Black text on transparency.

Have info on this button? Contact us here.

White "1933" text on blue band above white "World's Fair" text in red band. Blue text "I Was There" situated on white background next to a blue illustration of the Earth rotating.

The 1933 World’s Fair, or Century of Progress International Exposition as it was officially known, was held in Chicago from 1933 to 1934 to celebrate the city's centennial. This was the second World's Fair hosted by Chicago and by the time it closed on October 31st, 1934 it had nearly 40 million visitors. The fair was held on 427 acres on Lake Michigan’s shoreline just south of Chicago’s downtown. The exposition focused on science and industrial development with a motto of “Science finds, Industry applies, Man adapts”. The fair boasted various technological innovations from the Sky Ride, an aerial tram, that transported fairgoers above the fairgrounds to the Homes of Tomorrow Exhibition that demonstrated modern home conveniences and new building materials. Another popular attraction was the Midway which had nightclubs and performers as well as various exhibits including freak shows, models of ethnic villages, and recreations of scenes from Chicago’s history.

Blue text between two blue horizontal lines. Blue text at bottom and union bug at top on white background.

Harry Olson was a lawyer and law professor who was outspoken about mental health issues which he believed to be inherited. He ran for mayor of Chicago in 1915 and 1919. He lost the Mayoral election to William Hale Thompson.

Photograph of a clown in a red and white checkered shirt, red suspenders and a yellow tie on a brownish yellow background.

"Cooky the Clown" was a recurring character on the TV show Bozo's Circus. He was played by Roy Thomas Brown, a puppeteer and television personality. The WGN-TV Chicago Bozo Show debuted in 1960 and continued until 2001. The character of Cooky existed on Bozo's Circus from 1968 until 1994.

Harold Washington signature on gold paper with Mayoral Campaign 1983 at the bottom edge. Union bug on curl.

Harold Washington was the first African-American mayor of Chicago from 1983-1987. It was a very close race: Washington had 37% of the vote, Jane Byrne had 33%, and future mayor Richard M. Daley had 30%. When Harold Washington won the election in 1983 he had gained 83% of the Hispanic vote. He died while working in his office and left quite a legacy around Chicago, including the main Chicago Public Library, Harold Washington University, Harold Washington Park and the Harold Washington Cultural Center. Prior to becoming mayor, he served in the Illinois Legislature as a state senator and state representative. He was also a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1981-1983. 

Photo of Harold Washington.

Harold Washington was the first African-American mayor of Chicago from 1983-1987. He died while working in his office and left quite a legacy around Chicago, including the main Chicago Public Library, Harold Washington University, Harold Washington Park and the Harold Washington Cultural Center. Prior to becoming mayor, he served in the Illinois Legislature as a state senator and state representative.  He was also a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1981-1983. 

White background with blue text and brown and blue stripes, diagonally on lower half of button.

This is a button for Richard M. Daley's campaign to become State’s Attorney of Cook County in Illinois. Daley, the son of previous Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley, was elected to the position in 1981 and held it until 1989. Daley’s tenure as State’s Attorney was most notable for his rulings on reports of police brutality. Richard M. Daley is best known as Mayor of Chicago, a post to which he was first elected in 1989 and held until 2011. Daley's tenure as mayor was characterized by increased benefits to LGBT workers, encouraged tourism, and instituted more eco-friendly measures around the city of Chicago. When Daley stepped down from the position in 2011, he had served as Mayor of Chicago for 22 years, making him the longest-serving mayor in Chicago's history.

Richard M. Daley. (n.d.). Retrieved October 10, 2015 from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_M._Daley.

Yellow, black and white button with black "Y" shape dividing the design into 3 sections.

This button was made for "Chicago Day" at the St. Louis World's Fair on October 8, 1904. 

The "Y" shape on the button represents the North, South and Main branches of the Chicago River; this "Y" shape has been incorporated into Chicago's architecture, infrastructure, as-well-as countless other places throughout the city.  The confluence of the branches of the Chicago River is known as Wolf Point.

White text on blue background. Text wraps around outer circular area of button; "#1" appears boldly in middle of button.

This is a button for Chicago's city department responsible for street cleaning and maintenance, trash and recycling collection, snow and graffiti removal, rodent abatement, and even tree trimming.

Upper red triangle with white text, center white stripe with blue text, lower blue triangle with white text.

Chicago was for many decades "The Convention Capital", especially with regards to political conventions. Between the years 1860 and 1996, Chicago hosted no less than 25 National Conventions. In 1940, President Frank D. Roosevelt was nominated for a third term at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Chicago was also the "Convention Capital" with regard to non-political conventions for many years until it was dethroned by Las Vegas and other cities.