Do you own vintage University of Michigan pins (or buttons, as they were called)? Email me at mail[at]mvictors.com or find me at MVictors on Twitter or MVictors on Facebook with a photo. I’d love to see what you have, suggest a value, or answer your questions. Here is the complete history of these antique pins:
I’ve always had an interest in the evolving culture on campus at Michigan. Much has changed over our 200-year history and many once-popular Ann Arbor traditions have faded away.
One lost tradition is the wearing of “Union buttons” around campus and at alumni events. For decades these tiny lapel pins were doled out to students. Typically made with glossy enamel, they featured a block M and displayed the school year. Early versions were 14k gold.
But the story of these vintage U-M lapel pins actually starts before the founding of the Michigan Union in 1904. This fact has caused confusion when people found similar-looking pins with earlier dates.
A 1952 Michigan Daily article discussed a nearly complete collection of these pins discovered at an Ann Arbor barbershop. The writer notes, “The origin of the pins and their relation to the Union is a mystery.”
It turns out the collection represented two different “pin” traditions at Michigan that eventually merged. The Union adopted a program borne within a group called The Athletic Association – the predecessor to today’s U-M Athletic Department and Michigan booster clubs.
The Athletic Association
The roots of the Athletic Association date to November 1890, when the directors of the football, baseball, and tennis clubs on campus met to combine their groups to form a single entity. The purpose was simple: to use their common interest in sports to share fundraising, resources and expenses (like equipment and field maintenance).
Starting in the early- to mid-1890s, the group used the sale of the association membership pins as a fundraising tool. Check out this ornate pin from 1892 and note the words “University of Michigan Athletic Association” around the face:
Since we have no other evidence of what the annual pins looked like from this time period, I’m not sure if this is indeed a membership pin. It’s more likely that this was an award given out to athletes by the U-M Athletic Association in 1892.
This pin features the azure/sky tone of the blue, which was common around the turn of the century before the colors were standardized to a darker blue in 1912. These “buttons” were sold to association members, and eventually anyone on campus, to support various athletic endeavors. A portion of the proceeds went to the association to cover administrative expenses like equipment, uniforms, fees for managers, etc.
Below is a selection of the early athletic association pins. In the beginning, they took on a sporty design featuring items like footballs, baseballs, gloves, a track cleat:
The Michigan Union Takes the Tradition
The origins of the Michigan Union date back to 1904 when a group of students and alums gathered and discussed an important idea. They wanted a place on the growing Ann Arbor campus for students, groups, and alumni to meet, eat, share ideas and socialize.
During this time the athletic association pins were very popular if not cherished on campus – but of course, they had nothing to do with the Union. That all changed when in April 1912 the Athletic Association officially transferred the tradition of issuing the buttons each year to the Union.
And the Union gladly adopted this lapel pin program. They knew the popular pins would be an incentive to attract members and collect dues.
Keep in mind the Union, in its formative years, was more akin to a private club versus the open campus gathering place than it is today. Here’s an example of a membership card issued with that first official “Union” button:
Starting with this transition, the designs moved away from the athletic themes and were replaced by varying geometric shapes to distinguish the pins from year to year. The new look still kept several basic features of the original athletic association concept.
First, the Union buttons consistently maintained a “block M” feature in the middle of the pin. Also, each pin used a “screwback” mechanism consisting of two pieces: an enamel front with a back that screwed through and secured the button to a lapel or collar. Finally, for several decades the face noted the digits of the school year:
Manufacturers
While these design standards were maintained, the manufacturer of the buttons evolved over the years. Here are the known companies that produced these pins:
- Wright Kay & Co – Detroit
- William Arnold – Ann Arbor (WM ARNOLD)
- Bastion Bros – Rochester, NY (BASTION BROS.)
- Whitehead & Hoag – Newark, NJ (WHITEHEAD & HOAG CO.)
- Burr, Patterson & Auld – Detroit
A special gold button was given to those who paid to be a Union ‘Life Member’. Originally this came with certain benefits including access to the Union hotel and yes, priority for football tickets. Generally speaking, the life member Union pins look like this:
The design for the life member button was solidified in 1913. Here’s an entry in the Michigan Daily from November 20, 1913:
The final major change was standardization starting in 1933. The buttons moved away from the unique geometric-shape designs and adopted an established Union logo. This brand (the words UNION vertically intersecting a block M) was stamped into many products tied to the Union including matchbooks, plates and cups, coffee pots, and more:
Here are a few of the Union-logo branded pins that ran from 1933 until 1943:
The tradition of producing a unique button for each school year ended in 1943. But the button tradition did not end there. A generic pin was still provided to students for at least another decade and it looked like this:
4,000 mile Journey
One final thought. It seems this tradition is lost in time. These pins and buttons were a tangible piece of a student’s experience on campus and they were cherished. In an age where people didn’t keep artifacts and collectibles like we do today, we know that many Michigan alums held tightly onto and prized their Union pins.
Check out this great story from the May 18, 1947, Michigan Daily. A 1904 grad named Santiago Artiaga lost his home and all his possessions, including his M Union pin, when the Japanese invaded the Philippines in WW2. After the war he did something about it:
Artiaga contacted U-M and reportedly traveled 4,000 miles back to Ann Arbor to replace his beloved Union pin. [Much more on Artiaga’s life and story here, in this Michigan Today piece.]
If you have one of these pins let me know! Email me at mail[at]mvictors.com or find me at MVictors on Twitter or MVictors on Facebook with a photo.
