After an extensive Internet search, I’ve concluded that I may be in possession of the only extant copy of the Warner & Swasey Company’s remarkable collection of American Business Ads, published 40 years ago under the title:

“1776-1976 What has really changed?”

These 92 examples, culled from the 1000 or so ads that Warner & Swasey ran between 1940 and 1976, offer an instructive glimpse into the history of their corporate branding.  More significantly perhaps, they constitute a primer of sorts on the virtues of free enterprise, honest labor, responsible management, and unabashed love of country.  As I read through them again, I’m deeply impressed by what Warner & Swasey stood for.

Let me illustrate with one of my favorites:

Bold headline, evocative story, thought-provoking lesson…and it’s as much about us, as individuals and Americans, as it is about the company and its products.  You probably have no use for a turret lathe with numerical control and program editor (small blurp in the lower right-hand corner), but you’re still moved by the message.  “If I don’t go, I don’t get.”

In a nutshell, everything we need to know about business, economics, prosperity, and self-respect – then and now.