In July 1953, the first Button Gwinnett Day was celebrated at the University of North Carolina Press. This year marks our fifty-first consecutive celebration.

In 1956, Button Gwinnett Day was given new meaning because of the discovery of a Gwinnett document among the Colgate papers given to Yale; in 1957, an even more exciting news item gave our celebration new impetus--the possible discovery of Gwinnett's grave in Savannah. In 1967, Fife and Drum Belts launched an advertising campaign involving buttons and bumper stickers lauding Button Gwinnett.

Our 1970 celebration brought us a new display. One of the charter members of the organization who lived in Athens, Georgia, made a special pilgrimage to Savannah to visit Button's shrine and sent us a photograph for our display. In 1971 we acquired two new items for our archives: a copy of a portrait of our hero (claimed to be authentic by the Fulton Federal Savings and Loan Association of Atlanta, in whose lobby the portrait hung until the bank fell victim to the S&L crisis); and a photograph of the Gwinnett County water tower, which was taken from a fast-moving car (courtesy of a member who was vacationing in the area).

The year 1972 was highlighted in a special manner. A holograph letter of Button's, worth $100,000, was the subject of a show in the "Mannix" television series. Our 1973 gathering brought us some stunning photographs of Gwinnett Street and the Signers' Monument in Augusta, Georgia, taken by a northern member of the society who had the good fortune to marry an Augusta woman.

The year of the bicentennial was especially rewarding. We acquired a copy of a poem written by Button's older brother, Samuel, from a manuscript collection in the Emory University Library; a member visiting New York was so fortunate as to happen upon two Gwinnett documents on display in the J. P. Morgan Library; and the archivist of the society at last fulfilled her long-time desire to visit the Gwinnett shrine in Savannah. In 1978 we were presented with a new display item: a facsimile of the shot that Button received in his thigh during the duel with McIntosh. Also, we received as a gift from the Georgia chapter of the Button Gwinnett Society (now unhappily disbanded) a copy of the limited edition of Button's only biography, which was published in 1926.

The year 1982 marked our thirtieth celebration of Button Gwinnett Day. In honor of this occasion, we received greetings from George Busbee, Governor of Georgia, and from Zell Miller, Lieutenant Governor of Georgia. In 1983, we acquired an attractive new exhibit, a lovely reproduction of a painting of the Gwinnett plantation on St. Catherine's Island. The year 1984 was particularly eventful because the Gwinnett portrait owned by the now defunct Fulton Federal Savings and Loan in Atlanta was authenticated and placed on longterm display at the new High Museum of Art. It was discovered in the museum by one of our members who was attending a scholarly meeting in Atlanta. [More about the portrait later.] In 1985, our founder and archivist visited Button's monument in the Signers' Garden in Washington, D.C., and her presence was witnessed by the camera.
In 1988 our celebration was marked by a visit from Elliott Brack, the associate publisher of the Gwinnett Extra (a special edition of the Atlanta Journal and Constitution), Mrs. Brack, and son Andy, who brought with them remarkable gifts for our archives, among which were a Button Gwinnett Centennial plate and a "Walk Like a Gwinnettian" (pronounced "Gwin-'eesh-un") poster. When Elliott Brack returned to Georgia, he wrote an article for the Constitution in which he stated that the "University of North Carolina Press is quickly becoming the largest repository of Button Gwinnett memorabilia in the country."

In 1990 the story of our hero was spread far and wide through the miracle of television. Don Ross recorded our celebration for Durham station WTVD, and the resulting feature was fed by satellite to stations all over America. Jim Weeks (husband of longtime Society member Pat Weeks) captured the event on his video cassette recorder for his posterity and ours. The Bracks once again sent many and wondrous gifts, including candy jars and beverage can insulators bearing the name of the Gwinnett County Bank.

In 1991, our celebration had a special poignance. Although our devotion to our cause transcends our attachment to the objects in our archives, Society members could not suppress their distress as they watched the fire that consumed the UNC Press offices in December. But miraculously the collection survived almost intact. So that year we added to our archives photographs of Society member Heidi Perov rescuing the memorabilia from the ruins, taken by Marjorie Fowler, whose keen sense of history inspired her to document the moment.

Except for water stains on a few pieces, the only significant loss in the fire was the banner that used to crown our display. So in 1992 our ever-vigilant archivist presented us with a new banner that will be the centerpiece of our celebrations in years to come.

The Brack connection was active again in both '94 and '95. In the former year we received copies of two books on Gwinnett County--"Vanishing Gwinnett" and "Dynamic Gwinnett", and in the latter year Mr. Brack sent us a copy of his column in which the entire history of our society, as read this morning, was reprinted in the Atlanta Constitution.

In 1996 we added to our collection pictures of the Gwinnett monument on the Rollins College "Walk of Fame," courtesy of a member who relocated to Florida. And in 1997 we received further proof of the inexorable spread of Button's fame, in the form of references--spotted by vigilant proofreader Michael Taeckens and detail master Roy Alexander--in Smithsonian magazine, volume 10 of the Nathanael Greene papers, and Rick Moody's book Purple America. Also added that year was a biographical and genealogical reference guide to the Signers of the Declaration, donated by former editorial assistant Deb Baldwin. Society member Bess Sadler furnished with a new photo of the Gwinnett water tower in closeup, with its proclamation of "Gwinnett Is Great."

In 1999 we received some important new information relating to Button's portrait, compliments of Jim Kvicala of the Gwinnett Daily Post. It seems the portrait of Button formerly owned by Fulton Savings and Loan was sold to a private collector when the bank filed for bankruptcy sometime between 1983 and 1985. This collector (identity unknown) did loan the portrait to the High Museum for a while, but it was returned to the owner in 1985. Its current location is unknown.

Furthermore, the authenticity of this portrait may still be in question. It turns out that the picture was authenticated by someone employed by the New York firm that auctioned off the painting--not exactly a disinterested party.

On another note, the new Mall of Georgia (located in the Gwinnett Co. area), which opened in 1999, features a 12-foot-tall statue of Button. No word on how they managed to authenticate the image of Button that they used in constructing the statue.

So in this, the year of our forty-ninth celebration, we are aware that our responsibility to keep Button's name alive is more important than ever. Our hope that this day might be celebrated nationally still has not yet been recognized, but we remain confident that with sustained dedication this forgotten man may one day come into his own.

 
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