The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR), a group of Union veterans of the Civil War, held annual encampments from 1866 to 1949 to celebrate their days of glory. Barbara Grumet, wife of cane collector Lou Grumet, had a special interest in the GAR, as her great-grandfather was the GAR national chair. Commemorative canes were produced for many of the encampments. This wood cane is from the 1892 Washington, D.C. encampment and is topped with a tin cap featuring a likeness of General Ulysses S. Grant.

The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR), a group of Union veterans of the Civil War, held annual encampments from 1866 to 1949 to celebrate their days of glory. Barbara Grumet, wife of cane collector Lou Grumet, had a special interest in the GAR, as her great-grandfather was the GAR national chair. Commemorative canes were produced for many of the encampments. This wooden cane with applied tin decoration is from the 1897 Buffalo encampment.

The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR), a group of Union veterans of the Civil War, held annual encampments from 1866 to 1949 to celebrate their days of glory. Barbara Grumet, wife of cane collector Lou Grumet, had a special interest in the GAR, as her great-grandfather was the GAR national chair. Commemorative canes were produced for many of the encampments. This example has a pewter handle, with military motifs of the flag, eagle, cannons and cannon balls, which were commonly seen on the encampment commemorative canes.

The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR), a group of Union veterans of the Civil War, held annual encampments from 1866 to 1949 to celebrate their days of glory. Barbara Grumet, wife of cane collector Lou Grumet, had a special interest in the GAR, as her great-grandfather was the GAR national chair. Commemorative canes were produced for many of the encampments. This example has a pewter handle, with military motifs of the flag, eagle, cannons and cannon balls, which were commonly seen on the encampment commemorative canes.

In 2008 Barack Obama became the first African-American to win the presidency. He was a Senator from Illinois and ran with Senator Joe Biden from Delaware. They won over Senator John McCain of Arizona and Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska. Grumet was an early supporter of Obama and commissioned this bespoke cane from Pat Harris, a noted cane carver from Baltimore, for his cane collection. The cane is a painted wood caricature of Obama, complete with big ears and a halo on his head.

In 2004, Senator John Kerry ran against the incumbent President George W. Bush and lost. His running mate was Senator John Edwards of North Carolina. He produced their names as a paper addition to a common eagle cane and gave them to supporters. Surprisingly, there was no Bush cane, even though President Bush collects canes.

After Lou Grumet collected a number of antique canes of iconic historic American political figures, he commissioned Baltimore carver Pat Harris to create a figural cane of Hillary Clinton and Bill Clinton, or a "Billary" cane, for the Grumet cane collection. It shows an older Bill and the candidate Hillary. It was intended as a commemoration of her candidacy, not his, and was meant to affect the perception of the team. After she lost the nomination, she went on to become the Secretary of State under Barack Obama. The cane is carved and painted, and has both heads at the top. The idea of the two-headed cane comes from French canes with the heads of Napoleon and Josephine, and Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, which are in the Grumet collection of European leaders.

After Lou Grumet collected a number of antique canes of iconic historic American political figures, he commissioned Baltimore carver Pat Harris to make a figural cane of former President Ronald Reagan for the Grumet cane collection. The cane has a carved and painted head of Reagan. Reagan was Governor of California and longtime spokesman for conservative causes when he became president. He was the oldest man to be elected president, and he is often credited with ending the cold war with the Soviet Union. He also dramatically changed our tax and regulatory policies.

In 1976, in addition to the nostalgia cane done in conjunction with the Bicentennial, Democratic candidate Jimmy Carter produced a cane with a peanut-shaped handle and his name on it. Carter was a peanut farmer, and the cane, made of metal, built on his personal story. Carter ran with Senator Walter Mondale of Minnesota, a protégé of Hubert Humphrey. They defeated President Ford and Senator Robert Dole.

Although there was no official campaign cane for Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964, some local supporters made them. This cane, done by a Texas supporter, was made out of wood, with a red cap. It has the slogan "walk away with LBJ." The official campaign slogan was actually "All the way withy LBJ." Johnson ran with Hubert Humphrey of Minnesota, and he trounced Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona and his running mate, Congressman William Miller of New York.