Advertising

Ivory Soap Ad

Advertising is meant to persuade, and the themes and techniques of that persuasion reveal a part of the nation's history. The Museum has preserved advertising campaigns for several familiar companies, such as Marlboro, Alka-Seltzer, Federal Express, Cover Girl, and Nike. It also holds the records of the NW Ayer Advertising Agency and business papers from Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Carvel Ice Cream, and other companies. The Warshaw Collection of Business Americana comprises thousands of trade cards, catalogs, labels, and other business papers and images dating back to the late 1700s.

Beyond advertising campaigns, the collections encompass thousands of examples of packaging, catalogs, and other literature from many crafts and trades, from engineering to hat making. The collections also contain an eclectic array of advertising objects, such as wooden cigar-store Indians, neon signs, and political campaign ads.

Interior scene of vases and ceramics

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
2015.0035.0009
catalog number
2015.0035.0009
accession number
2015.0035

Celluloid Novelty

Flat, rectangular card advertising the Nicholson File Company of Providence, R.I. It has a red front with green border and an image of a nail file with a product box. The reverse is white with red and black print, and has a calendar for 1937.
Description (Brief)
Flat, rectangular card advertising the Nicholson File Company of Providence, R.I. It has a red front with green border and an image of a nail file with a product box. The reverse is white with red and black print, and has a calendar for 1937. This was likely an ad for a French-speaking country, as the front reads, "La Lime Qui Dure" and "Une Lime Appropriée Pour Tout Travail" meaning "The File that Lasts" and "A File Suited for All Work."
Description
One side of this celluloid card has a calendar for 1937 and an advertisement for the Nicholson File Company in Providence, R.I. The other side has an image of a Nicholson file, “La Lime Qui Dure.”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1937
maker
Nicholson File Company
ID Number
2006.0098.0598
accession number
2006.0098
catalog number
2006.0098.0598

Ronald McDonald Doll

This object is a Ronald McDonald stuffed doll dressed as a clown figure. The doll is made of two pieces of fabric, sewn together in one long seam.
Description
This object is a Ronald McDonald stuffed doll dressed as a clown figure. The doll is made of two pieces of fabric, sewn together in one long seam. Various colors have been screened onto the fabric to look like a yellow jumpsuit with red zipper, red boots and a red and white striped shirt and socks. The doll has red hair, with a red nose and lips and white face. On the back side McDonald’s® is written in black letter with the golden arches logo. Ronald McDonald made his national debut for McDonald’s in 1966 during a nationwide television commercial. He was later provided several friends and nemeses who lived in McDonaldland, which was all part of an advertising campaign created to appeal to children.
The McDonald’s Corporation is one of the most recognizable hamburger restaurants in the United States. As of 2011, the McDonald’s Corporation and franchisees were operating in 119 countries with 1.9 million employees, making it the 4th largest employer in the world.
In 1940, Richard (Dick) and Maurice (Mac) McDonald opened the first McDonald’s Bar-B-Q drive-in restaurant in San Bernardino, California. In 1948, the brothers redesigned their menu, centering on the 15 cent hamburger. In 1954, Ray Kroc, a Multimixer (milkshake machine) salesman, became interested in the McDonalds brothers’ high volume restaurant. He worked out a deal with the brothers to be their franchising agent and opened the first franchise location in Illinois the following year. Under Kroc’s direction, the company grew to become the giant we know today.
Location
Currently not on view
trademark holder
McDonald's Corporation
ID Number
1983.0366.01
accession number
1983.0366
catalog number
1983.0366.01

"Micrografx Chili for Children" button

This circular button has a white background with black text reading "INC.'S" and red text reading "HOT" next to an image of a chili pepper colored in red and green.
Description
This circular button has a white background with black text reading "INC.'S" and red text reading "HOT" next to an image of a chili pepper colored in red and green. The back reads "Comdex 11/94" in black permanent ink.
Compare 2009.3071.828, 2009.3071.829, and 2009.3071.830.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1994
ID Number
2009.3071.830
catalog number
2009.3071.830
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Advertising Button, Apple, Macintosh

This circular button has black text on a white backgorund that reads: 3+ for Macintosh Exploding the Barriers. It has a color image of two computers with a red stick of dynamite between them.Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has black text on a white backgorund that reads: 3+ for Macintosh Exploding the Barriers. It has a color image of two computers with a red stick of dynamite between them.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1990s
maker
Apple Computer, Inc.
ID Number
2009.3071.146
catalog number
2009.3071.146
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Button, Let's Get Technical

This circular button has white text on a green background that reads: Let's Get Technical. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: WCS 12/82.
Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has white text on a green background that reads: Let's Get Technical. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: WCS 12/82.

Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1982
ID Number
2009.3071.435
catalog number
2009.3071.435
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Button, MITSUBISHI MONITORS

This rectangular button has a white background with an image of the United States made up of computer monitors, with one screen colored in blue. Blue text at the top reads: I'm one in a million!
Description
This rectangular button has a white background with an image of the United States made up of computer monitors, with one screen colored in blue. Blue text at the top reads: I'm one in a million! Black text along the bottom, next to a red Mitsubishi logo, reads: MITSUBISHI MONITORS. The reverse reads: "Fall CDX '88" in black permanent ink.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1988
ID Number
2009.3071.647
catalog number
2009.3071.647
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Button, COMDEX PROGRAM & EXHIBITS GUIDE

This circular computer button has a white background. A blue horizontal stripe with white text reads: COMDEX PROGRAM & EXHIBITS GUIDE. Black text on white background above and below stripe reads: "I READ MY" and "TODAY" respectively.Currently not on view
Description
This circular computer button has a white background. A blue horizontal stripe with white text reads: COMDEX PROGRAM & EXHIBITS GUIDE. Black text on white background above and below stripe reads: "I READ MY" and "TODAY" respectively.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
2009.3071.633
catalog number
2009.3071.633
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Button, Instant Winner

This square button has a yellow background. It has an image of a man wearing glasses and an orange cape. In yellow text it reads: Instant Winner. DacEasy. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: CDX 4/92.Currently not on view
Description
This square button has a yellow background. It has an image of a man wearing glasses and an orange cape. In yellow text it reads: Instant Winner. DacEasy. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: CDX 4/92.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1992
ID Number
2009.3071.403
catalog number
2009.3071.403
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Advertising Button, Racal Interlan

This circular button has black text on a white background that reads: Let's Interoperate! It also has the Racal Interlan black and red logo. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: Networld 2/89.Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has black text on a white background that reads: Let's Interoperate! It also has the Racal Interlan black and red logo. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: Networld 2/89.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1989
ID Number
2009.3071.056
catalog number
2009.3071.056
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Advertising Button, SiteLock

This circular button has a white background with black text along the border that reads: SiteLock Prevents LAN Viruses. Brightwork Development, Inc. It also has a black and white image of a virus coming out of a computer.
Description
This circular button has a white background with black text along the border that reads: SiteLock Prevents LAN Viruses. Brightwork Development, Inc. It also has a black and white image of a virus coming out of a computer. The image is surrounded by red circle with a slash through it. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: NW 2/92.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1992
ID Number
2009.3071.055
catalog number
2009.3071.055
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Button, Advertising, Digi International Inc., DigiBoard

This circular button has a black background with green text that reads: "The Smartest Connection You Can Make." The white text at the bottom reads: "DigiBoard." At the top is a white outline drawing of a computer connected by a green line to a computer tower; each device has a gr
Description
This circular button has a black background with green text that reads: "The Smartest Connection You Can Make." The white text at the bottom reads: "DigiBoard." At the top is a white outline drawing of a computer connected by a green line to a computer tower; each device has a green light on it. On the reverse is the mechanism for the lights.
Digi International Inc. Company formed in 1985. It manufactured remote access products such as modem and fax boards referred to as digiboards. The company now specializes in wireless communication solutions.
Reference:
https://www.pcmag.com/encyclopedia/term/41275/digiboard
[Last accessed 6-5-2019]
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
2009.3071.612
catalog number
2009.3071.612
nonaccession number
2009.3071

IBM Button, THLINK

This circular button has black and blue text on a white background that reads: THLINK! (The H and L are connected). A mark in red ink on the reverse reads: Spring Comdex '91.Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has black and blue text on a white background that reads: THLINK! (The H and L are connected). A mark in red ink on the reverse reads: Spring Comdex '91.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1991
maker
IBM
ID Number
2009.3071.214
catalog number
2009.3071.214
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Advertising Button, Apple, Macintosh

