Pinback button promoting Woodrow Wilson for president, 1916. Bastian Bros. Co., Rochester, New York.
This pinback carries a dual message. In an appeal to the working man, there is a reminder that President Wilson had overseen passage of progressive labor laws, keeping a campaign promise he had made in 1912: "The Man of the Eight Hour Day." For a public apprehensive about the prospect of war, it offers the reassurance that Wilson will not act precipitously, borrowing the watchword of the railroads, "Safety First." Fittingly, Wilson is pictured on a steam locomotive.
