M-322: Dr. Allen B. and Helen S. Shopmaker American Political Collection

The Shopmaker Collection contains over three thousand items ranging from a George Washington token dated 1789 to buttons and textiles endorsing candidates in the 2008 election. The variety of objects reflects the changing tastes of the American public and the available production technologies, ranging from 19th century brass jewelry and clothing buttons embossed with candidate's names and party symbols to today's modern, mass-produced buttons, and from porcelain plates embellished with a portrait of First Lady Helen Taft to Nancy Reagan paper dolls. With artifacts representing nearly every American election, the Shopmaker Collection provides the viewer with a broad look at how candidates have used images, slogans and symbols to woo the public, and how the public has expressed its own, often outspoken, opinions on both individuals and issues.
St. Louis Mercantile Library Art Museum

Pages

"A Full Dinner Bucket" Button
1 and 1/4-inch round pin back button with image of a white metal dinner bucket over a blue background. Text on a cup on the top of the bucket reads "EMPLOYMENT FOR LABOR". Text on the lid of the bucket reads "A FULL DINNER BUCKET". Across the front of the bucket is a gold oval containing black and white portraits of William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt. Text on the handle reads "PROSPERITY". Text on the bottom of the bucket reads "Sound Money - Good Markets". Button has paper label on reverse for Allied Printing Trades Council of Newark and The Whitehead & Hoag Co.
"Ford or Carter" Brochure
White paper brochure. The front is red with white text reading "Ford or Carter". Inside is a black and white picture of Ford. The next two pages contain red text with black headlines praising Ford and providing negative statements about Carter. The back reads "How do you choose?" and "Ford, He's making us proud again." This brochure was produced by "The President Ford Committee".
"Forward with Eisenhower-Nixon" Comic Book
10 1/4 inches by 6 1/2 inches red and tan comic book with fourteen pages. The cover has black and red writing with artwork. At the top is black letters spelling "FORWARD WITH EISENHOWER-NIXON". Beneath the top writing are drawn portraits of four different people: one in a suit, one in work clothes, a woman, and a farmer. There is a yellow bar with writing in the lower part of the cover with "Let's Continue" in black and "PEACE... PROSPERITY… PROGRESS" in red. The inside pages use the story of four relatives of a journalist looking to write about the election to highlight why voters should re-elect Eisenhower and vote Republican in the 1956 election. The last two pages feature short biographies of both Eisenhower and Nixon. The back page has another drawn portrait of Eisenhower. The writing on the back is a call to vote for both Eisenhower and a straight Republican ticket. At the bottom of the back page are black letters crediting the distributors of the comic book. Union imprint lower right corner of back page.
"Is Anyone Listening? Does Anyone Give A Damn?" Brochure
8 1/2 inches by 3 1/2 inches White brochure with black and white writing. The cover is a photo of three people, two men and one woman, looking up and to the right. There are white letters spelling "IS ANYONE LISTENING? DOES ANYONE GIVE A DAMN?" The brochure has seven pages which provide details on President Richard Nixon's accomplishments or goals with regard to the youth vote. The categories of the brochure are "National Priorities", "The War", "Foreign Policy", "The Draft", "Environmental Quality", "18 Year Old Vote", "Drugs", and "Volunteerism". The back page of the brochure ends with a quote from Richard Nixon.
"Our County is a Key to a Nixon Victory" Door Hanger
White paper door hanger in the shape of a key. In blue print "Our county is a KEY to a" is written and "Nixon Victory" is printed in red. At the bottom of the key there is information about polling places and assistance to get to them printed in red. This hanger was printed by "The California Committee for the Re-election of the President".
"President Nixon. Now More than Ever" Door-Hanger
Paper door-hanger for President Richard Nixon's re-election campaign. Text at the top reads "Your Nixon Neighborhood Volunteer called." Below is a blue circle containing blue and red text reading "President Nixon. Now more than ever." Below is information about getting in touch with the local campaign, with a blank space at the bottom for the volunteer to fill in their address.
"Prouder, Stronger, Better" Door Hanger
White paper door hanger with American flag motif covering the top half. Text within the flag's stripes reads "Prouder, Stronger, Better". Below is decorative text reading "VOTE Tuesday, November 6. Below is a table containing text reading "For President & Vice President Ronald Reagan George Bush", with cells below reading "For Congress", "For State Senate", and "For State Assembly". Each cell has a box to the right containing a large "X". At the bottom is red and blue text reading "Yes on 39 Fairness Not Politics", above an empty box labeled "Your Polling Place". Small text at the bottom reads "California Republican Party".
"Queremos Al Presidente Johnson" Brochure
White paper brochure. The front has a black and white photograph of then-presidential candidate Lyndon B. Johnson over a red background. Above is white text reading "Queremos al Presidente Johnson" and below is black text reading "Porque Queremos la Paz y el Progreso Porque Queremos ir Adelante y no Atras". The text translates to read "We Want President Johnson Because We Want Peace and Progress Because We Want to go Forward and not Back". Inside are photos of Johnson and vice presidential candidate Hubert Humphrey with text in Spanish supporting Johnson's campaign. This brochure was made by the "All Americans Council".
