Photograph of a squinting older gentleman in the center of the button with blue text. Red logos on a white background.

A 1987 Electrohome advertising campaign used imagery of people squinting to sell the Electrohome EDP-58XL Monochrome Computer Projection System. The ads promised it was a "real eye-opener" because of its higher resolution and other features that would make it easier to see what was being projected.

Red text on a white background. 

In response to the cookie-cutter, conformist lifestyle of the 1950s, an emerging generation of post-war youth decided to turn American culture on its head. The 1960s and 1970s saw the counterculture unfold as new music, films, and recreational drugs helped shape the new era. Peace-loving hippies and the creative beats of The Beatles were all the rage at this time and helped fuel the counterculture movement. People were even famously urged to “turn on, tune in, and drop out” by psychologist Timothy Leary.

In addition to the hippie lifestyle, the counterculture was also characterized by the sexual revolution. Old behavioral codes related to sexuality saw a drastic change-up as more people were accepting of contraception, abortion, and public nudity. Though the United States generally condemns public nudity today, it fit the prevailing attitude of the 1960s that called for sexual liberation.

Humorous buttons related to free love and a host of other themes were manufactured by the Emress Specialty Company in the 1960s. The business was started a decade prior by New Yorker Emanuel “Manny” Ress in Atlantic City with the hopes of one day pinning his buttons on politicians.

An illustration of the skeletons of a dinosaur walking behind a man facing the right. Both figures are dressed as white bed sheet ghosts. The skeletons are grey, and the dinosaur's tail and the feet of both figures are black. The background is grey.

Ghost Buddies is an illustration by Massachusetts based artist Dan McCarthy.  McCarthy is both a visual artist (working in design, screen printing, drawing, and painting) and a musician.

Red rounded cornered triangle with white text inside, white text over top and a white border on a blue background with white text across the top.

The Davidson’s Baking Company was founded in 1914 by Eugene F. Davidson and was one of the largest baking companies in the Northwest. The company’s first store was located in Portland, Oregon and their main product was “Liberty Bread” which was comprised of cornmeal, rye, rice, bran, whole wheat and white flour. The bread was comprised of so many ingredients because of the war and the conservation of wheat. This bread would later be known as Davidson’s Sunbeam Bread. The company marketed their bread with Little Miss Sunbeam and a corresponding national contest in which young girls would compete to locally represent the company. In 1964 the company was producing about six or seven loaves of bread per Oregonian (12.5 million loaves per year). The biggest competition for the Davidson’s Bakery was the other family owned Franz Bakery, inventor of the modern day hamburger bun.

Battistella, E. Davidson Baking Company (Sunbeam Bakery). The Oregon Encyclopedia. Retrieved from: http://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/entry/view/davidson_baking_company_sunbeam_bakery_/

Red ring around outer edge of button with whitish yellow text. Inner circle has an illustration of a yellow bicycle on a gradient green to greenish white background.

Cycle Trades of America (CTA) was founded in 1918 as a trade organization comprised of motorcycle and bicycle parts and accessory makers. Bicycle use in the United States had declined since its “Golden Age” in the 1890s and the CTA’s objective was to promote and publicize cycling. Headquartered in New York City, the CTA oversaw advertising, meetings, and trade shows. The organization was largely responsible for the successful marketing of cycling to boys through ad campaigns that emphasized independence, citizenship, and mobility. The CTA also promoted bicycle safety to address parents’ concerns that their children would be injured or killed by motorists. One of the programs it developed, the Cycle Trades Safety League, was heavily promoted in magazines such as Boys Life. In the ad pictured here from 1938, readers are offered a “beautiful bicycle pin and Safety League membership card FREE” for pledging to obey safety laws while cycling.

Black text on white background. 

This button was sold as part of a fundraiser/promotion for an event hosted by the Coal Cracker Booster Club (CCC). The Coal Cracker Booster Club was designed to be a group of civic-minded individuals who were devoted to continuing the annual observance of the role anthracite coal played in the development of the Shamokin area. Students/alumni of Shamokin high school are called 'Coal Crackers' and the name is a common colloquial for residents. Shamokin, PA (founded 1864) and its sister community, Coal Township, PA were founded and functioned as coal mining towns fo rmuch of their existence. Shamokin was made famous for the huge rush of Anthracite coal mining it felt early on,  the novel "Muder at Hickory Ridge" and, having the 'world's largest man-man mountain' - the Glen Burn Colliery Cameron Culm Bank.

The CCC involved event on June, 28th, 29th, and 30th (as seen on the button) was the annual 'Anthracite Days' which started as a one day event in 1964. The 1968 'Anthracite Days' featured street dancing, the Anthratones Barbershop Chorus, a huge celebratory parade, a fireworks display, a performance by the Holy Cross High School Band, and much more!

Illustration of a person with a sun dial shaped face, with red text above and below on a white background.

The 1965 series of LEAF "Fink Buttons" were illustrated by popular Mid-Century artist Basil Wolverton. Perhaps best known for his work at MAD Magazine, Basil Wolverton (July 9, 1909 – December 31, 1978) was an American cartoonist and illustrator famous for his humorously grotesque drawings. Wolverton worked in the "Golden Age" of comic books doing features like "Powerhouse Pepper" and "Spacehawk" in the 1940s. A 2009 New York Times article states that Wolverton’s drawings embodied the “sick-and-proud humor” of MAD magazine and were considered a “virtuoso exercise in bad taste, made all the weirder for being so meticulously executed."

Blue background with a white shield with red outline and a white silhouette of a dog above it. There is blue text inside the white shield.

In the late 1930’s and early 1940’s, Cleveland-based radio station WTAM hosted a program called Uncle Henry’s Dog Club.  This button suggests that the program supported the Cleveland Animal Protective League and encouraged young listeners to do the same.  Incorporated in 1913, the Cleveland Animal Protective League is an independent, nonprofit humane society.  Even today, the organization continues to partner with a local radio station (Q104) in order to promote its cause.  

Three illustrations of holly leaves across the top of the button with a white semi circle underneath with green text and white text on an overall red background under the semi circle. There is a white oval at the bottom with green text in it.

This button would have been given to a Second National Bank Christmas Club member. The Christmas Club is a savings program that allows bank members to deposit a set amount of money every week into a special savings account, and receive the money back at the end of the year for Christmas shopping. There have been a variety of Second National Banks and the name continues to be used today. The first Christmas Clubs were established in the early 20th century. 

An illustration of a frowning older man with round glasses and a furrowed brow. He is balding. His ears and nose are pink and his face is a peach color. The traces of hair are grey and the glasses are black.

This button was designed by Chris Ware. He is a comic book artist and cartoonist. His most popular works include graphic novels Jimmy Corrigan, the Smartest Kid on Earth and Building Stories, and the comic book series Acme Novelty Library. The characters in his work are often depressed, melancholy, in despair, or facing some type of adversity.

Ware is one of the prominent artists who partners with Busy Beaver to create a special line of buttons. This button is part of the Button-O-Matic artist series in 2003 produced by Busy Beaver Button Company.