This circular button has black text on a yellow background that reads: Register to win a Macintosh PowerBook 100, 140, or 170 March 18 6 - 9 pm Presidential Suite, Westin Hotel, Seattle. It has a black outline of a PowerBook and a solid black Apple logo.
Description
This circular button has black text on a yellow background that reads: Register to win a Macintosh PowerBook 100, 140, or 170 March 18 6 - 9 pm Presidential Suite, Westin Hotel, Seattle. It has a black outline of a PowerBook and a solid black Apple logo. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: SPA Seattle 3/92.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1992
ID Number
2009.3071.145
catalog number
2009.3071.145
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Snow-covered railroad tracks

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1930s-1950s
maker
Keppler, Victor
ID Number
PG.006261.X
catalog number
6261X
accession number
238737

The Berg Company

A promotional notebook with a celluloid cover. Distributed by retailer John M. Crouse of Finesville, N.J., it advertises products of the Berg Company of Philadelphia, Pa.
Description (Brief)
A promotional notebook with a celluloid cover. Distributed by retailer John M. Crouse of Finesville, N.J., it advertises products of the Berg Company of Philadelphia, Pa. The pages contain calendars, blank memo pages, and a wide range of information on Berg's products.
The front shows the image of a man wearing a sandwich board advertising "Berg's Pure Ingredient Guanos and Bone Manures."
The advertisment contains a picture of a bull with the caption, "From the farm thou art, Unto the farm thou shalt return." It is a play on the biblical verse, Genesis 3:19: "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return."
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1906
maker
Whitehead & Hoag Company
ID Number
2006.0098.0911
accession number
2006.0098
catalog number
2006.0098.0911

OS/2 Lapel Pin

This square lapel pin has a butterfly clutch clasp. The black background has a gold border and text running diagonally; colored in segments of red, yellow and pale green and outlined in gold. It reads: OS/2.
Description
This square lapel pin has a butterfly clutch clasp. The black background has a gold border and text running diagonally; colored in segments of red, yellow and pale green and outlined in gold. It reads: OS/2. The reverse is of gold-colored metal and reads "Spring 8 9" in black permanent ink. The clasp is gold-colored metal.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1989
ID Number
2009.3071.693
catalog number
2009.3071.693
nonaccession number
2009.3071

"Hamons Court" Neon Sign

The Hamons family business exemplifies the culture of roadside communities that sprang up as long-distance automobile travel increased. Carl and Lucille Hamons lived on Carl's mother's farm until the late 1930s, when they moved to the town of Hydro, Oklahoma.
Description
The Hamons family business exemplifies the culture of roadside communities that sprang up as long-distance automobile travel increased. Carl and Lucille Hamons lived on Carl's mother's farm until the late 1930s, when they moved to the town of Hydro, Oklahoma. In 1941 they used Carl's inheritance to purchase a gasoline station with seven tourist cabins at Provine, a sparsely settled crossroads on Route 66 one mile southwest of Hydro. Neighboring businesses included a Texaco station and the Hill Top Café. Carl drove a truck for a living, and Lucille operated the gas station and cabins. They lived in the second story of the gas station; Lucille prepared breakfast and sandwiches for travelers on a hotplate in the first story. Lucille lived in the gas station until her death in 2000.
Social interaction in communities like Provine differed greatly from traditional villages. Strangers on the move were brought together briefly in a remote, ephemeral setting. This was a culture of mobility; motor travel was the only reason for Provine's existence. In her autobiography, Lucille describes the isolation of her gas station home, her frequent interaction with travelers on Route 66, and her travel-oriented duties and services in addition to running the gas station and cabins. She helped travelers in financial straits by accepting objects for payment or by purchasing their cars and putting the travelers on a bus. During World War II, when rubber and metal were in short supply, she sold tires and parts stripped from the used cars that she had bought.
Lucille witnessed the second wave of migration on Route 66 in the early 1940s, when midwesterners sought defense jobs in California, as well as postwar vacation trips and household moves. In recent years, as interest in the historical and cultural aspects of Route 66 has grown, Mrs. Hamons has been celebrated as the "Mother of the Mother Road." Her gas station was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997. Cheryl Hamons Nowka, who was born in the second story of the gas station, created a Lucille Hamons web site in the mid-1990s.
date made
1941
maker
Gillingham Sign Company, Weatherford, Oklahoma
ID Number
2001.0327.01
accession number
2001.0327

