For several years now while making photos of Montana I have wondered what cultural significance was (if any) of an upside down cowboy boot on fence post here in Montana. I criss-cross the state often as I make Montana photography and this is something I see quite frequently I posed this question to my friends on Twitter and suddenly I found myself inundated with a variety of different answers—none of which seemed particularly accurate or true.

Some said it was so the rain and bugs don’t get inside the boot, which didn’t make sense since I see cowboy boots on fence posts in the winter, too. Another person said it was done to prevent the top of a wooden fence post rotting out. I didn’t buy that one either. Another said they did it to keep scorpions out of them. But there aren’t scorpions in winter, are there? And probably the best response came from someone who said, “Because they can.”

Do you know why cowboy boots are placed upside down on fence posts in Montana? If so, let me know what you think.

UPDATE (5/2/2014): Check out all of the thoughts and ideas on this subject on my Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/toddklassyphotography