. @newburyportnews did this great story on a woman receiving a Boston Post Cane this week. This led us to get curious about Boston Post Canes. I called @NEHIST, in Maine, which knows a lot about Boston Post Canes. @wbznewsradio.

The Boston Post was a newspaper in New England -- a very popular one -- that folded in 1956. In 1909 it devised a fantastic publicity stunt -- creating 700 very fancy ebony canes with gold handles. It gave those canes to the leaders of 700 New England towns...

...to be given in turn to the oldest man in town. Later, women were included. Thanks guys.

Leslie Landrigan, with @NEHIST, tells me about 500 canes are still being given out across New England. There have been incidents.

When Leominster's town hall was being renovated, the Boston Post Cane vanished and later turned up on Ebay.

In Hampton, NH, there was a scuffle over who was oldest and who should get the cane, so Hampton doesn't cane anymore.

In Paxton, MA, the woman being presented with the cane didn't want the cane because she didn't NEED a cane, thank you very much, and to accept the cane would be bad luck.

Leslie Landrigan says considering about 500 municipalities are still participating in this tradition, almost 70 years after the Boston Post stopped publication, the Boston Post Cane might be the greatest publicity stunt ever.

I should point out sometimes @wbznewsradio offers promotional t-shirts.