Great Seal Buttons

Great Seal Uniform Buttons of the United States

We receive many inquiries about Great Seal buttons. In 1902, the US Army issued an order that made all previous U.S. Army, state militia, and all separate army organizations obsolete: "One style for all arms and all grades, private to Lt. General. The only exception is the Engineer Corps, who are to retain their present design. Bronze for service and gilt for dress. The design is a copy of the great seal of the U.S."(as reported by Albert, 1976). Any buttons of this design were made 1902 or later, irrespective of what the backmark may imply. The design is still in use today.

While a button with a great seal design is made after 1902, certain variations in design provide additional hints as to when a particular button was manufactured. For example, in the initial years of production, the buttons lacked a rim border, which most suggest was added about 1910. Others report that a black finish was applied to field buttons until 1923. Some of the early buttons were made of a wider variety of materials including horn and vegetable ivory. If the button is made of bronze (looking like a penny made before 1963), it will often be presumed to be made before World War II. If made of brass, it will be presumed to be made during World War II or after. During World War II, some jacket button variants had a locket design with a tiny compass hidden inside. These are rare and valuable.

Many dozens of button manufactures provided buttons to uniform manufacturers. Below is a list of buttons we have found reported on various websites. As shown, for some backmarks, collectors have identified the period of production or when the company existed. Post World War II buttons manufactured by Scovill and Waterbury are common and are worth less than a dollar each retail in used condition. WWI buttons in well used condition might fetch a few dollars or more each, although some backmarks are uncommon and retail prices are higher.

