From the 18th to the mid-20th century, New Jersey was a powerhouse in American button production. Intersecting with key industries like glassmaking, metalworking, rubber, and early plastics, the state was home to vibrant centers of button innovation and artistry.

Five materials – metal, bone & shell, early plastics, glass, and rubber — shaped New Jersey’s Button Legacy.

Metal. Newark became a national center for brass, nickel, and tin button production, especially for military uniforms and workwear, including Civil War Union soldier uniforms. In 1916, companies like the American Button Company and Sigmund Eisner Co. created the first official National Park Service button.

Bone and Shell. Trenton hosted one of the earliest bone button factories (est. 1836) and became a key finisher of shell button blanks sourced from the Delmarva Peninsula and abroad. This regional trade included African American labor, cottage industries, and global shell supply chains, with Trenton as a hub for polishing and distribution.

Early Plastic (Celluloid, Bakelite etc.). Newark also led early plastic innovation with Charles Hyatt’s celluloid patent, spurring mass production of colorful, affordable buttons. These advances helped supply the booming fashion industry of nearby New York City.

Glass. Millville, Vineland, and Alloway became centers for decorative glass buttons, shaped by German and Czech immigrant artisans skilled in pressing and lampworking techniques. Their artistry lives on today through institutions like Wheaton Arts, preserving New Jersey’s glassmaking heritage.

Rubber. Cities like Trenton, Lambertville, and New Brunswick were home to ten major rubber manufacturers in the 19th century. Factories produced rigid rubber buttons, among other molded goods, supporting industrial growth across the state.

In addition to the industrial legacy, New Jersey has a legacy in the culture of button making and button collecting.

Studio Artists. New Jersey has an ongoing tradition of small-scale, artistic button makers who pushed creative boundaries.

Prominent Collectors. The state is also home to influential early collectors and scholars (such as the Alberts and the Ertells) who advanced the field through research and advocacy.

What appeals to you? To focus on a material? A button that pictures a moment in history? A city? A studio artist, a collecting pioneer? It can be anything! Anything goes! We’re creating a website, not a text book. We don’t have to cover everything.
— Tracy Bacilek

Bibliography

Albert, Lillian Smith (1945) “Pearl Button Manufacturing in Vineland, NJ,” New Jersey State Buton Society
Fiftieth Anniversary Commemorative Bulletin, Ann B. Wilson, editor.

Biuk, Siara L. (2018) “Shell Button-Making on the Delmarva Peninsula, ca. 1930s-1990s,” Northeast
Historical Archaeology: Vol. 47 47, Article 3.

Ford, William F. (1874) The Industrial Interests of Newark, New Jersey: A Complete Summary or the
Origin, and Present Condition of Newark’s Industries, Van Arsdale & Company, New York.

Josephson, Axel (1902), “The Manufacture of Buttons,” Twelfth Census of the United States, Census Bulletin, No. 172, Washington D.C.

Lambertville Historical Society

Mercercounty.org/community/history

Van Court, Donald (1991) “New Jersey Backmarks on Uniform Buttons,” New Jersey State Button Society Fiftieth Anniversary Commemorative Bulletin, Ann B. Wilson, editor.

Wheaton Arts (1987) “The Wistars and Their Glass 1739-1777,” from an exhibition 1987 to 1989.

Workman, R. Bryce (19979 Badges and Uniform Ornamentation of the National Park Service, Park