

Photos: Bryan Bosch

Monroe County is fortunate to have wonderful spots for walking and wandering.

This month we visit Rex and the N. Custer Rd. biking and walking trail along the River Raisin.

September is a lovely, cool month to appreciate the beauty and splendor of the River Raisin while 
pondering momentarily Monroe’s penchant for loving dogs.

Start your walk at Rex II, the famous landmark of the steel statue of a Labrador duck-hunting dog. 
The original Rex has a long history for Monroe and the nation. Believed to be cast of zinc in 1884 
in Batavia, N.Y., Rex first guarded an Ohio mansion for years before being brought to Monroe Steel 
Castings Co., 917 W. Front St., in the 1930s. There, it delighted children and passing motorists for 
years until it wore down from exposure and was restored and relocated to Monroe County Community College.

Rex II was cast in steel in 1980 by Herman R. Hatfield, installed at Steel Castings and then relocated 
to the fire station on N. Custer in 1992. Rex III — a clone — was molded to greet visitors at the Lake 
Erie Metropark in Brownstown Township in 1994. And apparently there are a few Rex look-alikes located 
across the nation.

But this Rex on N. Custer Rd. may be the most-loved, because it remains in the heart of Monroe near 
Veterans Park and its lovely spot on the river.

From Rex you can wander over to the river bank and admire the view and then double back to the fire 
station. Built in 1980 at a cost of $213,000, the earth-tone brick structure won a building design 
award from the Masonry Institute of Northwest Ohio.

From there, we suggest you wander west for half a mile and then head back to Rex.

The walkway extends all the way out to Munson Park going west and to the Monroe YMCA if going east. 
The river and trees along this route create one of the finest scenic stretches in the county. Note a 
giant weeping willow whose branches and leaves accent the sky. Enjoy the curve of the river, smile at 
the joggers, bikers and dog walkers and know that this is a small part of Monroe at its finest in 
September with Rex II vigilant at the fire station watching your back.

The N. Custer Rd. trail was a City of Monroe project in the early 1980s. Almost immediately it became 
a popular walking and biking path.