In the book You Wouldn’t Believe! storyteller Jim Duffy serves up 44 Strange and Wondrous Delmarva Tales that run the gamut from true crime to romance and adventure and comedy. Every story is true. Every chapter is a story unto itself, perfect for relaxed flipping and browsing.
This free excerpt is the shortest chapter in the book–and one of the cutest, in my humble opinion. Here goes:
The dog-gone-missing report that came into the Dover, Del. police department in November of 1935 got lots of extra attention—and for good reason. The fox terrier in question belonged to Maryland native Jimmie Foxx.
Everyone on the Delmarva Peninsula knew that name in those days. Born in Sudlersville, Md., Foxx had slugged his way into baseball’s major leagues in 1925, at the tender age of 17. From that moment on he’d been building a baseball resume for the ages, one that would eventually land him in the Baseball Hall
of Fame.
The incident began when Foxx left his “prize-winning” fox terrier—what other breed would Jimmie Foxx have?—in the care of his father-in-law, Charles Heite. Heite lived across the border in Delaware, along the road between Marydel and Dover.
You can probably imagine the panic Heite felt when that dog went missing, far from home and in surroundings that may have been quite unfamiliar.
Heite called the police for help. The cops jumped into action. In Dover, a description of the missing pooch was distributed to all officers, along with a head’s up about its VIP owner. Alas,
the police searches came up empty.
I will let the Crisfield (Md.) Post tell you what happened next:
“Early Monday evening, Lt. Oliver and Officer Moore were working [at the] police headquarters [in Dover]. They heard a commotion in the hall and a dog walked into the room, sat on the floor, and proceeded to look over the officers. Lt. Oliver studied the dog and then called it by name, to which it gave an immediate
response.
After proper entries were made in the case showing that the fugitive had surrendered, the dog was given a ride in the police car and returned to [Mr. Heite]. The dog, of course, failed to give an explanation for or account of its wanderings.
The back cover of “You Wouldn’t Believe”
Postscript: Land of the Foxx
If you’d like to learn more about the Jimmie Foxx story without traveling to the Hall of Fame in upstate New York, head to his birthplace in Sudlersville. A statue of him stands in a small park at the center of town. Plus, the Sudlersville Train Station Museum has a fun collection of Foxx memorabilia. Be sure to check in advance—the museum is only open occasionally. There is also an extended write-up about Foxx’s fascinating life in an excursion devoted to baseball history in Jim Duffy’s second book of Eastern Shore Road Trips.
About the Book
Thanks for spending a few minutes with this excerpt and on this site! If you want to get a feel for the sorts of stories that are in You Wouldn’t Believe check out the image here of the book’s back cover. Or go to this link.
–posted by Jim Duffy in November 2025 for Whimbrel Creations LLC/Secrets of the Eastern Shore. All rights reserved.
