Black text on yellow background with an image of the "crescent scraper" behind the text. 

From 1910s to 1990 Sauerman Bros. Inc. was a construction equipment manufacturer based in the Chicago area. They specialized in excavators, wire ropes, cableways, and aerial tramways. Sauerman Bros. Inc. appeared in numerous engineering and machinery catalogs during the early to mid-20th century promoting their scrapers and other construction equipment. By 1990, Sauerman Bros. Inc. was acquired by AmClyde Engineered Products Inc. Sauerman Bros. Co. produced promotional items for their popular lightweight model crescent scraper bucket, as seen here. The crescent scraper bucket, developed in the 1950s, was considered innovative for its use in various excavation projects.

White background with green and black text, and a large green, white, and black 3 dimensional "U" with green designs around the "U".

In 2004, MTV launched a collegiate version of the popular music channel and called it mtvU. The music and programming catered to the tastes of the college-aged demographic and was distributed through Viacom to 750 colleges and universities throughout the U.S. While it continued to show music videos, the channel also provided programming related to college life, and even had its own award ceremony, the mtvU Woodie Awards. Enjoy an aughts musical flashback with this clip of the 2008 Woodie Award ceremony. https://youtu.be/me86AH3YTiI?si=vVoej-tkDlOlbcvS

White background with pink and black text, and a large pink, white, and black 3 dimensional "U" with pink designs around the "U".

In 2004, MTV launched a collegiate version of the popular music channel and called it mtvU. The music and programming catered to the tastes of the college-aged demographic and was distributed through Viacom to 750 colleges and universities throughout the U.S. While it continued to show music videos, the channel also provided programming related to college life, and even had its own award ceremony, the mtvU Woodie Awards. Enjoy an aughts musical flashback with this clip of the 2008 Woodie Award ceremony. https://youtu.be/me86AH3YTiI?si=vVoej-tkDlOlbcvS

White background with blue and black text, and a large blue, white, and black 3 dimensional "U" with blue designs around the "U".

In 2004, MTV launched a collegiate version of the popular music channel and called it mtvU. The music and programming catered to the tastes of the college-aged demographic and was distributed through Viacom to 750 colleges and universities throughout the U.S. While it continued to show music videos, the channel also provided programming related to college life, and even had its own award ceremony, the mtvU Woodie Awards. Enjoy an aughts musical flashback with this clip of the 2008 Woodie Award ceremony. https://youtu.be/me86AH3YTiI?si=vVoej-tkDlOlbcvS

White background with red and black text and a large red, white, and black 3 dimensional "U"

In 2004, MTV launched a collegiate version of the popular music channel and called it mtvU. The music and programming catered to the tastes of the college-aged demographic and was distributed through Viacom to 750 colleges and universities throughout the U.S. While it continued to show music videos, the channel also provided programming related to college life, and even had its own award ceremony, the mtvU Woodie Awards. Enjoy an aughts musical flashback with this clip of the 2008 Woodie Award ceremony. https://youtu.be/me86AH3YTiI?si=vVoej-tkDlOlbcvS

Blue background on the top half that fades into a white background with a red splash on the bottom half; yellow block lettering on top and black stylized letters on the bottom; ten black stars appear on the background throughout the button

In what has to be one of the most iconic television intros of all time, Rod Serling prepares the viewer for the twisted reality they are about to experience in The Twilight Zone. While the intro changed slightly throughout the seasons, the line “Next stop, the Twilight Zone!” remained fairly constant. The show used an anthology format and focused on people dealing with the uncanny, often shading into social commentary. It had a strong cohort of popular writers and sometimes used adaptations of classic short stories, bringing beloved weird tales to life.

The Twilight Zone originally ran from 1959-1964, and there have been a few reboots of it since, with the most recent airing in 2019. In 1983, it was adapted into a feature length film.

Image of Andy Warhol's Marilyn Monroe in gold and black 

Shortly after her death in 1962, Andy Warhol used a photo from the 1953 film “Niagara”, featuring Marilyn Monroe, to mass produce silk screen prints of the actress. The artist was impacted by the passing of Marilyn Monroe and this project was a tribute to the actress and the woman, but also was the result of his fascination with fame, celebrity culture, and mass media. Monroe was the symbol of Hollywood, likened to glamour and tragedy, she embodied the themes that Warhol had explored during his career. She was a cultural icon whose identity was shaped as much by media representations as it was by her actual life.

Warhol's use of silk screen printing allowed him to produce multiple versions of Monroe's image, preserving her legacy while also commenting on the superficiality of fame. The stark contrasts and bright colors in these portraits highlight the colorful public persona that millions knew her for, contrasting her somewhat dark private life. Warhol not only paid homage to one of the most famous actresses of his time, and ours, but also critiqued our culture of worshiping celebrities and the media's role in creating these larger-than-life figures.

Red and black text on a yellow background.

In 1926, MacFarlane’s Candy Co., then known as MacFarlane’s Nut Co., opened their doors in Oakland, California. Founded by Donald Lee MacFarlane, who also went by the moniker “Awful Fresh”, it soon became a staple of the region and moved to a new location on Market Square in 1936, expanding to eighteen stores by the 1960s. Operating under the slogan “MacFarlane candy is gooder,” the company sold a wide variety of nuts, chocolates, and other sweets. They also sponsored a bagpipe band that performed for several decades. Riviana Foods acquired the company in 1971.

Yellow background with red and black text around an illustration of a gray mouse with large ears, a bow tied on its tail, and a red heart on its chest next to three illustrated flowers

The Girl Scouts of America is an organization for young girls in the United States. It was founded in 1912 by Juliette Gordon Low. The purpose of the organization is to empower girls and young women to become courageous, compassionate, and confident leaders of the future as well as involved American citizens. Girl Scouts participate in educational activities, such as learning first aid, camping trips, and community service. They earn badges for the accomplishment of certain tasks and acquisition of particular skills.

Click here and here to see other versions of Girl Scouts Superstar buttons.

White background with an illustration of white and brown hands embracing, brown text, and an image of a brown headstone with white text in the image.

"Jim Crow" was the name given to a group of racial segregation laws, primarily enforced in southern and border states of America between approximately 1865 (immediately after the ratification of the 13th Amendment abolishing slavery) and 1965. The name is derived from a fictional blackface minstrel character portrayed by Thomas Dartmouth Rice in the early 1830s. Rice mocked a physically disabled African slave and the name came to equate a pejorative for African-Americans. When the strict anti-black laws took the same name, it legally named Black Americans as second-class citizens. Both formal and informal segregation policies were also in place across other areas of the country. 

Black codes were state and local laws that specified how, where, when, and for what compensation formerly enslaved people could work and live. This created a form of indentured servitude for Black citizens. These laws eliminated Black citizens' voting rights, controlled their living and travel parameters, forbade interracial marriage, put many lives in danger, and led to violence and murder. Jim Crow dictated an entire way of life, as the laws mandated segregation in schools, parks, libraries, drinking fountains, restrooms, transportation, restaurants, and other public spaces. Many former Confederate soldiers worked as police and judges in Jim Crow areas, which kept Black codes in rigid enforcement. Incarcerated people were treated similarly to enslaved people in labor camps, and Black citizens received longer sentences and had to complete physically demanding work.