White text on red border, blue text in center on white background. 

Depression era salesmen's promotional button that equates sales with jobs. 

Black and white illustration of a man with an eagle head holding a briefcase and text on both sides of image.

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All text. Light green background of the outer edges contains the contact information. Center circle detailing the company's services has a pink background with green highlighting of key phrases in the copy.

Rockland Photo Studio was situated for many years at 439 Main Street in Rockland, Maine. The all-service photography and camera repair shop was established in 1915. Looking for a mirror to check your face before your studio photo? Without even knowing it, your customer has accepted to carry around your ad, hopefully pulling it out at other photo-taking events where the ad message can be spread. 

A curly-haired blonde child with a chalkboard sits with his feet out in front of him; his sore red foot is showing through one of his shoes. "Educator SHOE" is printed on the sole of the other shoe. The text and company logo appears on both sides of the character in red over a white background. The logo text is written on the chalkboard in white.

Rice & Hutchins was a shoe manufacturing and wholesaling company based in Boston. It was started in 1866 by William Ball Rice and neighbor Horatio H. Hutchins. Both had experience in the shoe business, Rice having apprenticed as a shoe maker before joining the Union Army. The company grew quickly, adding factories in the northeast. Hutchins retired in 1885 but Rice continued the company's reach into the Midwest and opened offices in Berlin, London and Manila. By the time of his death in 1909, the company was considered to be among the largest shoe manufacturers in America. Sons Harry and Fred continued the business until it was sold in 1929.

Rice & Hutchins "Educator" was advertised as an "orthopoedically correct" shoe for men, women and children, prices starting at $1.35. They were among the 800 pairs of shoes on display in the company's award winning exhibit at the 1915 World's Fair held in San Francisco (Panama-Pacific International Exposition).

Yellow background with black text inside a black-dotted talk bubble.

Renault vehicle manufacturer began in 1899 by three brothers in Paris, France. They achieved early success by racing their cars in city-to-city contests which unfortunately took the life of one of the brothers. A second brother left the company, but the third, described later by Time magazine as "rich, powerful and famous, cantankerous, brilliant, often brutal, the little Napoleon of an auto making empire," was still running the company. Renault's innovative designs for military tanks, airplanes and vehicles during WWI garnering the company a Legion of Honor award. But by 1944 the remaining brother was accused of collaboration with the Germans in the Second World War and died before the trial. The company, Renault, was nationalized in 1945 by the French. 

Cream text on navy blue circle around button face's periphery.  Red lettering on cream background.   Illustration of heads of three young children.  Girl in middle has large bow on her head.

Randolph Cuties, based in Philidelphia, was a company known for their moderately priced children's socks.

In the center, black text appears over a white background. In the top third of the button, a white polar bear is shown on a blue background. In the bottom third, white text appears over a red background.

The Rambler was a men's topcoat (overcoat) manufactured in Chicago by Hart Schaffner & Marx. The company was founded in 1887, specializing in tailored menswear and is currently owned by America's largest suit maker, ABG-HMX Group. The company was one the largest suppliers of military uniforms during the First World War, and later produced the olive green U.S. Army Officer's Uniform worn during World War II. More recently, President Barack Obama has famously sported hometown HSM suits at both his presidential acceptance speech and 2009 inaugural address.

Illustration of the character Popeye enclosed in a circle followed by a large black number and the newspaper's name curling the bottom of the button in red, all on a white background.

The New York Evening Journal ran a contest in which readers who matched their number to the ones listed in the newspaper's funny pages won prizes. The newspaper was run by Hearst who was the first to run a daily comic strip page. In 1919 the newspaper hired cartoonist E.C. Segar to create a new comic which was called "Thimble Theater." Amazingly, it was ten years until much loved "Popeye, the Sailor Man" made his appearance. After that, he pretty much took over things, starring in television cartoons, video games and even movies.

A black and white sketch of a hand holds a small computing device that reads 'Arithmachine'. Black text wraps around the outside edge of the button. 

The Arithmachine, and later versions Contostyle and Arithstyle, are the creations of Henry Goldman who arrived in the US in 1881 from Vienna. The Arithmachine (1898) was a small mechanical device (4 ½" x 1 ½" x 3 ½") weighing about a pound that was similar to an adding machine but also performed multiplication, division, and more complicated functions using a curved stylus. "One can carry it like a notebook in the pocket"

The machine was manufactured in Chicago but the International Arithmachine Co. also had offices in New York City where the Arithstyle was later manufactured. It was exhibited at the Pan-American Exposition in New York in 1901 and featured in a number of magazines. The company marketed the product to bookkeepers, banks and related industries as: "Brain resting, labor saving. Readily understood. Easily operated." "Saves Experts Mental Strain!" The adding machine also made it to Berlin, where Goldman traveled in 1905 to arrange for manufacture of the Arithmachine under the name Contostyle. Goldman's death in 1912 seems to have halted development of this early computing machine.

Red text over black and white photograph of a young girl and boy skipping happily and carrying lunchboxes.

Penney’s, J. C. Penney, or simply jpc, is the company founded by James Cash Penney in 1912-3. Prior to this, the 34 stores he ran had the brand “Golden Rule” which originated as frontier town dry goods stores. The first store opened in 1902 in Wyoming, reaching its peak in 1973 with 2,053 stores.

His stores were among the first retailers to offer "one price for all" instead of haggling which was common. Interestingly, after 110 years in business the chain became known for offering deep discounts and regular sales such as Penney's Back to School Days.