Backmark	Estimated production	Comments
A M & Co. 23 M PARIS
[Blank] [compressed fiberboard]		Albert GI109.B
[Blank] [oiled cloth front]		Albert GI109.D
AM. BUTTON CO *NEWARK, N.J.*	1902 to 1917
AMERICAN BUTTON CO. *NEWARK N.J.*	1901 to 1920
AMERICAN BUTTON COMPANY NEWARK, NJ....
AMERICAN EMBLEM CO. UTICA N.Y.	WWI
* [anchor]	WWII
ARNSTEIN SIMON & CO. * S.F. *	WWI
Art in Buttons U S U. S. A.[vegetable ivory]		Albert GI109.E
ART METAL WORKS INC -NEWARK, N.J.	1900 to 1930 approx.
THE ART METAL WORKS, NEWARK, N.J.
THE AUSTIN CO. PROVIDENCE R.I.
B.PASQUALE CO., S. FRAN., CAL.		In business 1854 to 1970's
BADGER MFG. CO. RACINE, WI.
BROOKS.BROTHERS *NEW YORK*ENGLAND	1902 to 1910
C KENYON CO. NEW YORK	WWI to 1930
CHAS. FISCHER SPG. CO. NEW YORK	WWII?
CHESHIRE BUTTON * CT. USA *
CITY BUTTON WORKS N.Y.	WWI	Made by Erlanger & Liebmann
CITY BUTTON WORKS NEW YORK	1877 to 1923
COL BUT WKS RUTHERFORD N.J.	WWI
COLUMBIA BUTTON WKS*RUTHERFORD,N.J.*	WWI
CORD 22
D. EVANS & CO ATTLEBORO FALLS	WWI	Company 1848 to 1944
D. EVANS & CO. * NO. ATTLEBORO, MASS. [red paint on the back]		Company 1848 to 1945
D. EVANS & CO. N.A.	WWI	Reported found in France. Company 1848 to 1946
D. EVAN'S & CO [red paint on the back]
D. KLEIN & BRO PHILA. PA. [copper finish]
DUSENBURY & SCHWAB INC. NEW YORK 229 4TH AVE.
E.A. ARMSTRONG MFG. CO. CHICAGO
FINE QUALITY
G J & F PARIS
GEMSCO, N.Y.
GREENWOOD CO * DETROIT MICH *
HBW [composition]		Albert GI109.A
H W I SCHWAB INC NEW YORK
H.V. ALLIEN & CO. NEW YORK		Company: 1877-1948
HEIBERGER WASHINGTON
HORSTMANN *** PHILA ***	1893-1935
HORSTMANN [dot] C [dot] PHILA [dot]	WWI
W. H. HORSTMANN & CO	WWII?
J.A.I. HAHN BALTIMORE
J.R. GAUNT LONDON
JACOB REED'S SONS * PHILA. *		In business 1880 to 1983
JACOB REEDS SONS PHIL.
JAMES C. DORAN & SONS PROVIDENCE R.I.
JEWELERS PRODUCTS CORP. PROV. R.I.	WWI
THE J.E. MERGOTT CO. NEWARK, N.J.
JOHNSON * MILANO *	WWI	Reported made in Italy
KREMENTZ LIBERTY BRONZE
L.&R. METAL PROD. N.Y
L.A. MYERS. JR. INC. NEWARK N.J.
LUXENBERG NEW YORK MADE IN ENGLAND
MADE IN ENGLAND [anodized aluminum front]
MARSHALL FIELD & CO. CHIC ILL
MAURICE BOURDON [up arrow] PARIS
MAURICE BOURDON Name: [anchor] PARIS [anchor]
Morry Luxenberg/London		Albert GI108.A.1
METAL SPECIALTIES Co. ATTLESBURG, MASS. [painted black]	1940 to 1945
S.N. MEYER WASHINGTON D.C.		In business 1890 to 1925
N.S. MEYERS * NEW YORK *		In business 1906 to 2000
I. A. MEYERS JR INC. NEWARK NJ
NEW YORK BUTTON WORKS	WWI	Reported found in France
[?] N.Y. [pressed vegetable ivory]	WWII
R. LIEBMANN MFG CO	WWI
R. LIEBMANN MFG. CO.-NEWARK NJ
R. L. MFG Co Newark N.J.	WWI to ?
REX PRODUCTS CORP * NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. *	1902-WWII
ROSENFIELD & RAPKIN * BOSTON, MASS.
S & J WATERBURY CT.	WWI	Reported found in France
SCOVILL MF'G CO WATERBURY [back ungilted]	WWI	1850 to 1865 backmark
SCOVILL MF'G CO WATERBURY	WWI	1850 to 1865 backmark
SCOVILL MF'G CO [dot] WATERBURY [dot] [shank not soldered, weak imprint]	WWII and later	possibly to 1970s
SCOVILL MF'G CO. * WATERBURY *	1902 to 1918	1870s backmark?
SCOVILL M'FG CO. WATERBURY [ring of dots]	abt 1902?	1860 to 1880 backmark
SCOVILL MF'G CO. WATERBURY CT.	WWI	1870s to ? backmark
SHIELDS INC. ATTLEBORO, MASS.
SIGMUND EISNER RED BANK N.J	WWI	In business1859 to 1925.
S. EISENER CO. RED BANK N.J.	WWI	In business1859 to 1925.
STEELE & JOHNSON * WATERBURY CT *	WWI	Reported found in France
* SUPERIOR QUALITY *
SUPREME 172 QUALITY
TIFFANY & CO. MAKERS ** M ** [14K gold blazer]	1907-1947
U.S ARMY STANDARD *
UNIQUE ART MFG CO. NEWARK, N. J.
US PRODUCTS CORP
W.B. CO.
WARNOCK UNIFORM CO *NEW YORK*[made from horn]		Albert GI109.C
W W W W	modern	Waterbury
WATERBURY BUTTON CO. *	1849 to 1965
WATERBURY BUTTON CO. *CONN.*	pre 1965
WATERBURY COS INC CONN	post 1965
WOLCOTT MF'G CO. PROVIDENCE RI.		est. 1906 to after 1922
ZELL PRODUCTS CORP. N.Y.C.