John W. Hartman Center for Sales, Advertising & Marketing History
Adviews: A digital archive of thousands of vintage television commercials dating from the 1950s through the 1980s created or collected by the D'Arcy Masius Benton & Bowles advertising agency.
Ad*Access: An image database of over 7,000 advertisements printed in U.S. and Canadian newspapers and magazines between 1911 and 1955.
Browse our guide for collections related to radio and television advertising.
ROAD 2.0 (Resource of Outdoor Advertising Descriptions): A portal to more than 30,000 images of outdoor advertisements from five different source collections.
About
The Hartman Center for Sales, Advertising & Marketing History in the David M. Rubenstein Library acquires and preserves printed material and collections of textual and multimedia resources and makes them available to researchers around the world. Through these collections and related programming, the Center promotes understanding of the social, cultural, and historical impact of advertising, marketing, and sales.
Book Talk: The Fine Art of Persuasion, with Duke Professor Gennifer Weisenfeld
Come celebrate the launch of a new Duke faculty publication, The Fine Art of Persuasion: Corporate Advertising Design, Nation, and Empire in Modern Japan, by Walter H. Annenberg Distinguished Professor of Art and Art History Gennifer Weisenfeld on Thursday, April 10, 2025 from 4:00pm - 6pm in the Holsti-Anderson Family Assembly Room, Rubenstein Library 153. A reception with food and drink will follow. Read more about the event here.
Consumer Reports Archives
The Consumer Reports Archives documents the history of the mission-driven nonprofit consumer organization from its founding in 1936 through its emergence as the nation’s preeminent consumer advocacy and education organization. The archives is comprised of roughly 2,800 linear feet of material in 65 unique collections including archival materials, photographs, books, serials, and artifacts. These collections not only tell the story of Consumer Reports but also the broader consumer movement in the United States and abroad. Learn more about the collection here.
