A long, long time ago a young mother named Carol took her six-year-old son Rob to Walt Disney World. She bought a three day park pass . . . then the problem became apparent! How do you ensure that a very active youngster doesn’t lose a valuable ticket? Hmmm . . . what to do?
It was then that she spotted some Disney buttons on a nearby counter and the problem was solved. She grabbed a Mickey Mouse button, pinned the ticket to the little scamp’s shirt and pointed him at the rides. Zoom – he was gone in a cloud of dust and the ticket was secure! After three days it was still secure; what a great idea!
The “pin-the-ticket” trick continued for a few years and she had acquired a small bag full of buttons by the time Rob was old enough to be trusted to take care of his own ticket. Pictured below are the buttons that secured his tickets in 1977. That red Mickey Mouse button was holding his ticket in the picture above.
Here is eight year old “Rebel” Rob. He had a Goofy button holding his ticket in 1979!
Have I mentioned that Carol is a compulsive collector? Could she stop picking up buttons just because there was no longer a need for them! No, of course not!
Rob collected buttons for several years as well; Carol inherited his collection when he moved on to new interests!
Naturally Disney is very helpful when it comes to Carol’s affliction. They are always issuing new buttons. Every time they release a new movie, open a new ride or attraction, celebrate the birthday of a theme park, there is a new button to commemorate the occasion.
Carol now has a collection of 340 Disney buttons, all different shapes, sizes and colors. Beyond her 340 “keeper” buttons she has a big bag of “traders”.
The buttons are all sorted and categorized into groups:
– Carsland
– D23
– Disney Cruise Line
– Disney Movies
– Disney Vacation Club
– Disney’s Animal Kingdom
– Disneyana
– Disneyland
– EPCOT
– Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party
– Theme Park Birthdays
– Walt Disney Classic Collection
– Walt Disney World
– Everything else – oddities which don’t fit the categories above.
Let’s take a look at a few of the EPCOT buttons.
There were some very unique buttons when EPCOT first opened.
It seems that every time we travel Carol finds a bin or basket full of buttons and she always stops to search through them for hidden Disney treasure. More often than not she finds some!
There are always new buttons when a Disney video is released!
She tries to collect all of the Earth Day buttons and all of the Disney Conservation Fund buttons and there are only a few of each she is missing. Special occasion buttons are fun too!
There are plenty of birthday and anniversary buttons.
Every time a theme park, character or movie hits a milestone year it’s an opportunity for a new button . . . and Carol has plenty of them.
Every button tells a story and many of the buttons in Carol’s collection bring back fond memories of happy times. Can you see the happy memories in the buttons pictured below?
Here’s one final picture for you, the button on the left is the first one Rob ever wore at Walt Disney World. It held his ticket on his t-shirt in 1977 when he was six years old. The button on the right is one he wore on his latest trip, just a few months ago.
Do you have any Disney buttons? What sort of memories do they evoke for you?
To Gary- Love this and are there any others than the usual we see on every vacation? I have all the most recent ones from the last 8 years but I feel like I only see the same 7 or 8 in rotation.
To Sara the first poster – My daughter is Autistic too and I love your button idea! I might have to steal it for our next trip if that’s ok with you?
[Gary writes: Thanks Pam. There used to be different birthday and celebration buttons for each theme park, but they are all standardized now. There are different buttons for Disneyland, Walt Disney World and Disney Cruise Line, so there is still some a variety to search for. And each new event, like Year of A Million Dreams or the recent Hollywood Studios 25th Anniversary features new buttons.
PinPics.com, an online database of Disney pins and buttons, currently has over 5,000 buttons in their database. There is a vast assortment for avid collectors to seek out.
I cannot speak for Sara, but I’m reasonably confident that she would not mind you sharing her wonderful idea. Disney fans are usually very happy to share!]
Thank you for another great story.
Who knew there were that many buttons around the World? I shall be on the lookout for some on my next trip down south.
Love this article! I too have collected Disney buttons since 1972.
I remember that they used to be just one dollar! I have a lot of the ones pictured, and others too.
Pins are more popular today, but I will still buy a button when I can at Disney.
Gary, you never disappoint with your articles. I love the history of Disney and this one has made me want to go home and dig through what I have saved.
I think there is a difference between collecting and saving. Your article has made me want to become a collector. Thanks!!
What a beautiful collection!
We’ve gotten the Birthday pins,1st trip pins,special occasion pins and a conservation pin. I noticed duting our first visit the cast members really pay attention to pins . My son has Autism so before we left I had pins made that say ” Autism is my super power” …. They paid attention and seemed to be very understanding. It was much easier than having to explain over and over.
[Gary writes: Yes, the buttons do get attention, when Carol and I wear birthday or anniversary buttons we receive plenty of nice comments. I watch for buttons and try to pass on a “Happy Birthday” or “Happy Anniversary” whenever I can.
Love the Super Power button for your son, great idea!]