A pin-back button or pinback button, pin button, button badge, or simply pin-back or badge, is a

button A button is a fastener that joins two pieces of fabric together by slipping through a loop or by sliding through a buttonhole. In modern clothing and fashion design, buttons are commonly made of plastic but also may be made of metal, wood, or ...

badge A badge is a device or accessory, often containing the insignia of an organization, which is presented or displayed to indicate some feat of service, a special accomplishment, a symbol of authority granted by taking an oath (e.g., police and fir ...

that can be temporarily fastened to the surface of a

garment Clothing (also known as clothes, garments, dress, apparel, or attire) is any item worn on a human human body, body. Typically, clothing is made of fabrics or textiles, but over time it has included garments made from animal skin and other thin s ...

using a

safety pin A safety pin is a variation of the regular Pin (device), pin which includes a simple Spring (device), spring mechanism and a clasp. The clasp forms a closed loop to properly fasten the pin to whatever it is applied to and covers the end of the p ...

, or a pin formed from

wire file:Sample cross-section of high tension power (pylon) line.jpg, Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample d ...

, a

clutch A clutch is a mechanical device that allows an output shaft to be disconnected from a rotating input shaft. The clutch's input shaft is typically attached to a motor, while the clutch's output shaft is connected to the mechanism that does th ...

or other

mechanism Mechanism may refer to: *Mechanism (economics), a set of rules for a game designed to achieve a certain outcome **Mechanism design, the study of such mechanisms *Mechanism (engineering), rigid bodies connected by joints in order to accomplish a ...

. This fastening mechanism is anchored to the back side of a button-shaped metal disk, either flat or concave, which leaves an area on the front of the button to carry an image or printed message. The word is commonly associated with a

campaign button A campaign button is a pin used during an election as political advertising for (or against) a candidate or political party, or to proclaim the issues that are part of the political platform. In the United States, political buttons date as far ba ...

used during a

political campaign A political campaign is an organized effort which seeks to influence the decision making progress within a specific group. In democracy, democracies, political campaigns often refer to election, electoral campaigns, by which representatives a ...

. The first design for a pin-back button in the United States was patented in 1896, and contemporary buttons have many of the same design features.

History

Buttons have been used around the world to allow people to personally promote/advertise their political affiliations. In 1787

Josiah Wedgwood Josiah Wedgwood (12 July 1730 – 3 January 1795) was an English potter, entrepreneur and abolitionist. Founding the Wedgwood company in 1759, he developed improved pottery bodies by systematic experimentation, and was the leader in the indu ...

of the Wedgwood pottery dynasty ordered the production of the Wedgwood anti-slavery medallion to promote the British anti-slavery movement to the House of Commons. This is believed to be the first use of a slogan on a product and a forerunner of today's political campaign button. The original was a stamp for wax but the image was later reproduced by Wedgewood as a porcelain cameo. In the United States since the first presidential inauguration in 1789, George Washington's supporters wore buttons imprinted with a

slogan A slogan is a memorable motto or phrase used in a clan or a political, commercial, religious, or other context as a repetitive expression of an idea or purpose, with the goal of persuading members of the public or a more defined target group ...

. These early buttons were sewn to the lapel of a coat or worn as a

pendant A pendant is a loose-hanging piece of jewellery, generally attached by a small loop to a necklace, which may be known as a "pendant necklace". A pendant earring is an earring with a piece hanging down. Its name stems from the Latin word ...

on a string. Some of the earliest campaign buttons to feature photographs were produced to promote the

political platform A political party platform (American English), party program, or party manifesto (preferential term in British and often Commonwealth English) is a formal set of principal goals which are supported by a political party or individual candidate, t ...

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...

in 1860. Benjamin S. Whitehead patented the first innovation to the design in 1893 by inserting a sheet of transparent film made of

celluloid Celluloids are a class of materials produced by mixing nitrocellulose and camphor, often with added dyes and other agents. Once much more common for its use as photographic film before the advent of safer methods, celluloid's common present-day ...

over a photograph mounted on a

to protect the image from scratches and abrasion. Whitehead had patents for various designs of ornamental badges and

medal A medal or medallion is a small portable artistic object, a thin disc, normally of metal, carrying a design, usually on both sides. They typically have a commemorative purpose of some kind, and many are presented as awards. They may be in ...

lions previously, patented as early as 1892. Another patent was issued to Whitehead & Hoag on 21 July 1896 for a "Badge Pin or Button" which used a metal pin anchored to the back of the button to fasten the badge.

My present invention has reference to improvements in badges for use as lapel pins or buttons, or other like uses, and has for its primary object to provide ... a novel means for connecting the ornamental shell or button to the bar or pin for securing the badge to the lapel of the coat. "Badge Pin or Button" by George B. Adams Assignor for Whitehead & Hoag Company of New Jersey, issued 21 July 1896

Other improvements and modifications to the basic design were patented in the following years by other inventors. "Backing for Display Buttons", issued 25 October 1904 by David Pudlin Early pin-back buttons from 1898 were printed with a popular

cartoon A cartoon is a type of visual art that is typically drawn, frequently Animation, animated, in an realism (arts), unrealistic or semi-realistic style. The specific meaning has evolved, but the modern usage usually refers to either: an image or s ...

character, The Yellow Kid, and offered as prizes with chewing gum or tobacco products to increase sales. These buttons were produced with a concave opening on the back side (which provided space to insert advertising), or with a closed back, filled with metal insert and fastener. These are called "open back" and "closed back" buttons. In 1945, the

Kellogg Company Kellanova, formerly known as the Kellogg Company and commonly known as Kellogg's, is an American multinational food manufacturing company headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, US. Kellanova produces and markets convenience foods and snack f ...

, the pioneer in

cereal box prize A cereal box prize, also known as a cereal box toy in the UK and Ireland, is a form of advertising that involves using a promotional toy or small item that is offered as an incentive to buy a particular breakfast cereal. Prize (marketing), Prizes a ...

s, inserted prizes in the form of pin-back buttons into each box of Pep Cereal. Pep pins have included U.S. Army squadrons as well as characters from newspaper comics. There were 5 series of comic characters and 18 different buttons in each set, with a total of 90 in the collection.

References

External links

The Busy Beaver Button Museum

Collection of United States Social Pinback Button
nowiki/>s. Yale Collection of Western Americana, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library. {{Authority control Badges Fashion accessories Sales promotion Collecting Ephemera

History

See also

References

External links