Miss Maude Barton of Bancroft was the winner of the Poca River Fish Days Celebration Fish Hat Contest in 1902. This was the last of these competitions.

There had been flagging interest in the Fish Hat Competition for a few years, and in an effort to revivify the contest, an award was offered to the person with the hat adjudged the best.

Miss Barton was the winner, and her award was an all-expense paid trip to Charleston, West Virginia to display her winning hat. It was felt that her appearance in the capital city would garner the attention of the press and bring new life to the Fish Hat Competition.

As is often the case, it was a very warm August, and before the train from Ripley reached Charleston, Miss Barton was put off because of the aroma of the fish. She found herself in Sissonsville, West Virginia, and it was only through the kindness of strangers that she was able to get back to Bancroft. The community reaction was sufficient to end the Fish Hat Competition after 25 years.

This stamp was issued by the Poca Post in a block of 16 stamps in the denomination of 50 pu (Poca Units).