Cadbury Bournville Chocolate Tin

This rectangular, multicolored tin once contained Cadbury Bournville chocolate. On the lid is a picture of a large steam ship, with a smaller ship to the left.
Description
This rectangular, multicolored tin once contained Cadbury Bournville chocolate. On the lid is a picture of a large steam ship, with a smaller ship to the left. In black writing on a white box is written "White Star Line Royal Mail Steamers."
In 1831, John Cadbury went into the business of manufacturing chocolate. At the time, it was a strange decision as chocolate was still quite expensive. When the English government cut import taxes on chocolate in 1832, he was able to expand his market share due to the affordability of chocolate. In 1861, he passed the business on to his sons, Richard and George, who decided to take a bold step and put their faith into a new hydraulic press designed to press out the excess cocoa butter from the chocolate. They focused on a pure (unadulterated) chocolate, setting themselves apart from the competition, despite the higher costs involved. Their market share grew much faster than their competitors but was much smaller at the start. In the years that followed, they lobbied the British government to enact adulteration of food laws, which would require their competitors to include all ingredients on their labels. Labels have long been an extremely powerful swayer of public opinion and Cadbury’s competitors were left scrambling to catch up. Cadbury in the meantime moved forward with new product development, launching new brands constantly increasing their market share. Even when their sales started to decline, they were looking for a new product to push forward. In 1905, they launched Cadbury’s Dairy Milk Chocolate Bar, and in 1906, they launched Bournville Cocoa in order to compete with Van Houten’s new process of ‘dutching’ cocoa to make a smother, milder flavor that dissolved much easier in liquids. They also continued to make improvements behind the scenes to make their production lines more efficient, resulting in cost savings which the company passed on to their consumers. Cadbury is now owned by Mondelēz International.
Chocolate had been known and treasured by Native Americans in Central and South America for thousands of years prior to the arrival of the first Spanish explorers in the late 1400s and early 1500s. Cacao beans were so highly prized by Mayans and Aztecs that they were used as currency in many areas of the Americas. When first taken back to Europe by the Spanish, the chocolate drink continued to be produced exclusively for the enjoyment of royalty or the extremely wealthy. As the cacao bean gradually made its presence known throughout Europe, it still remained trapped in this exclusive section of society well into the 19th century.
The chocolate trade to North America began more than 300 years ago, primarily centered in or near major port cities of the time, such as New York City, Boston, Philadelphia and Newport, RI. Due to lower transportation costs, chocolate was often less expensive in the Americas than in Europe and therefore had a broader consumer base. The Industrial Revolution radically changed chocolate production and helped propel it into the hearts and stomachs of the working class. Instead of being a labor intensive product, it became entirely machine made reducing costs even further in the late 19th and early 20th century. During this time, chocolate went from being something a person drank to being something to eat, finally becoming a treat for the masses.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
AG.77-FT-15.0300
catalog number
77-FT-15.0300
accession number
283681

Datapro Software Finder Button, I Found It!

This circular button has white text on a blue compass background that reads: I Found It. It has a red Datapro Software Finder logo. A markk in back ink on the reverse reads: CDX '90.Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has white text on a blue compass background that reads: I Found It. It has a red Datapro Software Finder logo. A markk in back ink on the reverse reads: CDX '90.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1990
ID Number
2009.3071.503
catalog number
2009.3071.503
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Button, SCSI EXPRESS

This round button has a black background with red text reading: SCSI EXPRESS.Currently not on view
Description
This round button has a black background with red text reading: SCSI EXPRESS.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
2009.3071.640
catalog number
2009.3071.640
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Inauguration of the Monument to Daguerre at Bry-Sur-Marne

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1853-04-02
described
Daguerre, Louis Jacques Mande
ID Number
PG.72.04.30
catalog number
72.4.30
accession number
299220

Button, Bring Your Brain. Voyager

This square button has yellow and white text on a black background that reads: Bring Your Brain. Voyager. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: Comdex 11/94.Currently not on view
Description
This square button has yellow and white text on a black background that reads: Bring Your Brain. Voyager. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: Comdex 11/94.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1994
ID Number
2009.3071.410
catalog number
2009.3071.410
nonaccession number
2009.3071

Button, Toshiba, Uninterruptible Power Systems

This circular button has a yellow background with black text that reads: "TOSHIBA Uninterruptible Power Systems. In the center is a black sketch like drawing of a computer tower. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: "CDX '91'.”Currently not on view
Description
This circular button has a yellow background with black text that reads: "TOSHIBA Uninterruptible Power Systems. In the center is a black sketch like drawing of a computer tower. A mark in black ink on the reverse reads: "CDX '91'.”
Location
Currently not on view
date made
c 1991
ID Number
2009.3071.572
catalog number
2009.3071.572
nonaccession number
2009.3071

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