Centered illustration of machinists' tools rendered in blue and white. Blue, red, and white petal shapes surround the tools. Letter I in blue on white petal; letter A in white on blue petal; letter M in white on red petal. A large white gear circles the button with blue text. Blue outer rim.

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers was founded in 1888 by 19 machinists in Atlanta, Georgia. The IAM now has more than 600,000 members. 

Black cursive text on white bubble with gray outline. Background of red, yellow and blue rays. Small red, black, and blue bell illustration at bottom. 

"Ask Dad, he knows" was part of Sweet Caporal Cigarettes' ad that appeared in the movie, It's A Wonderful Life.  A sign for Sweet Caporal cigarettes appears in Mr. Gower's drugstore. A young George looks directly at the sign below and is inspired to go talk to his father.

Sweet Caporal Cigarettes were produced by Kinney Bros. Tobacco Company, New York starting in 1878. Shortly after, Kinney Bros merged into the giant American Tobacco Company. A.T.C.'s monopoly was broken in 1911 but they retained Sweet Caporal. The popularity of the brand may be linked to its novel use of collectible cigarette cards included in each pack. There was Victorian theater stars, illustrated Mutt and Jeff phrases, American flags, an Aircraft Spotter Series in the 1940s ("Learn to know friend from foe"), and many baseball series over the years.

Color illustration of Archie's face on white background with blue outer rim. Official Member text in black and Archie Club text in orange. 

The character of Archie Andrews first appeared in 1941. In 2010, Archie, Veronica, and Betty were commemorated in an official US Post Office stamp as part of the "Sunday Funnies Series." In the stamp, the three characters are sharing a chocolate soda.

Blue text on white background above and below an illustration of a yellow chicken wearing a blue shirt, eating chicken wings, and drinking beer.

To those of us at The Busy Beaver Button Company they are called "buffalo wings," but to people from Buffalo, New York they are simply "wings."  

Waving blue cone-headed boy riding a rocket with matching red striped shirt and socks. Blue illustration of Saturn and stars with red and blue text on a white background.

Martin Van Buren High School (MVBHS) is a public high school in Queens Village, New York. One of the most popular clubs was the General Organization (G.O.), a student government club. MVBHS opened in 1955 as the East Queens High School but was later renamed after the eighth President of the United States, Martin Van Buren. Their colors are red and blue, and their mascot is the bee.

Illustration of the Great Seal of the United States with an American flag and an Italian flag waving over it.  Illustration set on white background and encircled by two green and red circles.  

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Illustration of a steel mailbox on a white background surrounded by a gold border with the American flag running diagonally. Black text encircling the mailbox. Red, white and blue ribbon with gold text and illustration of a key attached to the bottom of the button. 

The Colorado Rural Letter Carriers Association was organized to represent the rural mail carriers of Colorado in July of 1903. The first state convention, held at “Edgewater school house,” had a total attendance of eight letter carriers. In September of that same year, the organization was chartered by the newly created National Rural Letter Carriers Association. It is interesting to note that wives of mail carriers were allowed as “honorary members” of the organization in its early years, until the creation of the Ladies’ Auxiliary group in the 1920s. 

Red text on all-white background.

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Black text on blue background with an illustration of a white clown with red lips and black face paint in the center of the button. The clown is wearing a yellow and red outfit and hat.

Presumably made in the 1940s, this button's colorful aesthetic captures the excitement and spontaneity of a typical trip to the circus for a mid-20th century American youth.

The traveling circus gained popularity in the United States by the mid-to-late 19th century. As per the clowns' role in the American circus—by the 20th century, they were largely speechless characters confined to oversized visual gags. This differed from their European contemporaries, however, whom stuck to their theatrical roots and remained integral parts of the show. 

A blue and red illustration of a well-dressed pig waving and holding a case. Blue and red illustrated background with ferris wheel, tents, and flags with red and blue text.

Great vintage souvenir illustrated template button for the Los Angeles County Fair in Pomona, California.  

"The Los Angeles County Fair began on Oct. 17, 1922 and ran through the 21st. Admission was 50 cents, and 49,461 people attended. The Fair adopted Thummer the pig as its official mascot in 1948. Originally the pig's name was Porky, but a 1950s cartoon character claimed rights to the name. A contest was held to name the pig, and Thummer was born. The name was appropriate because with one outstretched hoof, the pig appeared to be hitch-hiking his way to the Fair."