Boyer Chemical Laboratory Co., est. 1912

Museum Artifacts: Boyer “Flowers of Beauty” and No. 34 Face Powder, 1930s-40s

Made By: Boyer Chemical Laboratory Co. / Boyer International Laboratories, Inc., 2700 S. Wabash Ave., Chicago, IL

“In France are the great masters of the art of perfumery and preparations for beauty. Nowhere else in the world is the art as highly developed or the materials available as fine or rare in quality.

Overton Hygienic MFG Co., est. 1898

Museum Artifact: Overton’s High Brown Face Powder, 1944

Made By: The Overton-Hygienic Manufacturing Company, 3621 S. State Street, Chicago, IL

“High-Brown Face Powder clings so closely and matches the skin so perfectly that no one ever suspects the powder is there. The quality is rare, the perfume rich and fragrant. . . . Every known facility and method for the manufacture of face powder are employed so as to yield the famous High Brown quality demanded by the ‘lady who knows.’” —Overton Hygienic MFG Co.

Valmor Products Co., est. 1926

Museum Artifacts: “Lucky Brown” Hair Pressing Oil (1938) and “Slick Black” Promo Poster, c. 1940s

Made By: Valmor Products Co. / Famous Products Co., 2241 S. Indiana Ave., Chicago, IL

Whether you enjoy debating the ethics of cultural appropriation, the definition of true art, or the line between female empowerment and objectification, the story of the Valmor Products Company basically covers all the bases—like a pulp-novel catalog of 20th century American contradictions.

Western Felt Works, est. 1899

Museum Artifact: Salesman’s Pamphlet with Original Felt Samples, c. 1920s

Made By: Western Felt Works, 4029-4117 W. Ogden Ave., Chicago, IL

“Today is felt’s heyday. Its use is almost universal, and its appeal . . . well, its appeal is the appeal the individual is capable of creating. For every display use, there has never been a more versatile material.” —Display World magazine,

Theo. A. Kochs Company, est. 1871

Museum Artifact: Barber Chair Footrest (Lower Plate), c. 1920s

Made By: Theo. A. Kochs Company, 659-679 N. Wells Street, Chicago, IL

“Quality is our watchword, and chairs of our manufacture can be depended upon to be as near perfection as is possible. We aim to make only the very best, and economy is never allowed to interfere with the quality of the goods.

Pepsodent Company, est. 1915

Museum Artifact: Pepsodent Antiseptic Bottle, c. 1930s

Made By: The Pepsodent Co., 6901 W. 65th Street, Chicago, IL

“Pepsodent Mouth Wash kills the stubborn germs in the fastest time it is possible for science to record . . . This remarkable discovery is a new and powerful weapon in fighting germ infections and diseases. It combats instantly the social evil of bad breath.” —Pepsodent Antiseptic advertisement,

Boye Needle Company, est. 1905

Museum Artifact: Boye Rotary Case for Sewing Machine Supplies, c. 1920s

Made By: Boye Needle Company, 4339-4343 N. Ravenswood Ave., Chicago, IL

“The public knows that where this Case is found, the well-known High Grade ‘Boye’ Needles, Shuttles and Bobbins can be secured.” –Boye Needle Co. advertisement, 1909

One might presume that selling sewing supplies in the early 1900s was a cinch.

Green Duck Company, est. 1906

Museum Artifacts: Franklin D. Roosevelt Pinback Campaign Button (1936), and 22 Pinbacks of Flags from Around the World (c. 1920s)

Made By: The Green Duck Company, 1725 W. North Ave., Chicago, IL

“We were as happy to be of service to the GOP as to the Democrats, and vice versa. Where politics is concerned, ‘I’m For Me’ and Green Duck is for Green Duck.

Hump Hair Pin MFG Co., est. 1903

Museum Artifact: Hump Hair Pins Set No. 6, 1920s

Made By: Hump Hair Pin MFG Co. / Gaylord Products Co., 1936 S. Prairie Ave., Chicago, IL

“Ingenuity is not always confined to skyscrapers and bridges. The inventor often achieves fame through smaller means. The Hump hairpin is a new invention ingenious enough to secure a niche in the woman’s hall of fame for the man who devised it.” —Hump Hair Pin advertisement,

Gateway Engineering Co., est. 1933

Museum Artifact: Gateway Junior Model NP-1 Sewing Machine, c. 1950

Made By: Gateway Engineering Company / Gateway Erectors, Inc., 233 W. Grand Ave., Chicago, IL

“The Toy Sewing Machine that really sews!” —1948 advertisement for the Gateway Junior Model

Produced only for a short time from the late 1940s into the 1950s, the Gateway line of toy sewing machines represents a case study in a business making the most out of its extraneous materials.

