White text on red background with illustrated bear cub in center. 

The Chicago Cubs are a Major League Baseball (MLB) team. Founded in 1876 as the Chicago White Stockings, the team was renamed in 1903. The Cubs were a founding member of the National League, and now play in the National League Central Division. The team is affectionally known as “The Cubbies” or “North Siders” and play their home games at Chicago’s historic Wrigley Field. They have a loyal fan base and—regardless of decades of mixed success—are one of the most popular franchises in baseball. In 2016, the Chicago Cubs went on to break a 108-year losing streak curse with their first World Series championship since 1908. The official Cubs team mascot is a young bear cub named Clark. 

The button seen here is one of eight in a collectible series, possibly distributed in vending machines. 

Read more about the History of Cubs Buttons on the Busy Beaver blog.

Red text on blue background with white pattern representing baseball stitching. 

This button is one of eight in a collectible series, possibly used in vending machines. "Bleacher Bums" refer to Chicago Cubs fans who sit in the bleacher section at Wrigley Field. The group was originally referred to as "bums" because, due to their ability to regularly attend day games, the assumption was that they did not have jobs. Many of these fans were, and are, students at the many colleges and universities in the Chicago area, including Loyola, Northwestern and DePaul. The group was started in 1967 by fans and a sports radio host Mike Murphy, who believes that the Bleacher Bums started the tradition of throwing opposing teams' home run balls back onto the field. A Broadway play written collaboratively by members of the Organic Theater Company in Chicago, and starring Joe Mantegna and Dennis Franz, began running in 1977. A performance of the play was aired on PBS in 1979, and a made-for-television movie adaptation of the play came out in 2002. Bud Light bought the naming rights to the bleacher section in 2006, naming it the Bud Light Bleachers.

Read more about the History of Cubs Buttons on the Busy Beaver blog.

Black text on a bright orange background

When Alabama Governor George Wallace spoke to hundreds of whites at Milwaukee's Serb Hall in 1976, he was greeted by chants of "Wallace Yes! Busing No!" which referred to Wallace's opposition of the 1971 Supreme Court decision that gave federal courts the discretion to include busing as a desegregation tool to achieve racial balance in schools. The decision made busing one of the most controversial topics in U.S. law and politics during the 1970s. Opponents of forced busing argued that forcing children many miles away from the students’ homes presented problems for them and their families, and resulted in lower involvement in after school activities and parental participation at the school. 

Large numbers of middle and upper-class residents began to move away from urban areas, settling in the suburbs, which became known as “white flight.” The growth of private and parochial schools rose during this period. In the 1980s desegregated busing began to decline and because of the increased diversity of schools today, many have been excluded from the Federal requirement.

Wallace served two consecutive and two non-consecutive terms as Governor of Alabama over three decades in the 60s, 70s and 80s and declared in his 1963 inaugural address that he stood for “segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever.”  

Red and white illustration of the state of Wisconsin with black text over it on a white background

In 1985, Wisconsin state Senator John Plewa proposed a contest to update the vehicle license plates issued by the state, saying "'Ugly and boring license plates should not be accepted as a fact of life.'' One of the five finalists in the contest was the image and slogan on this button: a red illustration of the state of Wisconsin with the words "We Like it Here".

Wisconsin Governor Anthony Earl suggested the slogan "Eat Cheese and Die", which was rejected by the selection committee. The ultimate winner was the slogan "America's Dairyland" featuring images of a sailboat and sunset, a farmhouse and flying geese. Although the slogan and image of this button did not make it onto Wisconsin license plates, it has been used on other memorabilia and souvenirs. 

Red text on a white background

World War II started in Europe in September 1939 when Germany invaded Poland. “V for Victory” came from Victor de Laveleye, a Belgian refugee, in January 1941. He broadcast that the letter V should become a resistance emblem standing for “Victoire,” victory in French. It also conveniently worked for “Vrijeid”, freedom in Dutch, and “Viktoria”, victory in German. People began scrawling V graffiti across occupied countries. Someone realized that the Morse Code symbol for V, dot dot dot dash, is the same rhythm as Beethoven's Fifth Symphony and the music became part of the victory movement. Winston Churchill publicly made the V symbol with his right hand. He spoke on the radio in June 1941 stating, ”The V sign is the symbol of the unconquerable will of the occupied territories and a portent of the fate awaiting Nazi tyranny. So long as the peoples continue to refuse all collaboration with the invader it is sure that his cause will perish and that Europe will be liberated.” America didn’t enter the war until December 8, 1941, but “V for Victory” was so pervasive that it was printed on envelopes and stationary in August, five months earlier. After the U.S. entered the war, the victory was reached, and this inspired airmail between military personnel and their relatives back home to become colloquially titled V-Mail.

red text on a white background with a red outer edge with white text on it

During the Progressive Era in the U.S., it was common for elementary schools to sign a contract with a local bank for a "school savings program", in which students brought a small amount of money to class each week. The teacher then deposited that money in a savings account for the student that could not be accessed until a certain amount of money, such as two dollars, had been saved. The system was a part of the school banking initiative started by J. H. Thiry in 1885 in New York as a way of encouraging "thrift," or saving money, in the younger generation. By 1914, the school savings idea was gaining popularity with over half of all Illinois students also making deposits. The "100% room" on this button may indicate that it was given as a reward to a classroom where every pupil participated in the program, though this is not certain.

White text on a dark blue background

To help finance the costs associated with WWI, the U.S. Treasury instituted four Liberty Loan drives during the war, and a fifth “Victory Loan” in May, 1919 to consolidate the nation’s debt after the armistice was signed.  Everyone from Wall Street bankers to Boy Scouts campaigned to sell bonds, and rallies were held featuring Hollywood stars such as Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford and Charlie Chaplin.

Purchasing bonds was seen as a display of support for the war, and purchasers were given buttons to wear and window stickers to display to advertise their patriotism.  It is estimated that twenty-million individuals purchased liberty bonds.

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Used during the 1940 presidential campaign of Wendell Willkie, this button refers to the a controversy surrounding President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's family. In 1940, Roosevelt's son Elliot had enlisted in the United States Army Air Corps. He was quickly given the rank of Captain while bypassing the standard procedure necessary for receiving the title. The topic soon became a controversial issue amongst the American public at the time. Willkie's supporters distributed this button as an attack on Roosevelt and the perceived special treatment that his family was receiving.

White text on a green background

This button was worn to support striking workers at General Electric during the 1960’s and 1970’s. It most likely dates from either the 1960 or 1969-1970 nationwide strikes led by the United Electrical Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE) and the International Union of Electronic, Electrical, Salaried, Machine, and Furniture Workers (IUE). The successful 103-day strike of 1969-1970 ended the company’s policy of “Boulwarism” (named after General Electric executive Lemuel Boulware); a "take-it-or-leave-it" style of bargaining that was anathema to the unions.

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