"Straight From The Shoulder" Journal
10 15/16 inches by 8 3/8 inches tan journal with black and red writing. The top of the cover has red and black letters spelling "Straight from the shoulder A Journal of Political Fact VOLUME 3 NOVEMBER, 1956 NUMBER 9". This was made and distributed by the Republican National Committee as a series in the lead up to the 1956 election. There are fifteen pages in the journal with a back cover page. The content is either in support of the Eisenhower-Nixon campaign or against the Democrats or specifically the Stevenson-Kejauver campaign. There is use of their media coverage in quotes or political cartoons in addition to the writings from the Republican National Committee.
"The Logical Choice" Leaflet
10 7/8 inches by 8 1/2 inches white leaflet with blue and red writing. There are blue and red letters at the top of the front cover spelling "THE LOGICAL CHOICE". In blue there is a picture of Stuart Symington in front of campaign supporters holding signs reading "SYMINGTON FOR PRESIDENT". Above the image and below the top writing is a red sphere in gridlines with an image of the United States with red and white cones pointing out in four directions, making it look like a compass rose. At the end of each cone are blue letters spelling "WEST", "NORTH", "EAST", "SOUTH". The pages inside the leaflet provide details of Symington, about his accomplishments and priorities. The back cover has blue and red letters at the top spelling "THE NOMINEE AND... NEXT PRESIDENT". There is a blue photograph of Stuart Symington and his family. At the bottom there are blue letters spelling "Symington for President Committee, 921 17th Street N.W., Washington 6, D.C. Congressman Charles H. Brown, Chrm". Union imprint on the bottom left corner of back cover.
"What it means to you to elect Wendell Willkie" Leaflet
9 inches by 5 15/16 inches white leaflet with black writing. At the top there are black letters spelling "What it means TO YOU". In the middle of the leaflet there is an image of Wendell Willkie inside of a shield and over a grey bar going across the cover. A union imprint is beneath the image. At the bottom there are black letters spelling "To Elect Wendell Willkie". The two inside pages feature Willkie's position on seven issues in his own words "Peace and War", "Defense", "Conscription", "Labor", "Relief", "Business", and "Farm Aid". The start of the first inside page is a message from the Willkie Club. The back page has a biography of Wendell Willkie and a call to help by registering to vote, getting others to register and joining or organizing local Willkie Clubs.
"Who Would Make The Best President For You?" Booklet
8 3/4 inches by 4 inches tan brochure with blue letters spelling "WHO WOULD MAKE THE BEST PRESIDENT FOR YOU?" on the front cover. Below the writing is a red arrow pointing to the right with white letters spelling "ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS". The first four pages follow the formula of asking a 'who' question with pictures and names listed of Richard Nixon, George Wallace, and Hubert Humphrey. The questions are masked accomplishments of Humphrey's. Nixon and Wallace are crossed out with red letters spelling "Not him" while Humphrey is circled with red letters spelling "It was Humphrey". The fifth and sixth pages discuss recessions and follow a similar formula. The back cover has a list of programs Humphrey proposed or sponsored. Below the list is a picture of Humphrey with red letters spelling "It was Humphrey". Towards the bottom are blue letters spelling "VOTE HUMPHREY-MUSKIE". At the bottom is blue letters spelling "Authorized and paid for by Wisconsin Humphrey-Muskie Committee" along with the committee members' names. Allied Printing Trades Council union imprint bottom right corner of back cover.
"Young Voters for the President" Poster
11 inches by 8 1/2 inches white and brown brochure for Richard Nixon's reelection campaign. The cover of the brochure has an image of Richard Nixon and the words in white, "young voters FOR THE PRESIDENT". The "young" and "voters" cross each other and use the same "o". When opened, there is a photograph of Richard Nixon meeting young supporters across both pages. Underneath the photograph is a quote detailing how that for 18-21 year olds they are first time eligible voters and claims they support Richard Nixon. When unfolded the first time there is a section devoted to the accomplishments of Richard Nixon's first term with respect to issues important to the youth vote. Along both sides are photographs of Richard Nixon. When completely unfolded, there is a poster of Richard Nixon.
11th APIC National Convention Program
8 1/2 inches by 5 1/2 inches white program with red writing and blue images. The top portion of the cover has stylized red letters spelling "Welcome to Chicago". In the middle there are blue images of campaign buttons for Mayor of Chicago from Daley, Harold Washington, and Jane Byrne. Above the images are red letters spelling "Republican Stronghold from the Lincoln elections to 1931... Bastion of Democratic power ever since". Below the images are red letters spelling "ELEVENTH APIC NATIONAL CONVENTION Sheraton O'Hare Hotel, August 11-13, 1983". The contents of the program provide brief political history of Chicago, especially about the mayors, names of the officers of APIC and the schedule of the convention.
