Button, Button, Who’s Got the Button? Posted on January 13, 2026

I found this charming button in an antique secretary here at the Scott Family Collection. The button was attached to a small piece of paper indicating that the image is of John T. Kerr, Jr. who was born in 1898.

This button looks old timey now, but when it was made, such things were all the rage. The button was made by placing a small photograph on a metal backing and then covering it with clear celluloid. Celluloid was an early form of plastic, but not a true plastic, as the formula contained some organic material.

The secretary, a lovely pre-Civil War piece, was a bequest from John Jr.’s son, John Thomas Kerr III (1925-2021). I found the button and some lapel pins in one of the drawers.

The Kerr family and the Scott family are related through ancestors Nathaniel Greene Kerr and Margaret Graham (Barrett) Kerr.  Nathaniel Greene Kerr was a patriot who served in the Revolutionary War. His grandson, John T. Kerr, settled in Durham and started a foundry.

John Thomas Kerr III was a college student when in 1945 he interrupted his studies to join the Navy. After his service, he finished his degree and then joined the family business, Durham Foundry & Machine Works. John had many interests but perhaps chief among them was his love for his family, his church, and Kerr family history. He was a charter member of the Saint Andrew’s Society of North Carolina and was very active in all things Kerr. Thank you, John!