Photograph of white two-story house with an inset photograph of Ronald Reagan.  Black text inside a white rectangle on the bottom of the button.

Former president Ronald Wilson Reagan and his family lived in Dixon, Illinois at the house shown here between the years of 1920-1924. In the early 1980s, the Ronald Reagan Boyhood Home Preservation Foundation was founded to preserve the house as a historic site. It was restored to its 1920s appearance and opened to the public as a museum in 1984. Since that time, a visitor's center and statue of Reagan has been added to the property. 

Illustration of bald eagle covered by shield with blue stars and red and white stripes.  An olive branch and arrows are gripped in its talons and it is holding a scroll in its beak.  Blue and red text and 5-pointed stars on a white background.

Archie Bunker was a character on the CBS sitcom All in the Family, which ran from 1971 to 1979. Portrayed by Carroll O'Connor, Archie was the blue-collar, curmudgeonly husband to Edith Bunker (Jean Stapleton) and father to Gloria (Sally Struthers). Known for his abrasive nature and often bigoted opinions, the character, along with Edith, was one of the most beloved of television and popular American culture in general in the 1970s.

In 1972, All in the Family and its cast of characters were promoted with merchandise as a tie-in with the U.S. presidential election of that year. 

Photograph of Richard Nixon in center with red and black text on a white outer border.

In 1988, comedy writer Gerald Gardner release the book, The Mocking of a President: A History of Campaign Humor From Ike to Ronnie. The book is the first in Gardner's series of works chronicling jokes made by, and about, political candidates, including President Richard Nixon. 

Gardner began publishing political humor in 1966 with the release of the first book in his Who's In Charge Here? series. These works added humorous captions to pictures of politicians. Besides his political books, Gardner is best known for writing the successful 1960s television comedies, Get Smart and The Monkees, along with his writing partner, Dee Caruso.

Image of Archie Bunker with a cigar in his mouth on a white background.  Blue and red text and 5-pointed stars around edge of button.

In 1972, a spoof presidential campaign was launched featuring television character Archie Bunker from the show All in the Family, and its spin-off Archie Bunker's Place. A series of buttons, including the one shown here, was released by Tandem Productions and featured Archie and Edith Bunker as well as mock campaign slogans. 

Center image of the fictional character, Archie Bunker against a white background with with blue text on top and red text on the bottom

Archie Bunker is a fictional character who appeared in the 1970s American sitcom All in the Family as well as its spin-off Archie Bunker's Place. Portrayed by actor. Caroll O'Connor, the character of Archie Bunker is a World War II veteran, blue-collar, conservative, whose political and social bigotry were used as a source of comedy. Though Archie exhibited a gruff and mean demeanor throughout the shows run, the character also exhibited moments of decency and genuine love for his family, making the character popular with the audience. Seen as exhibiting the traits of the common man, a parody election campaign featuring Archie gained popularity during the 1972 election. T-shirts, bumper stickers, and buttons advocating Archie for President became a popular trend at the time.

Pink background with an illustration of three oil containers with a picture of a skull and crossbones on the middle can which also has oil spilling out from its side. Text appears on top and bottom of illustration

In January 1991, dual marches took place in Washington where protestors came together to voice their displeasure with the United States role in the Gulf War. The first protest was held on January 19 with an estimated 25,000 people in attendance while the second protest held on the 26t is estimated to have had 75,000 protesters . The numbers for the January 26 protest are debated, with some organizers believing the number to be closer to 225,000. The protest came days after the commencement of Operation Desert Storm. Serving as a response against Iraq's invasion and annexation of its neighbor, Kuwait, the United States, in coalition with 35 fellow nations launched a counter offensive against Iraq. The protests in Washington argued that war was not in the best interests of the United States and that rather, the conflict should end in a cease-fire as opposed to an all out war. The war on the ground continued until February 24, where Iraqi resistance nearing its collapse caused for President George H.W. Bush declaring a ceasefire, thus ending the Persian Gulf War.

Illustration of two clasped hands against a red half circle.  Red, blue and white text on a white background.

The Solidarity Day march took place on September 19, 1981, when nearly 250,000 people marched in Washington, D.C. The march primarily took place to protest then President Ronald Reagan firing 12,000 striking members of the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization. Nonprofit organizations such as Greenpeace and the NAACP participated to show support for organized laborers. This button would have been worn by a member of the Machinists Union who marched in support. 

White background with a peanut in its shell in the center. Green text above, tan text inside the peanut.

Plains, Georgia, with a population of about 700 people is located in the southwestern region of the state surrounded by peanut fields. Prior to the Great Depression Plains was a bustling town, but the economic downturn caused the small town's prosperity to take a dive. The 1976 presidential election and years following it reawakened Plains as thousands of people visited the community to see the hometown of the 39th United States President Jimmy Carter. The town now hosts the annual Plains Peanut Festival, which attracts visitors from around the world. The event includes a parade and educational exhibits about the area’s agriculture. 

Illustrated silhouette of Albany, New York's skyline on a blue background with white text.  Upper edge of button is grey with black text.  Lower portion of button is black with red shape of New York state and white text.

In 2000 the Democratic Convention was held at the Pepsi Arena in Albany, New York. It was there that Hillary Clinton accepted the nomination for US senate. She attended the convention with her husband, Bill Clinton, who was the president of the United States at that time. 

"History in the making" was the slogan for Clinton's campaign as she took on the challenge of the US Senate after being first lady of the United Sates for eight years.

Illustration of "sad face" with black text along upper edge or button on a yellow background.

Entering into the 1980 presidential campaign, Jimmy Carter struggled to gain support from the liberal wing of the Democratic Party, due in large part to Ted Kennedy running against him. Though he eventually secured the candidacy, he was unable to match his opposition Ronald Reagan's promise of a reinvigorated economy and tax cuts. Reagan took 44 of the 50 states, with Carter winning only his home state of Georgia, his Vice President's state (Minnesota) and four others. The sad face buttons were produced by Reagan's campaign to express the general dissatisfaction America felt with Carter's first term, contrasting with smiley buttons bearing Reagan's name. Carter was the first incumbent president to lose since Hoover in 1932, and the first Democrat to serve only one term since Buchanan in 1857.