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Historical Markers
Keystone
Markers
Highway
signs |
Historical
Markers and road signs
reproduced in miniature...
Welcome to
www.RoadsideMagnets.com
CREATING HISTORY FOR MORE THAN 25 YEARS! 1992-2019
Pennsylvania's blue
and gold historical marker designs are a registered trademark of
The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. Reprinted By
Permission.
For more than fifty years, historical
markers have informed and educated history buffs and the
traveling public. But until recently, historic sites and
societies could not take full advantage of these unique signs.
That is, until Historical Marker
Magnets came along!
For 27 years, Roadside Magnets has been the nation's
only manufacturer of miniature reproduction state and
private historical markers.
These Historical Marker Magnets are colorful,
durable, collectible wafer-thin slices of history - educational
remembrances of some of the most historic sites in the country.
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Who makes them?
Historical Marker Magnets are
the brainchild of Bruce Clark, owner of Roadside Magnets. Bruce
was always fascinated with history and the historical markers he
would see along the side of the road. With Historical Marker
Magnets, historic sites can now take full advantage of their
historical markers for the first time with an excellent
fund-raising product.
Now, guests can take home with
them a little "piece of history" in the form of a useful,
educational magnet.
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Click on
the COLLEGEVILLE keystone marker to visit
The Keystone Marker Trust.
Protecting and honoring these unique signs in Pennsylvania!
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What are they?
Historical Marker Magnets are silk-screened on a magnetic,
flexible vinyl surface and are only .030" thick. So, a stack of
100 measure a mere 3½ inches high, taking up very little shelf
space. They are thin, but the magnets are also strong.
They mail easily in membership mailings.
A black metal display stand is
available to keep near your register or at your fund-raising
event. These are great "impulse buying" items!
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Above: Photo of the
actual marker and the resulting miniature. |
What has been the response?
The reaction has
been nothing short of fantastic. Historic sites report
this as being one of their best-selling items. And several
newspapers, including the Philadelphia Inquirer, have been
unanimous in their praise of this unique educational idea.
Bruce originally
approached the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC)
with the idea. Soon, many PHMC historic sites were using
Historical Marker Magnets in their Gift Shops and
visitors were collecting them as they went from site to site.
Now Bruce is considering expanding from state-to-state with this (if you
will pardon the pun) "Revolutionary" idea.
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Above: Some of the
media coverage about Historical Marker Magnets. |
How are they made?
A photograph is submitted of
the actual marker. (A close-up photo of the top seal may also be
needed if the magnet is for a state not currently being made.)
An artist mimics the layout exactly, creating a silk-screen that
is used to make the magnets. We do NOT
change the text or do any magnets for non-existing markers! |
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Above: West Virginia
marker and private marker.
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How have they
been used?
These magnets have been used as
membership premiums, as giveaway items, at Gift Shops, as
fund-raisers, and at marker dedications. Perhaps you'll think of
yet another use for them! Since they are so thin, they easily go
through the mail in a normal envelope.
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Above: Privately
funded marker for J.E.B. Stuart.
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The magnets have been used by
historical societies, historical sites, museums, county
organizations, and for town celebrations. Anyone who wants to
promote their local history in a unique way can use these
magnets! |
How long does it
take?
We like to allow at least 4 to 5
weeks from the time the photograph is submitted until the time
the finished magnets are delivered. Depending on workload and
timing, it may take longer than this because of the quantities
needed to be produced to keep prices down. Multiple orders
must be gathered.
These magnets are
custom-made and Bruce personally inspects the artwork proof
before production and each magnet after they are made.
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How much do they
cost?
Our wholesale pricing depends on
number of colors used, the size of the magnet and quantity
required. We work very closely with small historic sites to meet
their needs for a custom, inexpensive, site-specific educational
product that can help promote their site and raise much-needed
funds. The minimum order for a new custom magnet is
250, and our goal is a wholesale price of $1.50 each (plus
the cost of
shipping). That way, they can easily retail for $3.00 each.
Note:
Some of our Pennsylvania
magnets, (like the above PHILADELPHIA and PENNSYLVANIA ones) are
"in-stock" items and are NOT subject to the 250 minimum order
requirement. These can be used at locations that do not have
their own site-specific or area marker. In Pennsylvania, there
are markers honoring every County, and these have also often
been used by historical groups who do not have a site-specific
marker.
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Above: Our 3x3 inch black/white magnet allows for more text |
Our wholesale pricing for 250
magnets is actually a quantity discount as if 1,000 magnets were
being ordered! To do this, Bruce tries to combine several small
orders to reach a production run of 1,000 magnets at one time.
If this can be done, each of these small (250) orders gets the
quantity discount without having to actually order 1,000
magnets!
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How do I get a
free sample?
It's easy!
If you represent a
historical society, site or museum and you are
considering using one of our custom magnets, e-mail us! Just
tell us the name of the historical society that you represent
and which nearby marker interests you.
Let us know what you have in
mind, and we'll send out a Historical
Marker Magnet
for your group to see.
This offer is
not open to the general public.
(Sadly, I have received numerous requests from people simply
interested in "something for nothing". This expense hurt my
small home-based business to the point where now I need
assurances that requests for magnets come from legitimate
historical societies and sites. If the problem continues, I may
have to request that sample requests are physically mailed to me
using historical society stationery with proper letterhead...).
Thanks for understanding that I am a small operation and that I
cannot afford to simply "give my product away!" I do not have a
mail-order catalog nor do I sell my magnets directly to the
public. They are available exclusively at the many historic
sites that carry them!
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Elvis Aaron Presley Historical
Marker Magnet that was sold at Graceland. |
(Sorry it is not
a clickable link. You must type it in your email.
Trying to reduce email SPAM.)
Roadside Magnets
P.O. Box 1545
North Wales, PA 19454-0545
Bruce
Clark, Owner
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