Blue text on a yellow background with an illustration in the center with the red and yellow text.

Life Bread was a Hathaway Bakery brand, based in Cambridge MA. This bakery supplied bread to to regional grocery stores, and local school districts. They may have sponsored a radio club for students.

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Yellow text on an orange background with black stars and circles on the bottom.

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Red, green and black text centered below an illustration of an alien on a white background.

“Take me to your leader” is a popular sci-fi phrase that was first used in a 1953 cartoon published by The New Yorker. Since then, it has been stated on both the big and small screens for comic effect. The saying is most commonly uttered by an extraterrestrial being to the first human it encounters after landing on Earth.

“Lead me to your taker” is a humorous twist on this well-known cliché that was fixed onto buttons serving as prizes from gumball machines. In the 1970s, individuals could easily deposit coins into the machines and twist the metal lever to receive a pin-back with a catchy slogan. “Lead Me To Your Taker,” “Can’t You Read,” and “Don’t Follow Me I’m Lost” were just some of the phrases on the gumball machines’ buttons.

Oval with a black and white illustration of the lakeside surrounded by black text above and below on a white background.

The Lakeside Federation of Women’s Clubs was founded in 1888 and consisted of four clubs. The convention that was held in 1896 had an attendance of 484 women. The federation was comprised of clubs from northwestern Ohio and had been holding conventions annually until their last in July of 2013. These conventions served as a way for women to hear speakers of interest and network and interact with each other. The 56^th and 59^th conventions were covered in the Toledo Blade on July 4, 1950 and July 12, 1953 respectively. The annual conventions were two days long and included musical performances (piano players and opera singers), lectures (editor of the Toledo Blade and court clerk), meditations, meals, and other activities. Some of the topics that were presented on at these conventions were “The American Home – Our Greatest Asset” and “The Way of the World at the Moment.” IT appears that traditional and more progressive topics were discussed at these gatherings. 

Illustration of a brown and blue shuffleboard surrounded by blue uppercase text along the outer edge of the button on a white background.

The Lake Wales Shuffleboard and Tourist Club began in 1920 and the club buildings were constructed in 1932 in Lake Wales, Florida. The club, a nonprofit organization, has brought thousands of tourists to the Lake Wales area for many years. An article appeared in the Lakeland Ledger on February 26, 1961 that announced a shuffleboard tournament. The 25^th annual Nation Tower Shuffleboard Tournament was to take place at the Lake Wales Tourist Club. The article explained that “nearly 100 clubs [were] expected to send representatives to the meet . . . [and that] prizes [would] go to the first four places in the championship bracket.” (pg. 3-A). The club continues to operate today. Historic images of the Lake Wales Tourist Club can be seen here on the flickr account created by the Lake Wales Public Library. 

White text in the center with yellow leaves protruding from the "e". A white border with blue outer rim has red text and two red stars, and the background is blue.

In 1883, Barney Kroger opened the first Kroger grocery store in Cincinnati, Ohio.  Today, Kroger grocery stores have expanded to 34 states with 2,640 stores.  In addition to grocery stores, the Kroger Company operates convenience stores, jewelry stores and manufacturing facilities throughout the United States.  

Photograph of a person in a blue red and silver knit mask with their eyes and mouth showing and their tongue sticking out. 

This is a button featuring a ski mask from Nick Cave's art exhibit, "Nick Cave: Meet me at the Center of the Earth." This was the first museum tour for the Chicago based artist; it started at the Seattle Art Museum March 10th, 2011. The exhibit included 50 soundsuits (wearable sculptures) made out of recycled materials, mixing the imaginary with reality and high fashion with African ceremony. The suits were put on display through dance and sound; dance performance artists wore them during the exhibit. 

Italicized black text on upper half and bold black text on lower half, all on a red background.  

This button refers to the 1968 play "Kiss me Quick- I'm Double Parked" by John Kirkpatrick. In this farce one act play, a young dentist is off to his wedding when his wife becomes trapped in an elevator due to worker strikes. Their journey to the alter continues to go awry when they encounter a masked bandit and a broken gas line. 

White text on a blue background. 

Meier & Frank was a department store chain whose headquarters were located in Portland, Oregon. Meier & Frank was founded in the year 1857 and merged with Macy's in 2006. A Keds Club is a club that is tailored towards kids who wear Keds sneakers.

An illustration of an orange person on their hands and knees with a blue border. There are blue lines surrounding the person and the background is white.

Keith Haring’s Radiant Baby is one of his most famous. The image represents a pure and positive experience of human existence and is symbolic of Haring’s hope for the future. Although Radiant Baby derives its origin from Christianity it has been used in many of Haring’s other works associated with racism, drug addiction, AIDS awareness and tolerance. 

Keith Allen Haring (May 4, 1958 – February 16, 1990) was an artist and social activist from Pennsylvania whose work was influenced by the New York City street culture and graffiti art of the 1980s. A 1997 Vanity Fair article states that "some of his most characteristic imagery involved figures twirling around and playing together, happy but never aimless." Since Haring's death from AIDS-related illness in 1990, images he created that speak about racism, drug addiction, AIDS awareness and tolerance have become iconic.

The Keith Haring Foundation was established in 1989, and it concentrates in 2 areas of giving: “the support of organizations which provide educational opportunities to underprivileged children and the support of organizations which engage in education, prevention and care with respect to AIDS and HIV infection.”

This button is part of a 12 button series that was made by the Busy Beaver Button Co. for the Keith Haring Foundation's Pop Shop.