48 Hours to Choose Our Future Sticker
Blue sticker bisected horizontally with a red line and half a white star. White text above the red line reads "48 Hours to Choose Our Future" and text below reads "Mondale/Ferraro".
A Gallant Leader, Franklin D. Roosevelt Button
1/2-inch pin back button featuring a black and white portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt centered on a white background. Black text arched along the outer edge reads "A GALLANT LEADER FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT". Reverse has label for Bastian Brothers Company (Rochester, N.Y.)
American Labor Party Button
7/8-inch pin back button in white with black and white portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt. Along the outer edge is small text reading "AMERICAN LABOR PARTY". Reverse has label for Green Duck Company (Chicago, Il.)
Americans for Goldwater Brochure
White paper brochure with a photograph of then-presidential candidate Barry Goldwater. Below is blue and red text reading "Why you, as one who believes in Barry Goldwater should be counted among his supporters NOW!". Inside is a message encouraging supporters to organize "Americans for Goldwater" chapters. On the back is the address of Americans for Goldwater in Phoenix, to which supporters could write for a copy of "Handbook for Victory".
Back Up; You've Batted Twice Card
A cartoon portrays Uncle Sam serving as referee and instructing a stylized Theodore Roosevelt to step away and allow a stylized Taft to take bat in a baseball game. Text beside Uncle Sam reads "Back up; you've batted twice".
Big Stars and Stripes Roosevelt Button
1/2-inch pin back button. The top third of the button is dark blue with three small white stars along the top edge. Across the center is black text reading "ROOSEVELT". Below are five vertical red stripes on a white background.
Bill & Hill's Big Party Magazine
10 1/2 inches by 8 1/8 inches comedy magazine for Bill Clinton's 1997 inauguration. The cover is red, blue and yellow. At the top there are white letters spelling "1997 COMEDY INAGURATION GUIDE". At the middle top there are red and black letters spelling "Bill & Hill's PIG PARTY!” There are edited pictures of Bill and Hillary Clinton. To the left of the images are black letters spelling "Four More Big Ones!" and a red balloon with white letters spelling "FREE Fun Tearouts!” To the right of the images there are six different headings. The first has red and black letters spelling "PAPER DOLLS Dress the Clinton's for their Big Bash!” The next has black letters spelling "Your Clinton Inauguration Invitation (FRAME IT!)". The third has red letters spelling "Wild Party Photos!” The fourth has black letters spelling "Celebrating Four more years". The fifth is under a fake four dollar bill featuring Bill and Hillary Clinton with red and black letters spelling "FREE MONEY! Bogus Bills are a Capital Idea! TEAR THEM OUT!” The last has black letters spelling "Tons of Goodies...” There are 38 pages in the magazine.
Blaine and Logan Medal
1-inch medal with jugate profile portraits of Republican president and vice president candidates for the 1884 Presidential election, James G. Blaine and John A. Logan facing each other surrounded by flags. Medal reverse reads "Republican Candidates for President and Vice President of the United States, 1884" framed by a laurel wreath. The medal has a circular hole at the upper edge.
Carry On FDR Button
7/8-inch pin back button. Large red text on a white background in the center reads "FDR". A blue circle borders the outer edge of the button. Horizontally bisecting the button, layered over the red text, is a blue stripe with white text reading "CARRY ON". Button has label for Bastian Brothers Company (Rochester, N.Y.)
Carry on With Roosevelt Button
1/2-inch pin back button with monochromatic blue portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt. Along the outer top edge is a red stripe with white text reading "CARRY ON WITH". Along the bottom edge is a blue stripe with white text reading "ROOSEVELT". Label for Bastian Brothers (Rochester, N.Y.) is written on the outer rim of the button.
Carry on With Roosevelt Button
1-inch, pin back button with a black and white portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt in the center. Arched within a red stripe along the upper edge of the button is white text reading "CARRY ON WITH". Arched within a blue stripe along the lower edge of the button is white text reading "ROOSEVELT".
Champ Clark for President Button
7/8-inch, white, pin back button which reads "Clark For President" in blue lettering for Champ Clark's 1912 presidential campaign. Reverse has label for St. Louis Button Company (St. Louis, Mo.)
Col. Theodore Roosevelt Button
7/8-inch round, pin back button with black and white portrait of Col. Theodore Roosevelt with American flag drapery in upper left corner, all on white background. Button has paper label on reverse for National Equipment Co., New York & Whitehead & Hoag Co., Newark.
Coolidge-Dawes, Full Dinner Pail Button
White button with red top and blue bottom border, each with white lettering and a sketch of a dinner pail surrounded by the words "Coolidge-Dawes" and "Full Dinner Pail".

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