Mother Hubbard

☞ Public domain character. Folkloric. First appearance, Juvenile Amuſements (1797) if not Proſopopoia; or Mother Hubberds Tale (1591 or earlier).

Mother Hubbard or Dame Hubbard is a kindly old Englishwoman who has a beloved dog that does some very unusual and comical things each time she leaves to get him something. In some texts, her name is spelled as Mother Hubberd and Mother Hubbord. Depending on the source, the dog’s name is said to be Tray, Prin, Doggie Hubbard or Rover, but Tray is the name used earliest and most often. According to one text, the dog dies in 1819 and is survived by Mother Hubbard, but another text states that, by the week of 14 December 1886, Mother Hubbard has died and is survived by her dog, and yet another text indicates she dies in 1931; nevertheless, both she and the dog continue to have multiple adventures over the centuries, evidently at least into the 1940s. Mother Hubbard’s counterpart in the world of Yankee Mother Goose is Mother Santry (who goes to the pantry), her counterpart in the world of The Bull Moose Mother Goose is Mother Cutler (who rings for the butler), and her counterpart in the world of Mary Gay Stories is Mother Hubbard Squash.

http://www.fresnostate.edu/folklore/ballads/BGMG134.html

https://blogs.princeton.edu/cotsen/2017/05/the-adventures-abroad-of-mother-hubbard-and-her-dog/