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This collection consists of original and copy negatives taken by various sources over several decades. Most of the negatives were produced by the Office of News and Communication's News Bureau in the early years of Duke University and later by University Photography (upon its establishment).

The collection documents short-term, time-sensitive and event-specific aspects of marketing and sales promotion. Advertising campaigns ordinarily seek to promote sales, increase market share, and strive to maintain the enduring integrity of a brand name. Ephemeral marketing products work within a more limited frame that terminates at the end of an event or with the issue of a superseding edition: a dated catalog of products; new book announcements; festival programs; an advertisement for an auction or sales event; limited-time premiums such as silverware or collector cards included with a purchase. The collection includes articles; broadsides; brochures; business and trade cards; catalogs; circulars; clippings; direct-to-consumer mailings; event programs; manuals; maps; memoranda to sales agents; premium offers; price lists; religious literature; sales bulletins and announcements; souvenirs; travel and tourism literature; and other materials. Topical areas include: Agricultural and industrial machinery; banking and finance; building materials; business, correspondence, and other schools; clothing and footwear; death care (cemeteries, funeral supplies, gravestones, etc.); fairs and festivals; food; furniture; hair care; hardware; household appliances and furnishings; insurance; livestock; musical instruments; real estate; sewing goods; sporting goods; textiles; toiletries; transportation (airlines, automobiles, buggies and carriages, railroads, steam and cruise ships). Throughout the collection, images and artwork depict caricatures of Asians, Black and Indigenous people, women, occupations, and social classes that reflect racist, sexist, and classist attitudes and prejudices of the periods represented in the collection. Acquired as part of the John W. Hartman Center for Sales, Advertising & Marketing History.