Helen Baker Cushman (1922-) was the founder and manager of H.M. Baker Associates, consultants in business archives and records from 1958 to 1993, headquartered in Westfield, New Jersey. In the course of conducting her business, Cushman collected a wide variety of business publications, trade cards, ephemera, and other memorabilia with special emphasis on world expositions. She also assembled her own general picture archive for use in her business.

Kennard-Pyle Company was a department store known for its women's clothing. By the late twentieth century, it was one of Delaware's oldest independent clothing retailers.

Springs Cotton Mills was a cotton textile manufacturer in Lancaster, South Carolina. It was founded in 1887 by Samuel Elliott White (1837-1911) and became a leader in the textile industry in South Carolina. Springs introduced a distinctive “Springmaid” advertising campaign during the 1940s and 1950s that used sex appeal to advertise the line. The ads feature sexually suggestive illustrations in the pin-up style and make liberal use of double entendres. Sexist attitudes and racial stereotypes are present. This small collection consists of a set of color advertising tearsheets for Springmaid Fabrics.