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Carson Pirie Scott & Company was a popular department store around the turn of the turn of the century in Chicago, IL. Their flagship store was designed by the foremost authority on skyscraper construction, Louis Sullivan who wrote his treatise on skyscraper architecture in 1896 titled, “The Tall Office Building Artistically Considered.” He is credited with coining the idea, “form must ever follow function.” In 1909, the department store decorated their iconic store front in honor of President’s Day and Abraham Lincoln’s 100th birthday. The Carson Pirie Scott & Company store is now known as Carson’s and although they have moved to new locations, the original flagship store still stands in downtown Chicago as of 2020.

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Parisian Novelty Company got their start in Chicago, Illinois in 1898 making button making equipment, parts, and machinery. After several decades of serving North America as the leader in button making, Parisian Novelty Company was acquired by the Matchless Group in late 2008.

Clean up, paint up, light up community service parades were a campaign to advocate for environmental cleaning projects in neighborhoods and communities that were at risk for losing their aesthetic and attractive appeal to waste and pollution. Groups would meet to demonstrate with signs and clean up efforts as they walked in a parade like fashion through the communities cleaning as they went. The phrase "clean up, paint up, light up" exists in a few variations through the decades but the parades were popular in the mid 60s to mid 70s.

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John Purdue and Tippecanoe County donated land and money to establish Purdue University in 1869. Classes first began in 1874 with 6 instructors and 39 students. Purdue University is located in Lafayette, Indiana and is part of the Big Ten Conference for Division I collegiate sports. Purdue’s official colors are old gold and black. Their mascot is a boilermaker, which is a trained craftsman who creates steel fabrications.

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Through provisions of the Land-Grant Act signed by President Lincoln in 1862, the Ohio General Assembly created the Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College in 1870. Classes first began in 1873 with 24 students. In 1878 the college’s name was changed to Ohio State University. Their school colors are scarlet and grey and the school mascot is Brutus Buckeye, named after the state tree, the Ohio buckeye.

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The University of Minnesota was founded in 1851 as a preparatory school seven years before Minnesota became a state. The school closed during the Civil War due to financial problems, but reopen in 1867 with the help of John Sargent Pillsbury. The university’s two campuses are located in Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota. The official school colors are maroon and gold. They are nicknamed the Golden Gophers because of their mascot, Goldy Gopher.

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The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Their official school colors are maize and blue. Nicknamed the wolverines, Michigan’s athletic teams compete in Division I of the NCAA and are part of the Big Ten Conference. Founded in 1817 in Detroit, the university moved to Ann Arbor in 1837 onto 40 acres of land. Classes in Ann Arbor were first held in 1841 with 2 professors and 7 students.

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Indiana University was founded in 1820 and the original campus was located in Bloomington, Indiana. Classes first began in 1824 with 10 students. Today the university has 8 different campuses in Bloomington and Indianapolis. The official school colors are cream and crimson. The school does not have a mascot, but students are known as Hoosiers. Hoosiers is a nickname for residents of Indiana.  

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Drake University is a private Division I university located in Des Moines, Iowa. The official school colors are blue and white and the school mascot is a bulldog. George Carpenter, a teacher and preacher, and Francis Marion Drake, a Union General and later governor of Iowa founded Drake University in 1881. Classes began that year in a single building with 77 students. Drake University was originally affiliated with the Christian Church, but today no religious affiliation is officially recognized.

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The University of Alabama is located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The official colors of the school are crimson and white and their athletic teams are nicknamed the Crimson Tide. Founded in 1820, it is the oldest and largest public university in Alabama.  The school saw brief glimpses of militarization through the training of troops for the Confederacy during the Civil War and again during World War II. Today the school is committed to education that produces socially conscious, ethical and well-rounded leaders.