Black text on a yellow background

In 1886, three years before Washington became a state, the small town of Amboy received their very own Post Office. In 1960, to celebrate the Post Office's 75th anniversay, the Post Master organized a celebration. That event was such a hit that the community decided to make it an annual event. More than 50 years later from that first event, the annual celebration continues to take place and is known as the Amboy Territoiral Days as it takes place at Amboy Territorial Park. This button was to commemorate the 1979 Territorial Days celebration.

Red text on an outer yellow edge with a blue ring with white text on it and an illustration of a ship in the center

On July 17, 1938, a celebration was held in Minneapolis to celebrate the 300th anniversary of the first Swedish settlement in the United States, or “New Sweden,” located in Delaware. On June 27th of 1938, Prince Bertel of Sweden and his parents, Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf and Crown Princess Louise arrived in what is now Wilmington, Delaware. From there, they made their way to Chicago, then Minneapolis to participate in the celebration.

Black text on a white background around the outer edge of an illustration of a person in red and blue with an ax and a gree and a black animal on green grass

The Board of State Charities and Correction served as an umbrella agency overseeing the many State Institutions and facilities in Indiana from 1888-1935. These institutions included: prisons and correctional facilities, state hospitals, eugenics exhibit, orphans and foster children, school for the blind, school for the deaf, county poor asylums and orphanages.

Illustration of a brown boat with gold sails shaped like numbers on a white background with an outer blue with white text

In 1997, the Newfoundland Historical Society hosted a six month long celebration of the 500th anniversary of the arrival of John Cabot, who sailed from Bristol, England and landed in the region now known as Bonavista in Newfoundland in 1497.

The city of St. John’s hosted the Summit of the Sea, in which policy makers from around the world met to discuss environmental issues, as well as an international choral festival. Other events included a Northern Lights Festival,the Labrador 400 dog sled race, and the Labrador Winter Games.

Illustration of a horse and a cow on a yellow background above a ribbon with black text on it over illustrations of a pig, a sheep, more horses, a watermelon and other produce with a white outer edge with black text. It also has a red and a white ribbon attached at the bottom and a chain attaching a small brown pipe to the button

This pastoral design was repeated in souvenirs at various other events. Check out some other examples in our collection: State Fair of Texas, Souvenir of Fair Birmingham, Alabama, and Iowa State Fair.

Black text over an illustration of the United States with red and white stripes and Mount Rushmore on a white background

The founding of the United States as a nation is attributed to the year 1776. In 1976, the country celebrated its bicentennial, or 200th anniversary. To help celebrate this occasion, Mount Rushmore in South Dakota hosted a bicentennial event that lasted 111 days. It celebrated events local to the South Dakota area and nationally to the United States. Exhibits featuring wagon trains and the Freedom Trail were displayed to visitors. In addition, each state and territory in the country were celebrated in their own unique way, with each state getting two days to be featured.

Blue text over a yellow background

The Solidarity Day march of September 19, 1981 was a major political rally that took place in Washington D.C in support of organized labor, and specifically in support of the 12,000 air traffic controllers who were fired for going on strike a month earlier. The strikers demanded increased wages and safer working conditions, but because they were federal employees, they were barred from striking. President Ronald Reagan threatened to fire them if they did not return to work and when they refused, the President fired all of them.

While the air traffic controllers were on strike, their union officials had visited other unions to garner support. This led to the march in Washington D.C. on September 19, 1981 in which almost half a million people showed up in support, earning the name Solidarity Day as it was a show of organized labor.

Green text over an illustration of a town over green with white text on top

A Century of Progress was the theme of the 1933-34 Chicago World's Fair. The fair featured numerous exhibitions and cultural displays, including a "midget village" which was advertised as being inhabited by sixty Lilliputians. The exhibition later expanded and was renamed "Midget City." Historically, the term midget was used to describe people with the medical condition dwarfism.

White text on a purple background with illustration of white stars

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Red text on a green star on a red circle with a green background

Rock Against Racism was a campaign that was first launched in the United Kingdom in 1976 in response to increased racial conflict, growing numbers of white nationalist groups, and racist statements made by well-known rock musicians in interviews or during concerts. Various pop, rock, punk and reggae musicians united to play concerts intended to prevent young music fans from becoming involved with racist groups or actions. Although initially created as a one-time event, multiple Rock Against Racism concerts were held throughout the late 1970's in the United Kingdom, featuring bands such as The Clash, Elvis Costello, and Buzzcocks. In 2002, the Rock Against Racism concert series was resurrected with new bands and renamed Love Music Hate Racism.