Maitland has been named one of the happiest cities in the world, and is only one of two Australian cities in the top 50 of a new list.
But in celebrating the win, Maitland's mayor has been accused of fostering division.
Maitland also features on the list of the world's healthiest cities, albeit not in the top 50, but at 112, behind Geelong at 111, and Adelaide, ranked 40th.
Maitland was ranked 35 in the 2026 Happy City Index last month, one of only two Australian cities named in the top 50 behind Ballarat, ranked 16.
In celebration of the win, Maitland mayor Philip Penfold published to his social media account a computer-generated image of the the High Street hitching post statue giving a thumbs up, against a backdrop of Maitland Town Hall with 'Welcome to Maitland' at the top, and 'Happiest City in NSW 2026'.
It comes after a public furore and allegations the mayor overstepped when he authorised the installation of a warning sign outside a display by artist Osvaldo Budet exploring the history of the hitching post in an exhibition at the Maitland Regional Art Gallery.
Budet has accused the mayor of being uncomfortable with the truth behind the hitching post's history, while Cr Penfold has declared 'Jocko shall remain', despite no official calls from councillors or the artist for its removal.
Cr Don Ferris described the mayor's use of the image in this latest social media post as "very insensitive".
"He's been told time and again that members of the community find it abhorrent and he is still trying to stoke division by bringing this image into his social media feed," Cr Ferris said.
"I think he sees that there is a lot of political mileage to make because there are a lot of people in Maitland who like the statue but he isn't taking into account the number of people it offends."
Cr Penfold has said Maitland's Labor councillors and others, including Budet, are calling for the removal of the hitching post statue, a feature of High Street since the 1870s.
Councillors and Budet have denied that, with Budet calling the mayor was provocative for saying people wanted the object to be removed, when that was not the case.
"I have never said we should remove it," Budet said.
"That is for the people of Maitland to solve that problem."
Budet said it was "revealing" that as a result of him "pointing out the real history of that object" in his display, people assumed he wanted it removed.
"They know that if the real history of that object is revealed, it's kind of unacceptable to have it there without a sign," he said.
"He is the one that is dividing people, [trying to] polarise people."
The mayor has declined requests for an interview with the Herald, and chose not to answer questions put to him.
The hitching post is often linked to a story about a slave boy named Jocko Graves who died holding horses for General Washington during the Revolutionary War in the US in the 1700s.
The story goes that the boy, who was left behind holding the horses while the general and the boy's father crossed the Delaware River to fight, froze to death while performing his duty.
In his display Monuments, which is part of the Upriver Downriver exhibition at Maitland Regional Art Gallery, Budet challenges that narrative and analyses how and why it came about.
The gallery has received more than 12,600 visits to the exhibition this year, more than double the visitation rate of 6143 during the same four-week period of the 2025 exhibition.
In his display, Budet says the story of Jocko Graves did not appear in print until the 1960s, through a children's publication that recast the lawn jockey as a patriotic memorial.
In the US state of Michigan, the Jim Crow Museum, which uses objects of intolerance to teach tolerance, notes that there is little to no primary evidence to support the Jocko Graves story.
"The legend does not rescue the object from racism; rather, it trains viewers to doubt the harm of the image and to defend the myth instead," Budet says via one of many informative signs sprinkled throughout his display at the gallery.
On social media, spruiking his talk at the Art Forum, at the Black Theatre, National Art School in Sydney on September 1, Budet also included an image of the hitching post, as it appears on the cover of Mark Tindall's book, Maitland's Racist Garden Gnome, which he is pictured holding.
Budet said he was still in negotiations with the Mutual Bank at Maitland, which had removed a sign accompanying a replica of the hitching post inside their High Street building, which described the statue as "a symbol of courage".
Budet's research indicates that the model featured in the bank's window was a Hitching Post featured in an 1872 catalogue.
The explanatory sign that was displayed in the branch window was removed in reflection of the bank's view that "it is important to carefully consider how historical information is presented as conversations and community expectations continue to evolve".
It is understood the bank is still considering his request to remove the object altogether.
He is also continuing to liaise with Maitland City Council after receiving its response to his formal complaint, which he said he found unsatisfactory.
The exhibition was opened on July 11 and will continue through to October 11.
