Iowa's Pearl Button Industry Featured in Smithsonian Exhibit

Iowa's pearl button industry featured in Smithsonian exhibit

Pearl buttons from Iowa are on display at the Smithsonian’s Museum of Natural History in Washington D.C., part of an “America 250” exhibit of rare objects and specimens from all 50 states. Dustin Joy, director of the National Pearl Button Museum in Muscatine, said someone from the Smithsonian contacted him about the project and the […]

Buttons from Iowa in ‘America 250’ exhibit at Smithsonian in DC

(Radio Iowa) – Pearl buttons from Iowa are on display at the Smithsonian’s Museum of Natural History in Washington D.C. — part of an “America 250” exhibit of rare objects and specimens from all 50 states. Dustin Joy — director of the National Pearl Button Museum in Muscatine — says someone from the Smithsonian contacted him about the project. “Most people don’t know what pearl buttons are. They are not made of pearls,” Joy said. “They are made f…