On Monday, Woolwich’s Board of Selectmen awarded Victor Knight the town’s Boston Post Cane.

Knight turned 95 on Tuesday, and the Board of Selectmen have found him to be the oldest living resident of Woolwich. Knight came to Maine in the 1950s from Connecticut, and currently lives in Woolwich with his wife, Ruth.

The couple live in a house directly across from the farm where they raised cattle for over 30 years, although Victor insists that he is “strictly retired.” At its height, the farm boasted over 80 animals in all, noted Ruth.

In a brief ceremony at the Knight’s home, Selectmen Chairman David A. King Sr. presented Knight with a replica of the original Boston Post cane.

“I brought you a cane,” said King. “I hope you have this cane for a very long time.”

“Well, this is an honor,” Knight said upon receiving the cane. Knight noted that his father had also received the Boston Post cane in Woolwich years earlier, much to the surprise of selectmen.

The Boston Post Cane is a century-old tradition that began as a marketing gimmick for the Boston Post, a Massachusetts paper no longer in print. In 1909, the Boston Post sent specially made ebony canes with gold knobs to 700 towns across New England, where the Board of Selectmen would present the cane to the oldest living resident.

The Boston Post went out of business around the same time Knight moved to Maine. However, Woolwich — and over 400 New England Communities — continue the tradition of passing on the Boston Post cane to their town’s oldest resident. Woolwich still has the original gold capped cane, but now hands out a replica instead.

“My grandson asked it was solid gold,” said Ruth. “I told him I doubt it.”

The entire Woolwich Board of Selectmen was in attendance to congratulate Knight and wish him well.

“This is the fun part of the job,” said King as the selectmen departed for a scheduled executive session.

nstrout@timesrecord.com

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