✅ SOLVED Need to ID this button

[carnage1on1]

I dug this button in a known Union soldier camp in North Mississippi. It has a New York seal on it. The back reads Waterbury button co. With one star after co. I was told by someone that it is post civil war. But I want to know what year it was made. Seems really strange for a New York button to turn up in North MS unless it was war time. Thanks for the help!

 

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[creskol]

1870-1900

 

[carnage1on1]

Thanks! I guess there was maybe some federal troops present during reconsruction era to keep all people safe who wanted to vote.

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

It is not a military button, and it is not New York State button. It is the City Of New York seal. Such buttons were worn by police and some City officials.

Your button is shown in the Albert button-book as NY-103, which has the NY City motto and date-of-founding (1664). The book says the motto is absent on the cuff-size version, which is what you found.

Close examination of the twice-enlarged photo of your button's backmark shows it is NOT written in "serifed" letters -- which would date it as 1870-1900. The non-serifed lettering of your "Waterbury Button Co." (with a star) dates it from 1890 to 1943. (The name was changed from Company to Companies in 1943, so after that year the backmark says Co's.) See Figure 21 in the McGuinn-&-Bazelon book on backmarks.

The reason your "Waterbury Button Co." non-serifed lettering backmark has only one star instead of the three stars shown in the backmark-book's photo is that there's not enough room for three stars on a cuff-size button's back.

 

[creskol]

It is not a military button, and it is not New York State button. It is the City Of New York seal. Such buttons were worn by police and some City officials.

Your button is shown in the Albert button-book as NY-103, which has the NY City motto and date-of-founding (1664). The book says the motto is absent on the cuff-size version, which is what you found.

Close examination of the twice-enlarged photo of your button's backmark shows it is NOT written in "serifed" letters -- which would date it as 1870-1900. The non-serifed lettering of your "Waterbury Button Co." (with a star) dates it from 1890 to 1943. (The name was changed from Company to Companies in 1943, so after that year the backmark says Co's.) See Figure 21 in the McGuinn-&-Bazelon book on backmarks.

The reason your "Waterbury Button Co." non-serifed lettering backmark has only one star instead of the three stars shown in the backmark-book's photo is that there's not enough room for three stars on a cuff-size button's back.

I stand corrected.

 

[carnage1on1]

Wow thats alot of good information. Thanks alot for the research.

 

[HutSiteDigger]

That is a neat NY City button and it sure is along ways from home. Here is one I dug a few months ago near the railroad tracks at an old train stop station and is the only NY City button I have dug. Was pretty happy with that. My back-mark is "Waterbury Button Co" -Waterbury Button CT

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

HutSiteDigger, according to the McGuinn-&-Bazelon book, your button's backmark saying "Waterbury Button Co. / Waterbury Ct." dates from 1870 to 1890.