WAAF 107 FM

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Text on Button WAAF 107 FM
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Stylized black and red text on a black background

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WAAF 107.3 was a radio station serving the Boston area. Hitting the airwaves during the 1960's, WAAF found its identity as a station for melodic rock. WAAF developed a reputation for boundary-pushing, raunchy humor and content, which made it controversial and earned it accusations of sexism from some listeners. WAAF also had a heated rivalry with another Boston-area radio station, WBCN, culminating in a 1997 race to be the first station in the area to play the embargoed Aerosmith album Nine Lives prior to its public release. In 2020, the station's parent company sold the station; its last day on air was February 21, 2020. As of 2025, the 107.3 frequency is now a Christian music station. 

Sources

Eagan, J. (2020, February 21). Inside rock station WAAF's final day on the Boston airwaves. WCBV45. https://web.archive.org/web/20200225043745/https://www.wcvb.com/article/inside-rock-station-waaf-s-final-day-on-the-boston-airwaves/31049854

Kauppi, J. (1992, April 26). On WAAF, if it's raunchy it goes on the air. The Boston Globe. https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-boston-globe-on-waaf-if-its-raunch/45273007/

Sullivan, J. (1997, February 8). Deejays at WAAF and WBCN take aim at each other. The Boston Globe. https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-boston-globe-deejays-at-waaf-and…

Catalog ID AD1145

Hudson River Sloop Restoration Inc.

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Text on Button HUDSON RIVER SLOOP RESTORATION INC. COLD SPRING N.Y.
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Dark blue sailboat on a light blue background with dark blue text between two dark blue lines around the rim and small dark blue text under the sailboat

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Nowadays a trip from New York City to Albany, New York will take just about an hour by plane, or three hours by train. But until the mid-1800s, you were in for a 24-hour boat ride aboard the Hudson River sloop! The sloop, a type of sailboat, transported passengers, cargo, and livestock along the Hudson River from New York’s days as a Dutch colony until the widespread adoption of the steamboat in the 1820s. In the 1960s, folk singer and environmental activist Peter Seeger and his wife, Toshi, began raising funds for a full-size replica of the sloop Clearwater, which launched from South Bristol, Maine, in 1969. Ever since, Clearwater has served as a mascot for cleaning up the Hudson and hosts local students for field trips. As Seeger told the New York Times in 1969, “Until people start to love their river, it’s going to be a sewer.”

Sources

The Hudson River Sloop. (2016, November 6). Hudson River Maritime Museum History Blog. May 29, 2025, https://www.hrmm.org/history-blog/the-hudson-river-sloop 

 

Rodell, S. (1995, November 28). Editorial notebook;a sloop named clearwater. The New York Times, p. 22. 

 

Robinson, D. (1969, August 2). Sloop will sail up the hudson in campaign for clean water. The New York Times, p. 42. 

 

Mass sailing up hudson. (1970, March 22). The New York Times, pp. 461–464. 

Catalog ID CA0969

New Belgium Brewing

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Text on Button NEW BELGIUM BREWING
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Yellow background with a brown illustration of a man in a suit riding a bicycle overlayed by light brown filigree in the center of the button; to the right of the primary illustration is a small circle with brown bicycle on a yellow background in the center and white text on a brown background around the rim

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New Belgium Brewing’s story began in June 1988, when co-founders Kim Jordan and Jeff Lebesch took a life-changing bike trip through Belgium. Inspired by the country’s rich brewing traditions, they returned home to Fort Collins, Colorado, eager to start crafting their own beer. By 1991, Jordan and Lebesch had transformed their basement into a small brewery. That June, they launched test batches of two brews nicknamed “Fat Tire” and “Abbey,” which later debuted at the Colorado Brewers’ Festival. Just two years later, their “Abbey Ale” won a gold medal in the Specialty Category at the Great American Beer Festival in Denver.

As the brewery grew, so did its identity and values. In 1999, New Belgium established a tradition of gifting every employee a custom cruiser bike on their one-year anniversary as a nod to the company’s origins.

New Belgium’s commitment to social and environmental responsibility also helped shape its legacy. In 2009, the brewery installed what was, at the time, Colorado’s largest solar array. The company further advanced its sustainability goals in 2020, when “Fat Tire” became America’s first certified carbon neutral beer.

For much of the brewery’s history, local watercolor artist—and Kim Jordan’s neighbor—Ann Fitch created the artwork featured on New Belgium’s bottle labels. Her illustrations also inspired the bicycle-themed logo shown on this button. However, in 2013, the company opted for revamped designs with hopes of attracting newer generations of beer drinkers, though Fitch is still largely credited for the success of their early branding.

As of 2025, the company’s slogan sums it up best: We were born on a bike. The rest is history.”

Sources

Heffel, N. (2013, August 28). A New Look for New Belgium. KUNC. https://www.kunc.org/business/2013-08-28/a-new-look-for-new-belgium.

New Belgium Brewing Company. (n.d.). Born on a Bike. Our Story: The Rest is History. New Belgium Brewing. https://www.newbelgium.com/company/story/.

Catalog ID BE0201

Rally Day with Angel Fob

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Text on Button RALLY DAY THE WORLD IS A LAMP UNTO MY FEET
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Illustration of a yellow and green ornate entryway with an open door surrounded by foliage in the center surrounded by black text on a light blue background around the rim

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Wm. H. [illegible]
10 So. Wabash
Ave.
Chicago, Ill.

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Rally Day is an annual event observed by some Protestant congregations marking the start of the church calendar. Rally day is also commonly regarded as a day to emphasize Christian education for children and other church participants, often through Sunday School. 

The phrase, "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet" is an abbreviation of Psalm 119:105, "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path". It refers to the teachings of Christ being a guide for the faithful to conduct their lives. 

