The Brookline Historical Society is delighted to announce that Rogene Porter has consented to accept the Boston Post Cane at its next monthly meeting of the BHS on Wednesday, January 11 at 7 PM. The occasion will take place at the BHS barn at 17 Meetinghouse Hill Road. As always, the public is welcome. Refreshments will be provided.
The Boston Post Cane tradition goes back over 100 years. It began as a public relations campaign by a former Boston newspaper. In the paper’s name, an ornate ebony cane with an engraved gold top was awarded and passed down through the years to the oldest citizen in town. About 700 towns in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island participated. Brookline’s first recipient was Nathaniel Hobart, at age 87, in 1909. It is believed that Brookline’s original cane was lost in a house fire around 1952. As a result, the tradition ceased. However, in 2003, the BHS had a replica made and the tradition was revived. The cane itself, after presentation, resides at the BHS and the recipient is awarded a Boston Post pin.
Brookline’s 2023 honoree is 97-year-old Rogene Reynolds Porter, born August 20, 1925, in Leominster. She was the oldest of 3 boys and 3 girls. In 1939, her parents, Neil and Esther Reynolds, moved the family to Brookline. One of her early schoolmates was a local boy named , Delbert Porter, Jr. Rogene and Del would become engaged when Del came home from bootcamp before he set off to serve in World War 2. They married two years later when he returned. The Porter’s were married for 76 years until Del’s passing in 2021. Rogene continues to reside in the home that she and Del bought in 1951. A true Brookline treasure, you’d be hard pressed to meet a more gracious person.
Please join us on the 11th for this tribute to Rogene.