Florsheim Shoe Company, est. 1892

Museum Artifact: Florsheim Ladies Shoes, c. 1940s

Made By: Florsheim Shoe Company, 3963 W. Belmont Ave. and 130 S. Canal Street , Chicago, IL

“I have always attributed our success to three essentials: a good shoe, an efficient organization, and advertising—always keeping in mind that our shoe measured up to everything that we said in our advertising.” —Milton S. Florsheim,

J. E. McBrady & Co., est. 1904

Museum Artifact: Marvelous Perfume – Gardenia, c. 1930s

Made By: J. E. McBrady & Company, 1047 W. Van Buren St., Chicago, IL

Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.

Murray’s Superior Products Co., est. 1925

Museum Artifact: Murray’s Superior Hair Dressing Pomade, 1926

Made By: Murray’s Superior Products Company, 3610 S. Cottage Grove Ave., Chicago, IL

Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.

Mid City Uniform Cap Co. & Citation Hat Corp., est. 1925

Museum Artifacts: Citation Beaver Quality Fedora, c. 1950s, and Mid City Khaki Garrison Cap, 1948

Made By: Citation Hat Corp. / Mid City Uniform Cap Company, 2330 W. Cermak Rd., Chicago, IL

“I hate like hell to praise myself, but at the same time I cannot go away from the truth.” —Harry Lev

In the summer of 1955,

Platt Luggage, Inc., est. 1921

Museum Artifact: Platt “Airess” Train Case, c. 1940s

Made By: Platt Luggage, Inc., 2001 N. Elston Ave., Chicago, IL

Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.

Bear Brand Hosiery Co., est. 1894

Museum Artifact: Bear Brand Hosiery Box – Women’s Hose 103 Biscayne, c. 1920s

Made By: Bear Brand Hosiery Company (formerly Paramount Knitting Co.), 337 W. Madison St., Chicago, IL

Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.

Kling Bros. & Co., est. 1897

Museum Artifact: Tailor’s Measuring Tape, c. 1930s

Made By: Kling Bros. & Co. Inc., 2300 W. Wabansia Ave, Chicago, IL

“Garments that combine character and charm with lines that are clean cut, comfortable, and correct. . . . Are you one of the ten thousand dealers who know the immeasurable satisfaction to be found in KLING-MADE clothing specialties?”—1920 ad for Kling Bros.

Chicago Printed String Company, est. 1915

Museum Artifact: Ribbonette Ribbon Spool Dispenser, c. 1940s

Made By: Chicago Printed String Co., 2300 W. Logan Blvd, Chicago, IL

“In the decorative wrapping and ribbon business, you can’t find any larger than Chicago Printed String.” —Chicago Tribune, August 5, 1960

While the name would certainly suggest a homegrown original, the Chicago Printed String Company could actually trace its beginnings about 4,500 miles to the east,

Johnson Products Company, est. 1954

Museum Artifact: Ultra Sheen Conditioner & Hair Dress – 8oz Jar, c. 1970s

Made By: Johnson Products Company, Inc., 8522 S. Lafayette Ave., Chicago, IL

Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.

Maybelline Company, est. 1915

Museum Artifact: Maybelline Mascara, c. 1940s

Made By: Maybelline Co. Distr., 5900 N. Ridge Ave., Chicago, IL

When the company now known as Maybelline New York marked its 100th anniversary in 2015, the celebration was—much like that patently unnecessary name change—almost suspiciously disconnected from the real history of a business born, built, and largely defined in Chicago.

A promotional blitz that could have served as the long overdue “coming out”

Princess Pat, Ltd., est. 1907

Museum Artifact: Princess Pat Duo-Tone Rouge, c. 1931

Made By: Princess Pat, Ltd., 2709 South Wells Street, Chicago, IL

“She is exquisite, this woman of today. She is frank—too vivid and intense for pretense. She revels in luxury . . . Color, line, softness, she perceives and strives for. She does not fear her mirror.” —excerpt from Princess Pat sales booklet,

T. C. Gleason MFG Co., est. 1905

Museum Artifact: Knights of Columbus Ceremonial Sword, c. 1930s

Made By: T. C. Gleason MFG Co., 325 W. Madison St., Chicago, IL

A Knights of Columbus sword, as you might presume, is made for symbolic, decorative use—not for combat. That being said, the sword in our collection, likely dating from the 1930s, is just sharp enough—and rusty enough—to at least pose a minor threat of tetanus.

Russell Electric Co., est. 1914

Museum Artifact: No. 45 “Hold Heet” Marcel Waver Curling Iron, c. 1920

Made By: Russell Electric Company, 340 W. Huron Street, Chicago, IL

Research is underway on this one and a full write-up will be coming soon.