CT-01. Citizen's Committe, McLevy for Governor. Cello, 7/8 inch. Jasper
McLevy ran for governor of Connecticut innumerable times between the 1920s
and the 1950s; he was also elected mayor of Bridgeport on the Socialist
Party ticket.
CT-02. 3rd Lever, McLevy for Governor. Cello, 7/8 inch.
CT-04. Vote Socialist, Elect McLevy, 3rd Lever. Cello, 7/8 inch. Similar
to CT-05, but on this pin the white lettering is not as thin as on CT-05.
Also, on this pin the lettering on the word "McLevy" is slightly
shorter and thicker. This pin has "Bastian Bros. Co., Rochester, N.Y."
in miniscule letters on the lower curl while CT-05 does not.
CT-05. Vote Socialist, Elect McLevy, 3rd Lever. Cello, 7/8 inch. Similar
to CT-04, but on this pin the white lettering is considerably thinner than
on CT-04. Also, on this pin the lettering on the word "McLevy"
is slightly taller and less thick. This pin lacks the "Bastian Bros.
Co., Rochester, N.Y." in miniscule letters on the curl.
CT-09. Re-Elect McLevy, 3d Lever. Cello, 7/8 inch.
CT-10. Thomas & McLevy, 3rd Lever. Litho, 15/16ths inches. The only
Socialist Party coattails button in existence. This is a Connecticut button
that supports Norman Thomas for president and Jasper McLevy for governor.
Thomas ran for president six times; McLevy ran for governor of Connecticut
fifteen times. McLevy ran all six years that Thomas ran, thus theoretically
this button could date from 1928, 1932, 1936, 1940, 1944, or 1948. A little
reading on the history of the Socialist Party, however, tells us that Thomas
and McLevy were bitter factional enemies during the 1936, 1940, and 1944
elections, and were not even on speaking terms. Thus it seems more likely
that the Connecticut Socialist Party, or McLevy's own managers, produced
this button in 1928, 1932, or 1948.
CT-11. Vote Socialist, Elect Freese, 3rd Lever. Cello, 7/8 inch. Arnold
E. Freese was a Socialist congressional candidate in Connecticut's fourth
district (including Bridgeport) in 1932 and 1934. In the latter year he
won more than 21,000 votes. He may have been a Socialist office-seeker in
other years as well. Irving C. Freese was a perennial Socialist candidate
for mayor of Norwalk, Connecticut (1933-1951), and was elected and served
two terms between 1947 and 1951. He was also an independent mayoral candidate
(successful and unsuccessful) after 1950. It is not clear which of the two
Freeses this button supports.
CT-12. J. Henry Stump, Mayor of Reading. Jasper McLevy, Mayor of Bridgeport.
Daniel W. Hoan, Mayor of Milwaukee." 1935 cello trigate measuring 1.75
inches in diameter. Overall length of item is approximately 4.5 inches.
The three mayors are pictured, with their office given below each portrait.
Text in gold on the red ribbon reads: "Socialist Victory Celebration,
Reading, Pa., Nov. 1935." Backpaper of Keystone Badge Co., Reading,
Pennsylvania. In our numbering system this item also has numbers assigned
for Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. For a 1935 newspaper article that mentions
this pin, click
here.
