Illustration of open book being held by a hairy creature.  Black text on a light green background.

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Illustration of gold coin with woman wearing crown in center of button.  Edge of button is divided into sections with gold lines with one gold letter inside each segment.  Blue background.

This campaign pin promoting William McKinley for President is a reference to his support for gold and protective tariffs during his race against William Jennings Bryan in 1896 and features an image of the Type 3 gold dollar. For that reason, the color gold appeared through much of McKinley’s campaign materials. Other known buttons from this campaign encouraged Conservative Democrats to cross party lines and said things like “I am a Democrat but will vote for Gold Standard.”

Illustration of rabbit wearing a plaid bathrobe sitting in a green chair holding a red book with a smaller rabbit sitting on their lap.  Lamp on small table with two steaming cups.  Window in background with crescent moon and stars.  White text on blue background.

"Read to Your Bunny" is a book written and illustrated by Rosemary Wells. This book encourages parents to read to their children for twenty minutes every day, which she considers the most important part of the day. Wells uses animals frequently in her writings in order to handle controversial and complicated topics in a way that children can understand. She is also well-known for her book series Max & Ruby, which is about two sibling bunnies and their everyday lives.

White background with black text and a double encircling of the image of Mickey Mouse.

A Walt Disney creation, Mickey Mouse, is an adorable, fun-loving animated mouse developed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks during the late 1920s. Originally played by Walt Disney, he made his first public debut in a short entitled "Steamboat" (1928). However, it was not until he starred in his own comic strip did Mickey Mouse become a star and grew in popularity. Although his friends and foes, which are referred to as Mickey & Co., accompanied him in the strip, Mickey still stole the show with his mischievous antics and infectious sense of humor.

Profile illustration of Julius Caesar's head and shoulders with black text on a white background.

Julius Caesar was a Roman General who rose to prominence first as a member of the First Triumvirate and later through his successful military campaigns in Gaul, now modern-day France. On his return to Rome, he further concentrated his power to become the most influential citizen in the Republic. He undertook many social reforms, including the Julian calendar, land ownership for veterans, and citizenship for colonial subjects. Due to the success of these reforms he was named "dictator for life" by the Senate, only to be assassinated on the Ides of March (March 15) 44 B.C. by a group of Roman Senators dissatisfied with his leadership. His adopted son and heir, Octavian, later became the first Roman Emperor Augustus. Several royal titles have roots in Caesar's name, such as the German Kaiser or the Russian Tsar.

Many gum manufactures in the late 1800s used pepsin powder in their chewing gum and marketed it as a way to aid indigestion. Pepsin was thought to settle stomach issues and help people with digestive concerns.

White peace sign on a black background

The peace sign was originally created in 1958 by Gerald Holtom for the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament. Inspired partly by semaphore flag signals for "N" and "D" (Nuclear Disarmament), Holtom sketched the symbol several times in preparation for the upcoming protests. Afterward the symbol was adopted by the American Student Peace Union in the 1960s, it grew to become the iconic symbol that we know today. Holtom passed away in 1985, and his collection of sketches was donated to the Commonweal Collection at the University of Bradford.

White text on a red background

Encouraging people to "buy gay", or purchase from LGBT business owners, is a way of promoting social change and prosperity in the LGBT community. The phrase "buy gay" appears to originate back to the 1980's in communities with large LGBT populations. This button very likely originates from one of those communities during that time period. 

Illustration of open book laying flat with a five-pointed star shooting from the pages on a background consisting of outer space, planets, stars and a rainbow.

"Book It" is a popular 30-year old reading program created by Pizza Hut that encourages kids and adults to read books for the promise of a free pizza. Anyone who participated in the program in the late 80's and early 90's received this pin. 

White background with black text. An illustration of an ox with an oversized body in brown and tan with white horns and a speech bubble.

Running Press is a book publisher that publishes about 80 titles each year under four different publishing companies, in addition to book kits and other publicity items. The company was founded 1972, and publishes broad range of genres and book related items. 

Photograph of commercial juice dispenser with a baby bonnet resting on top of it.  Black text on a white background.

Established in 1951, Golden Gem Growers, Inc. is a Florida citrus fruit corporation. The company processes citrus fruit into frozen concentrates, fresh fruit, and by-products which are shipped to points outside of the State of Florida.  The produce is grown by individual growers and Golden Gem (corporation) harvests and processes the citrus fruit of each shareholder-grower.  This beverage dispenser contains grapefruit juice and orange juice grown by Golden Gem Growers. The bonnet combined with the phrase "Our Baby" lets their customers know they treat their product with care. It also implies a pride in the product they grow.