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. 

Photograph of a figuring made up of five teddy bears on a pedestal on a table with a blue background

Cherished Teddies are collectable ceramic teddy bear figurines. Each Cherished Teddies figurine has a name and a back story, and comes with an adoption certificate. Cherished Teddies are anthropomorphized, outfitted in human clothes and accesories to match their story. Though some figurines are sold in retail stores, the company, founded in 1995, is membership based and the majority of the Cherished Teddies figurines are limited edition, available only for a specific year or season. Cherished Teddies Club “Membears" receive exclusive access to member’s only figurines, along with a “Symbol of Membearship” figurine and button. This button, "Celebrating Five Cherished Years," was distributed to Cherished Teddies Membears to honor the fifth anniversary of the Cherished Teddies Club. A limited edition five year anniversary figurine accompanied the button. 

Red white and blue striped background with blue text on the white striped

"Snoopy For President" is a novelty song first released in 1968 by the Florida-based pop music group The Royal Guardsmen. The song debuted in conjunction with the 1968 presidential election, and advocated for the popular Peanuts' cartoon character as a presidential candidate. The final verse of the song reveals that Snoopy is victorious in the election, with the winning vote coming from his former foe, the Red Baron (a character who first appeared in Peanuts comic strips in 1965). The initial recording of "Snoopy For President" mentioned the real 1968 presidential candidates, however when the song was subsequently re-released for the 1972 and 1976 elections, all mention of real candidates had been removed. The Royal Guardsmen have recorded several other songs featuring Snoopy, including 1965’s "Snoopy vs. the Red Baron" and 1978’s "Snoopy’s Christmas."

Illustration of an elf holding a giant candy cane on a white background with a red outer edge with white text

This button is most likely for Santa’s Village, the first franchised theme park in the United States. The original Santa’s Village opened in Lake Arrowhead, California in 1955, one month prior to Disneyland. Two other Santa’s Village locations soon followed: in Scotts Valley, California and East Dundee, Illinois. All three parks were winter themed and each park was designed emulated a village. The buildings were designed to look like snow-covered chalets, with Santa Claus’ cottage at the center. Both California Santa’s Village locations closed in the late 1990s. The East Dundee, Illinois Santa’s Village closed in 2006, but was re-opened and re-branded in 2011 as Santa’s Village Azoosment Park. Santa’s Village employees were called Helpers and were outfitted as elves and pixies. This button would have been worn by a Helper, as part of the uniform. 

Red white and blue background with white text across the center and an illustration of a toy race car at the top and at the bottom

Matchbox is a popular brand of die-cast toys, first manufactured in 1953 by the British company Lesney Products. Matchbox is most well known for producing die-cast miniature toy cars. Over the course of the brand's history, Matchbox has also released miniature versions of, among other things, airplanes, farm equipment, and military vehicles. The brand got its name due to the fact that, up until the 1980s, the toys were packaged in a box that resembled a box of matches.

Matchbox cars became highly collectable with children in the 1960s when the official Matchbox Collectors Club was founded. For a small fee, the club distributed a quarterly newsletter to its members. In the following decades, adults began forming unofficial collectors clubs which were often regionally based. The collectors clubs, many of which still exist today, offer a forum for collectors to discuss Matchbox toys and related ephemera. They also facilitate trading and sales of vintage and rare Matchbox toys. 

Black and white illustration of a kid in a space helmet sipping a drink through a straw and hanging on to a red line delineated shape with red text inside on a white background

Illustration of the skyline of Chicago with a rainbow above and below it and black text along the top edge on a white background.

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Illustration of woman in gray high-collar dress with black headpiece and trailing veil and black leather gloves. She is posed against pale blue background shading to cream. Blue text appears on left and right of illustration.

Widow Jones, which sold fashionable clothing for boys and young men in the early 20th century, had stores in Boston and other locations around New England. A 1909 newspaper advertisement said, "Her name today is a synonym for all that is uptodate, comfortable and nobby in boys' and young men's clothing." Another slogan said, "They Give Satisfaction from the day you buy them until they are worn out." Other clothing stores also sold the Widow Jones brand at their own shops.