Some playing cards give you a company name. Some give you a picture. And every once in a while, one gives you just enough clues to start chasing a whole neighborhood story.
This Butch advertising card does exactly that.
The card advertises Macedo’s Pharmacy in New Bedford, Massachusetts, with Gene Macedo listed as proprietor. The address on the card is 409 Rivet Street, with the phone number WY 4-5577.
At first, that looks like a simple local business ad. A pharmacy name. A street address. A phone number. But those few lines open up a much richer story.
Macedo’s Pharmacy appears to have been a family-run neighborhood pharmacy with deep roots in New Bedford’s South End. The business began in the early 1950s on Rivet Street, first around 413 Rivet Street, then moving across the street to 411 Rivet Street in the mid-1960s. By 1970, the pharmacy had moved again, this time to 117 Rockdale Avenue.
That gives the Butch card a nice little dating clue. Since this card lists the Rivet Street location, it belongs to the earlier chapter of the pharmacy’s life, before the Rockdale Avenue move.
And this was not just Gene’s story. The Macedo family seems to have been closely tied to the business. Gene Macedo was the founder, while Stella Macedo managed the front store. Theresa Macedo Brune, Gene’s sister, also worked at the pharmacy. Those details make the card feel much more personal. This was not a faceless advertisement from a chain drugstore. It was a family business, run by people whose names were known in the neighborhood.
That matters because a local pharmacy used to be more than a place to pick up prescriptions. It was part of the rhythm of daily life. People stopped in for medicine, greeting cards, small household items, conversation, advice, and errands. The pharmacist knew the customers. The customers knew the family. A place like Macedo’s would have been woven into the life of the block.
And then there is Butch.
Butch, the mischievous black-and-white Cocker Spaniel illustrated by Albert Staehle, was a perfect choice for this kind of advertising. He made the card friendly before you even read the business name. He was not formal or polished. He was funny, expressive, and just a little bit guilty-looking, the way a good dog often is.
That was the charm of Brown & Bigelow advertising cards. They turned a business name into something useful and memorable. A customer might keep a deck like this in a kitchen drawer, use it for family card games, bring it out for bridge, or tuck it away with other household things. The pharmacy’s name stayed in the home because the cards were not just advertising. They were useful.
The Butch image gave the deck warmth. Macedo’s Pharmacy gave it a place.
That combination is what makes this card so fun to research. It is not only a Butch card. It is not only a Brown & Bigelow advertising deck. It is also a small surviving piece of New Bedford history: a Portuguese-American neighborhood, a family-run pharmacy, a named proprietor, a moving storefront, and a little dog who helped carry the business name into people’s homes.
The card may be small, but it has a lot packed inside it.
A mischievous dog.
A family pharmacy.
A South End neighborhood.
A business that moved from Rivet Street to Rockdale Avenue.
And one more reminder that the best pieces of paper history are often the ones that were never meant to be history at all.
Interested in purchasing one of these cards? They are available in my Whatnot Shop: https://www.whatnot.com/listing/TGlzdGluZ05vZGU6MjEwMTg5ODA4MQ==
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