Resources
Books
For a detailed history on the canes and the towns that received them we refer you to the three books written by Barbara Staples.
Links
Wikipedia has an article on the newspaper, The Boston Post, that may be of interest.
Replicas, Pins, etc.
We often get asked about replicas of the cane or other alternatives. Many towns wish to keep the original cane stored away for safe keeping (and considering the history of lost canes, this would seem to be a good idea!) We don’t have great answers for that yet, but hope to provide that information here in the future. If you know of places that produced replicas, pins, plaques, etc. suitable for presentation to recipients of the cane – please let us know and we’ll put the information here for other towns and historical societies.
- Josephs’ Jewelers in Leominster has created replica pins of the Boston Post Cane for at least one town.
- Peavey Manufacturing in Eddington, Maine created the replica for the Lee (Maine) Historical Society. (Peavey makes walking sticks, but perhaps makes canes on special request.)
- The Town of Peterborough, NH has sold replicas to other towns. They were charging $100 plus postage. Contact the Town Administrator for details. (As of May 2009 Peterborough still has extras to sell.)
- The Greenfield (Massachusetts) Historical Society offers lapel pins for $6 ea (plus $3.50 handling). Contact Tim Blagg via email at tblagg [at] recorder.com
It should be noted that many people and historical societies seem to use the “replica” when they really mean “substitute”. By definition a replica of a Boston Post Cane would be made of ebony, have a gold head, and a similar inscription. Many of the so-called replicas are existing canes that look similar or were made of other materials.
Contribute
If you know of other good books, articles, or web sites – please make a comment here and let us know.
I’d be glad to have my e-mail address listed… the Society is still taking orders for pins. An e-mail to me will bring an order form, complete with price list and photo of the pins, which are enameled and quite nice. The price is $6, plus a $3.50 handling charge.
Tim Blagg, Historical Society of Greenfield
Hi Tim, My dad, Francis Fenton of Mercer, Maine, is the oldest person in Mercer and I would like to award him a “gold cane” or pin for his recognition. Mercer evidently lost their gold cane. My dad remembers seeing it as a child. He was recently recognized in Skowhegon for being the oldest person in Mercer. They gave him a certificate and flowers which is nice, but I want to get something that can be passed to the next honoree. Could you give me any ideas? Thanks, Carol
Would you happen to know anything about a similar cane with gold head distributed by another newspaper in the 19th century, or is this a unique story?
My great grandfather, Arthur F. Coughlin, born 1843, in Cambridge, Ma was awarded the cane by the Town of Arlington sometime in the late 1920′s by the Town of Arlington, Ma. He was married to Ellen J. Ahern from Mallow, co.Cork, Ireland on June 3, 1866 and died in Arlington on Nov 5, 1929, a month before I was born. I have been trying to get any further information available on my ancestors, and just ran across this site from the Boston Post.
i NEED A PIN BPCANE FOR THIS THURS ANY CHANCE?
jUDY bALK 603 339 1506
Hello; I’m interested in traveling around New England and recording interviews with the eldest residents of small towns, and am now totally enthralled with the story of the Boston Post Cane. I will now dream of sharing the stories of all the BPC recipients for every town! – dchristiansen@rememberedvoices.com
I wish I had the time to do the same thing. It would make a great documentary or NPR piece. I hope you can make it happen.