My Mom's the Greatest

Black text on a white background with a red heart

The phrase “My Mom’s the Greatest” connects this button to the commercialization of Mother’s Day, a U.S. holiday founded in 1914 and promoted by greeting card companies, florists, and retailers throughout the 20th century. By the 1970s and 1980s, inexpensive novelty items like pin-back buttons became common tokens of affection and were often sold alongside greeting cards in drugstores and gift shops.

This button was made by Gibson Greeting Cards, Inc., a Cincinnati-based company founded in the late 1800s. The company grew into one of the biggest greeting card publishers in the United States, eventually expanding beyond cards into items like mugs, wrapping paper, and wearable pins. In the year 2000, Gibson was bought by American Greetings.