Commemorative buttons were the first known promotional products in the United States. They have been traced back to 1789 when George Washington was elected president. Advertising calendars, wooden specialties, and the Farmers' Almanac all date back to the early and mid 1800s. But is was not until the latter part of the century that an abundance of promotional products were developed and marketed, leading to the birth of the industry as it's known today.

Jasper Freemont Meek was one of the men responsible for significant contributions to this new industry in the 19th century. He owned a small newspaper in Coshocton, Ohio and was faced with the challenge of making ends meet because his newspaper did not generate enough revenue. He tried to create new business that would utilize his printing press between editions. Many small newspapers at the time faced similar challenges.

Mr. Meek approached a friend, Mr. Cantwell, owner of Cantwell Shoes, with an idea about building store traffic, name recognition and ultimately increasing sales. Mr. Meek's idea was to imprint a burlap book bag with a simple but direct advertising message, "Buy Cantwell Shoes." The bag was to be given, free, to every child who came into the shoe store. The children would carry the bag in the streets and take the bag home so Cantwell's message would be seen all over town. Mr. Meek manufactured the book bag, imprinted the advertising slogan on his printing press, and both Meek and Cantwell reaped the rewards.

After launching another successful promotional product, imprinted horse covers, seen on almost every horse in town, Meek officially started his own promotional products company, the Tuscarora Advertising Co. He hired a sales force to cover a good portion of the United States. The company was innovative and successful.