Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
Marshall Cohen—researcher and producer, CNN
Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
WALKING STICKS
WALKING STICKS. The mark of a gentleman. Walking sticks, carried by wealthy merchants, politicians, or elected officials, conveyed the feeling in 19th century America that the person being observed no longer had to labor. Some walking sticks concealed weapons, and most were capped with a weighted head.
One famous Dubuque resident known for his use of a walking stick was David B. HENDERSON who had a leg destroyed and amputated during the CIVIL WAR. One of Henderson's walking sticks was fashioned from a sapling cut by President Madison. Another of his sticks had a silver head and a hole in the cane's side showing a view of the U.S. Capitol.
Senator William Boyd ALLISON carried a silver-headed walking stick during his career as a United States representative and senator from Iowa. His name encircled the cane's elongated head that sat at a right angle to the cane's shaft.
Dubuque residents elected MAYOR were known for carrying walking sticks. Henry S. HETHERINGTON, a Dubuque bricklayer and businessman, served one term as mayor in 1858. He was fond of carrying a rose, gold, and black ebony cane given to him as a Christmas gift in 1885. George L. NIGHTINGALE, merchant and lawyer, served as mayor in 1856 and 1857. He carried a mahogany cane with a carved yellow gold head inscribed from the merchants of Dubuque.