Sources

Canavan, P. (2015, September 8). What is Rally Day? Find Out Sunday!. Tenth Presbyterian Church. https://www.tenth.org/resource-library/blog-entries/what-is-rally-day-f…;

Discipline Ministries. (2009, August 17). Worship Resources for Promotion Sunday and Rally Day. Discipline Ministries: The United Methodist Church. https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/worship-resources-for-promotion-sunday-and-rally-day

Williams, M. A. (2018, September 13). Your Word Is A Lamp For My Feet And A Light For My Path -Psalm 119:105. Mark Alan Williams. https://www.markalanwilliams.net/post/2018/09/13/your-word-is-a-lamp-fo…

Catalog ID EV1001

I Get It Apple

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Text on Button I GET IT. ®
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White text in a black box on a white background, with an illustration of a red apple below.

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On April 1, 1976, Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne co-founded the Apple Computer Company, later renamed Apple Inc., a major corporation in Silicon Valley, California. "The two Steves" had been developing computer technologies since 1971 and famously conducted their early operations in Jobs' childhood home. Apple was catalytic in expanding computer usage beyond commercial businesses. By 1984, Apple was the main competitor of established computer company IBM, and the two companies raced to release personal computers into the market. One of Apple's most famous lines of computer models is the "Macintosh," referring to the McIntosh apple.

The simple font and design of the Apple logo, along with parallels with the naming conventions of iPods and iPhones, is reminiscent of 2000s Apple marketing and branding. Apple devices are often designed to be sleek and user-friendly, perhaps suggesting that Apple Inc. simply "gets" what users really want.

Catalog ID AD1147

Kleenex 1964

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Text on Button KLEENEX TISSUES KLEENEX TISSUES KLEENEX TISSUES 1964
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Illustration of a blue and white box of tissues on red background.

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Kleenex Brand tissues have a long history, developed by parent company Kimberly-Clark for a surprising original use: as filters inside soldiers’ gas masks during World War I! The innovative, crepe-like paper proved to be so useful that after the war, Kimberly-Clark began incorporating it into their consumer products. In the early 1920s, it was used in menstrual pads branded as Kotex. In 1924, a thinner and softer version of the material came onto the market specifically as a makeup remover. It wasn't until 1929, in response to reports that Kleenex was being used in place of a handkerchief, that the brand morphed into its now familiar form. 

Kleenex packaging has changed repeatedly over the decades to reflect changing trends and new features of the product; the one seen on this button is representative of Kleenex in 1964. 

See the Busy Button Museum’s other Kleenex packaging buttons from 19241928193219361960, and 1968

Sources

Bellis, M. (2019). The History of Kleenex Tissue. ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/history-of-kleenex-tissue-1992033
 

Kleenex. (n.d.) The Tale of Kleenex. Kleenex. https://www.kleenex.co.uk/kleenex-history
 

Catalog ID AD1146

Go Fly a Kite Peanuts

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Text on Button GO FLY A KITE Copr © 1950 United Feature Syndicate Inc.
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Illustration of a bald child in a yellow and black shirt running with a kite trailing behind him in front of an orange background with black text. 

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MADE IN USA

Curl Text BUTTERFLY ORIGINALS, LTD. CHERRY HILL, N.J. 08003 MADE IN U.S.A.
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Good grief! Charlie Brown is a fictional character in Charles M. Schulz's daily comic strip Peanuts which debuted in 1950 and later as a TV show in 1965. Known as a “lovable loser” he became a widely recognized cartoon character that is relatable to all ages. Charlie Brown lacks self-confidence and goes through pessimistic and optimistic days, representing the average person and what many people go through.

One recurring challenge that Charlie Brown faces on several occasions is his attempt to fly a kite. A certain tree so often swallows up his kite, he names it the Kite-Eating Tree in a comic strip published on March 14, 1965. There is a published collection of comics from 1959 and 1960 titled Go Fly a Kite, Charlie Brown! and the Charles M. Schulz Museum even has an exhibit dedicated to Charlie Brown's many Kite-Flying Foibles. Although Charlie Brown's attempts to fly a kite are not exemplars of success, he is often depicted with determination to try again.

Sources

Kite-flying foibles. Charles M. Schulz Museum. (2023, April 13). https://schulzmuseum.org/kite-flying-foibles/

Schulz, C. M. (1960). Go fly a kite, Charlie Brown: A peanuts book. Mattel Home Programs.

Catalog ID EN0680

WAAF 107 FM

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Text on Button WAAF 107 FM
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White and Orange text on a black background

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WAAF 107.3 FM was a radio station broadcasting to the greater Boston area. While WAAF formally began in 1961 as an easy-listening station, it transitioned to hard, melodic rock in 1970 and retained that identify for the rest of its existence. The station prominently played artists like Guns n' Roses, Metallica, Red Hot Chilli Pepper, and Motley Crue, as well as local bands. WAAF had a rivalry with fellow Boston station WBCN due to their similar sounds and a feud surrounding which station would be first to play an embargoed Aerosmith album Nine Lives. WAFF went off the air in 2020 following a sale by the company owning the station. Since that time the 107.3 frequency has become a Christian music station. 

Sources

Sullivan, J. (1997). Deejays at WAAF and WBCN take aim at each other. The Boston Globe. https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-boston-globe-deejays-at-waaf-and-wbc/45650876/

Eagan, J. (2020). Inside rock station WAAF's final day on the Boston airwaves" [video]. WCVB. https://www.wcvb.com/article/inside-rock-station-waaf-s-final-day-on-the-boston-airwaves/31049854

Ward, B. (2020). WAAF, formerly a New England rock music staple, will now broadcast Christian music". Boston 25 News. https://www.boston25news.com/news/waaf-formerly-new-england-rock-music-…

Catalog ID AD1145