Safety First

yellowed background with black text and red and yellowed checkered edge.

In 1937, Irving Caesar published a collection of children’s songs on safety. Called Sing a Song of Safety, Caesar wrote such songs with the intention that they be used in classrooms across the country. Children learned myriad safety precautions, from never crossing the street without looking, to listening to their parents, to never playing with matches, and more.

In the 1940s, carnivals gave out checkered pin-back buttons as game prizes and souvenirs, many of which had funny phrases like “You’re the One” and “Jeepers Creepers” and also included titles of famous songs of the day, like “It Ain’t Gonna Rain No ‘Mo.” This “Safety First” button may be a variation of such buttons.