Blue and yellow background with white text and an illustration of a man holding a telephone reciever in the upper right corner

“Detroit says: ‘Watch Ford in ’48’” was a slogan used by the Ford Motor Company as part of a 1948 advertising campaign. The slogan appeared in both print and radio advertisements, as well as on other materials like this button, and played up the city of Detroit’s clout in the automotive industry. Detroit, which has come to be known colloquially as “The Motor City,” was world-renowned as an automotive powerhouse. For the majority of the 20th century, Detroit housed the headquarters for Ford and its subsidiary brands, along with the other two major American car manufacturers, Chrysler and General Motors. 

Illustration of a caucasian man with black hair in a red white and blue suit and cape on a white background with black text.

A series of 86 different comic character buttons were issued by Kellogg's and given away with PEP cereal between 1945-1947. Other characters in the series included Orphan Annie, Dick Tracy, Popeye and Felix the Cat.

Superman is a comic book superhero created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster in 1933. He was born on the planet he was born on the planet Krypton and was sent to earth by his father before Krypton was destroyed. He was found and raised by a family in Kansas. He has superhuman abilities like superhuman strength, speed, senses, breath and the ability to fly.

White text on red backgroud

Faites-Le! is French for "do it!"

White text on a blue background

Hágalo! is Spanish for "do it!"

White text on a blue background

Machen Sie Es! is German for "do it!"

White text on a purple background

zrób to! is Polish for "do it!"

Illustration of a red train with a triangle of railroad tracks around it and a landscape behind that with red and black text above and below.

The Triangle Trolley Trip was a sightseeing trip offered by the Pacific Electric Railroad in the early 20th century in California. Billed as “The Way to See Southern California,” the 100 mile trip cost sightseers $1.00. The tour travelled southeast out of Los Angeles toward Santa Ana, and advertised such points of interest as “the walnut groves of the Whittier country,” “the oil fields of the Olinda District,” Huntington Beach, Seal Beach, and an aviation field.  The tour stopped for two hours for lunch in Long Beach, and included a free ride on the Hippodrome, a large ocean-side merry-go-round. 

Click here to see an alternate version of this button, also held by the Button Museum. 

Black text on a pink background

The mission of the the Illinois Department on Aging is to provide programming that serves and advocates for older residents of Illinois. The state-funded agency provides services like senior centers, meals, transportation, outreach, and employment help. The also offer, among other programs, elder rights advocacy, legal assistance and protection, a 24-hour Senior HelpLine, care coordination, and services for grandparents raising grandchildren. The Illinois Department on Aging was established upon the passing of the Illinois Act on Aging, which became effective on November 9, 1973. This button honors the 20th anniversary of the formation of the Illinois Department of Aging in 1993, which fell under the administration of Jim Edgar, who was governor of Illinois from 1991 to 1999. 

White text on a red outer ring with a white circle in the center of the button with an illustration of Santa's head

Marshall Field and Company was a Chicago based department store that opened in the late 1800's and remained opened until 2005 when Macy's acquired the business.  Marshall Field and Company gained notoriety for unique Christmas advertisements and promotions during the holiday months.  This button was traditionally given to customers that went and visited Santa.

Purple text and a purple illustration of a whale

The Girl Scouts of America first began selling cookies in 1917, five years after the organization was founded in the United States. Initially, individual girl scouts troops baked cookies themselves as a way to fund scouting activities. Troops shared recipes by submitting them for publication in The American Girl, the official Girl Scouts magazine. The national Girl Scout organization began selling commercially baked cookies in 1936. Flavors have evolved over time, but cookies have been sold by the Girl Scouts ever since, halting only for World World II when food rations made cookie sales impossible. By the late 1970s, the Girl Scouts streamlined cookie production and designed uniform packaging for all the cookie varieties sold by the scouts. Girl Scout Cookies are sold only once a year—at the same time for all scout troops—and the phrase “Girl Scout Cookie Time” on this button is a reference to the popular annual cookie sales event.