Queensland Ambulance Transport Brigade

The backmark is Millers Badges Sydney with a phone number. This is a new variant to the known Millers backmarks. It appears in Trove from 1981-1991, and is listed on ASIC as a current business name.

http://www.austbuttonhistory.com/australian-button-history/sample-page/#G_A_Miller_Sydney

The other Queensland Ambulance uniform buttons I have were made by A. J. Parkes  of Brisbane.

http://www.austbuttonhistory.com/14th-march-2021/

http://www.austbuttonhistory.com/uniform-buttons-2/sporting-clubs-and-volunteer-organisations/#Queensland_Ambulance_Transport_Brigade

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New Zealand Beauclaire

As can be seen here, some of the buttons sold and/or made in New Zealand by General Plastics were identical to the Australian products. Some of the cards were the same design, too. The only difference was found on the back of the card.

Woolworths Sew’n’ Save

These cards were sold between 1967 until 1972, when they were replaced by red, white, and blue cards with the ‘Big W’ symbol.

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New Finds

All three cards were sold by G. Herring which became Beutron (Aust) in 1963.

Late 1950s. Polyester was a new material for the company. It was supposedly similar to Mother of Pearl, but more wash resistant.

Ownership of the company changed in 1963. “New Beutron” was probably a reference to this change.

In the same year, 1963, their main competitor, General Plastics Ltd, was purchased by Beutron. Therefore Beutron took over supplying G. J. Coles with Embassy branded buttons.

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New Finds

A nice clean card from the late 1950s.

From 1963-1966.

From soon after October 1967.

Ten inches: i.e. pre February 1966.

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Woolworths

Cards of buttons were sold at Woolworths variety stores from the 1920s. They started to sell home-branded carded buttons from the early 1950s.

These are later examples, from the 1970s-80s. They are not marked as made in Australia,: perhaps Woolworth was starting to import its buttons at this time.

Grandway branding took over from Woolworth, possibly in the 1980-90s.

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Fashionable Buttons

I have similar cards (similar size,shape and artwork) marked ‘Embassy’ instead of ‘Fashionable Buttons’. The Embassy examples are mostly labelled as made in Western Germany (some Czechoslovakia), the Fashionable Buttons all from Czechoslovakia. Both carry glass buttons. There was ill-feeling about communist countries in the 1950s. Perhaps G. J. Coles decided they didn’t want there own brand name on communist-made buttons?

The Sunday Herald (Sydney) 8th October 1950 p.2

Late 1960s-1970s Embassy

The translucent buttons are made of polyester; the matte finish examples may be too.

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Buckles

Probably every button manufacturer also made buckles, often of the same colours, materials and designs. During times when  belts common on dresses and skirts, they were catering for the home-sewer who wanted matching buttons and buckles.

Technically, these are called slides, as they don’t have a prong. Early-mid 1950s.

Late 1960s-early 1970s. The buckle has been shrink-wrapped onto the card rather than sewn on as on the above card. Note the scoring on the card: this was for when it was used for selling buttons. If the buttons had shanks they could be pressed into the scored sections.

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New Finds

Probable General Plastics: 1940s

Although manufactures, both G. Herring P/L and General Plastics Ltd also sold imported items, such as these British Made buttons. They are similar to the buttons sold during the same era by Coronet; flat casein with a pressed design. General Plastics used the vine-leaf border on many pre-1951 cards.

Roger Berry

This distributor/wholesaler  took over Coronet around 1945. They retained the Coronet logo, but added the name Roger Berry. Perhaps cards with a large number of buttons, like this, were sold to clothing manufacturers.

Rex

The dual pricing of 2/6 or 25 cents dates this to February 1966-October 1967.

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Melbourne Tramway & Omnibus Company

Images thanks to Simon Clegg Photography.

The Melbourne Tram Museum in Hawthorn informs me that the logo was used on uniform buttons from 1885 until 1916. Stokes were located at Post Office Place from 1888 until 1935, but the name was “Stokes & Martin” until 1892-3. Therefore, this button dates between 1893-1916.

Museums Victoria Collections https://collections.museumsvictoria.com.au/items/773982

The Melbourne Tramways & Omnibus Company was formed in July 1877 from the existing Melbourne Omnibus Company, started in 1868. These trams were of the cable variety, not electric.

Weekly Times (Melbourne), 14th July 1877 p.14

They merged with the rival Victorian tramways Company in 1882. A Tramways Trust, composed of members from the councils through which the trams ran, was legislated to construct the tramways and lease them to the Company.

Illustrated Sydney News, 4th June 1892 p.7

The final cost of the tramway system was quoted in 1892 as about £1.650,000 , including construction, legal, etc. In 1916 the M.T.& O. and the Trust were taken over buy the Tramway s Board, which became the  Melbourne & Metropolitan Tramways Board (M.M.T.B.) in 1918.

Francis Boardman Clapp (1833-1920) was the original driving force for bus and tram services in Melbourne, and  the Chairman of the M.T.& O. A son, Harold Winthrop Clapp, became Chief Commissioner for railways in 1920. He has a diesel locomotive named in his honour.

PIC P805 LOC Q28-Bruce Howard collection [picture]/Romance of Australian trams photograph collection

1875 – 1952.

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New Finds:

Astor Buttons: 1960s-80s

Astor Industries still exist, but probably have not made buttons since 1985.

Shrink wrapped buttons: saves sewing them onto the card!

Demetre

J Demetre & Co Pty Ltd are currently in the process of being deregistered. They distributed (rather than manufactured) buttons on cards like this from 1964 until the early 1970s. They may have sold tubes of buttons after that. They registered the business name ‘Demetre Buttons’ in 2000-1.

Maxart

Although known for their buttons, they also produced buckles. I have this style in cream and pink.

Embassy

The Embassy branded buttons was a trigger for me to investigate who actually made Australian buttons, as labelled on the card. I knew Coles did not manufacture their own house-label products. It turned out to be firstly General Plastics Ltd, then after 1963, by Beutron (Aust) Ltd.

TrimFit

This label rings bells in my memory. Was this an Australian brand? I can find a Brisbane lingerie company from 1906-1939, and Trimfit swimming costumes and shorts were advertised from 1947-1954. Let me know!

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