Political Buttons Collection
Scope and Content
This collection contains five American politcal buttons from the first half of the 20th century, primarily during World War I. The collection contains a button from the Liberty Loan of 1917, a button from the United War Work Campaign (1918), a button from the Fourth Liberty Loan (1918), a button from the Virginia Council of Defense (ca. 1917-1918), and a U. S. Senate campaign button supporting Harry Byrd (1940).
Dates
- 1917-1918, 1940
Language of Materials
The materials in the collection are in English.
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use
The copyright status of this collection is unknown. Copyright restrictions may apply. Contact Special Collections and University Archives for assistance in determining the use of these materials.
Reproduction or digitization of materials for personal or research use can be requested using our reproduction/digitization form: http://bit.ly/scuareproduction.
Reproduction or digitization of materials for publication or exhibit use can be requested using our publication/exhibition form:
http://bit.ly/scuapublication. Please contact Special Collections and University Archives (specref@vt.edu or 540-231-6308) if you need assistance with forms or to submit a completed form.
Administrative History - Liberty Loan program
This collection contains two buttons from the Liberty Loan program during World War I. The liberty loan progam was started by the United States Government to help pay for the war effort in Europe. There were several different iterations of the Liberty Loans, but the buttons in this collection are from the first and fourth Liberty Loan.
Source: National Museum of American History. "Liberty Loan of 1917 Button", https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/search/object/nmah_1317532
Administrative History - United War Work Campaign
The United War Work Campaign was a united effort of several American organizations to raise 170 million dollars in one week in 1918 to provide soldiers with recreational activities and a morale boost during World War I.
Source: Smithsonian. "United War Work Campaign Pin", https://www.si.edu/object/united-war-work-campaign-pin%3Anmah_1317458
Administrative History - Virginia Council of Defense
During World War I, the U.S. government created the Council of National Defense in 1916 to mobilize industries for the war efforts. The Council coordinated and supervised the work of state and local councils. The Virginia Council of Defense was likely the commonwealth's council from this effort. The national council was revived during World War II in 1940, but was dissolved in 1941, with its responsibilities absorbed by other agencies.
Source: Bradsher, Greg. "The Council of National Defense: Now a Little Known or Appreciated World War I Federal Agency" (August 15, 2017). The Text Message: Blog of the Textual Records Division at the National Archives. https://text-message.blogs.archives.gov/2017/08/15/the-council-of-national-defense-now-a-little-known-or-appreciated-world-war-i-federal-agency/. Accessed June 17, 2022.
Biographical Note - Harry F. Byrd Sr.
This collection also contains a United States Senate campaign button supporting Harry F. Byrd Sr. Harry Byrd was from Virginia and was a U.S. Senator from 1933 to 1965. Byrd was a member of the Democratic Party and was in control over a state political machine known as the Byrd Organization.
Source: Encyclopedia Virginia. "Harry F. Byrd (1887-1966)". https://encyclopediavirginia.org/entries/byrd-harry-f-1887-1966/
Extent
0.1 Cubic Feet (1 folder)
Abstract
This collection contains five American politcal buttons from the first half of the 20th century, primarily during World War I. The collection contains a button from the Liberty Loan of 1917, a button from the United War Work Campaign (1918), a button from the Fourth Liberty Loan (1918), a button from the Virginia Council of Defense (ca. 1917-1918), and a U. S. Senate campaign button supporting Harry Byrd (1940).
Source of Acquisition
The colleciton was donated to Special Collections and University in April 1990.
Rights Statement for Archival Description
The guide to the Political Buttons Collection by Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech, is licensed under a CC0 (https://creativecommons.org/share-your-work/public-domain/cc0/).
Processing Information
The processing, arrangement, and description of the Political Buttons Collection was completed in May 2022.
- Title
- Political Buttons Collection, 1917-1918, 1940
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Tyler Williams, Student Worker
- Date
- 2022 (CC0 1.0)
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Special Collections and University Archives, Virginia Tech Repository
Special Collections and University Archives, University Libraries (0434)
560 Drillfield Drive
Newman Library, Virginia Tech
Blacksburg Virginia 24061 US
540-231-6308
specref@vt.edu